Swimming is so demanding that longevity within the sport requires the sort of dedication that is reserved to very few – even among the elite.
It is what makes Adam Peaty’s success so remarkable. In Tokyo last year he became the first Briton ever to defend an Olympic swimming title, cementing his position as the country’s greatest-ever swimmer.
So when Tom Dean achieved the unthinkable in Japan and won two Olympic gold medals at the age of 21, there was never any question over where he would turn for advice on how to ensure that he is more than just the very best kind of one-hit wonder.
He explains: “I’m fortunate in that we already have someone in the team who has backed up Olympic golds with Olympic golds. He happens to be swimming at the same time as I’m swimming, in this era. So I have spoken to Adam about it.
“That is what it is all about for me at the moment, winning after winning. Going to Paris and defending that title. After doing my research, no one has ever done that before, no one has ever defended the 200m freestyle title in the history of the sport so to be the first man to do that would be really well.
“The only person’s whose brains I can pick about that is Adam so it’s been a topic of conversation between us. That is what gets me really excited, that legacy of defending a title but it takes real mental strength and resilience to be able to commit yourself to another year and another year of training to back it up.
“He never set a barrier on himself or a ceiling for his own performance. Although that sounds slightly cliched, in the case of Adam it is true.
“Any person who wins on a world stage wants to back it up with more performances. It’s one thing to reach the top but it’s another to really stay up there and that’s what the greats of this sport are able to do.
“I’ve just turned 22, I was 21 when I won at the Olympics, I’ve still got quite a few more years in the sport. I want to keep adding to the CV. I wouldn’t have it start any other way, going straight to Olympic gold. But I’ve still got a few other things I want to add to the repertoire.
“The focus is to go and defend your title in worlds, to go and win commonwealth medals, Europeans and stamp your name and to go and really show you have a presence and that you can back up wins after wins. Because that is what the greats of the sport are able to do. It’s not just a one-hit wonder, it’s holding that dominance in the sport that is the really tricky part.”
Dean enjoyed an extended break from the pool after his Olympic success, agreeing with coach Dave McNulty to wait until he had regained his hunger for the sport.
That came at the tail end of 2021, watching the International Swimming League and realising that the competitive edge had returned.
The serious business began in January, ahead of 12 months in which Dean will look to add world, Commonwealth and European titles to his Olympic crown.
The first of those will be the World Championship in Budapest, an event where Britain will be without Peaty as he recovers from a foot injury.
And while the absence of the eight-time world champion is inevitably a huge blow, Dean believes the depth in the British swimming ranks means that they will be able to cope without their brightest star.
He said: “I think it will be tough because Adam is such a dominant figure in the world of swimming and he has the CV to back it up. But at the same time, the team is just getting stronger and stronger.
“Look at our medal count from Tokyo compared to Rio. Look at Rio compared to that of London when it was just two medals.
“We are coming home with such a great haul from these competitions that although it will be tough not to have him there, I feel like the team will do such a brilliant job.”
Dean will be front and centre of that charge, looking to cement his own place in the country’s swimming legacy.
His success and the heart-warming video of his family watching back home in Maidenhead captured the imagination last summer, and further success this year would enhance Dean’s position as one of the poster boys of the sport.
He added: “The reaction video from Tokyo was quite special and I still get people who stop me and talk to me about that. It’s a really special memory of mine and I still like watching that video today. Hopefully they can bring that energy to the Worlds, to the Commies in England.
“That will be the most exciting part of it. Some of people crack under the arena environment, some people it really brings them up.
“Personally, I’m a sportsman, it’s my job to perform in front of crowds, to put in good performances on the day when it matters and really use that as a source of energy and confidence. It’s exactly what I’m going to do going into these major competitions.”
Dean has shown that he can produce the big performances at exactly the right time, his next test is showing that he can do so over and over again.
Sportsbeat 2022