If Duncan Scott wanted an example of succeeding in the face of adversity, then he did not have to look far on his Olympic debut in Rio.
Then just 19 and barely a year into his senior international career, Scott was in the same apartment as Adam Peaty, bidding to become Britain’s first male Olympic swimming gold medallist in 24 years.
When Peaty’s luggage failed to arrive following the holding camp prior to the Games, most people would have gone into panic mode. Under immense pressure before his debut Games, Peaty barely batted an eyelid and went out and won gold.
It is an approach that Scott is trying to emulate.
Scott recalls: “We travelled to the village from our holding camp and then all of Peaty’s stuff got taken and his event is first up at the Olympics. And the way he was able to let that sort of stuff happen and just carry on. Being in an apartment with him and seeing the way he just carried on, nothing was really going to bother him. You want that sort of relaxed, focused mindset.”
In Tokyo, the pair will be part of the same relay team looking to become the first British relay team to win Olympic swimming gold since 1908.
Their medley relay team certainly has the pedigree. In Peaty, Britain have the man with the 14 fastest 100m breaststroke performances of all-time, while Scott’s final relay leg to overhaul former Olympic champion Nathan Adrian to win World Championship gold in Gwangju in 2019 is the second fastest relay split ever.
With Luke Greenbank’s backstroke times dropping in 2021 and James Guy still as quick as ever on the butterfly, the team cruised to European glory last week in Budapest – one of Scott’s four gold medals and five in all.
And the 24-year-old knows that with the advantage Peaty’s dominance gives them, the chance of a gold is certainly on the table.
He said: “Any team with Peaty in it has a great shot. I think it’s a shame for someone of his dominance to get overlooked because of the lack of events that he is able to do at an Olympic Games.
“We’ve got to go in with full confidence. (Luke) Greenbank has been a massive advantage, his 200m back has come on which has given him confidence in the 100m and dropping that time is a real differentiator for us in comparison with ourselves in 2019.
“We just need to compare our own legs to 2019 (World Championships) and see where we can get better. I think when you stand behind the block with some of the guys I get to race with, it does fill you with confidence and it should do.”
With two Olympic silver medals already to his name, Scott knows what it is like to excel on the biggest stage.
Those both came in relays, but in Tokyo he will look to secure a first individual medal as well, having qualified for the 100m and 200m freestyle, as well as the 200m individual medley. He is the British record holder in all three events.
And while 2020 was a year like no other, in swimming and outside, Scott feels fortunate about the preparation he has had.
He added: “I’ve probably had some of the best racing experiences over the last 12 months comparatively with the rest of the world. I’ve been really fortunate with what I’ve been able to do. What British Swimming and the ISL (the International Swimming League) have been able to put on, I’ve been really lucky. I’ve had competitions in the calendar which have gone ahead and British Swimming have been able to put on different things. So I’ve been really fortunate.”
Sportsbeat 2021