“It’s a bit of a training check in, to see where they are all at, and we’ll do some team building, bring in some past Olympians, we’ll have relay activities. The relays are a critical part of our Olympian campaign so we want to make that front and centre.”
Australia sits in a perfect position to launch a serious assault on the Tokyo pool. While other major swimming nations, including the USA, continue to be beset by roaring COVID-19 outbreaks, Australia has largely enjoyed unrestricted access to pools and coaching.
Combined with a friendly timezone for a fly-in, fly-out Games and a well-worn path towards competition, via a staging camp in Cairns, there will be few excuses for the Dolphins once they are in the water in Tokyo. Taylor knows that only too well.
“Definitely, we’re very fortunate to be in a country where we don’t really have any COVID and are able to move fairly freely, which allows our athletes to move and train and have water space. Knowing what I know from large parts of the rest of the world, that’s not the case,” Taylor said.
“I do think we’re in an advantageous position but you have to deliver when it matters. We have to keep our foot on the pedal because we don’t know what is around the corner. We expect everyone around the world to show up in the best shape possible.”
Lack of top-shelf racing is a constant bugbear for Australian swimmers, who historically haven’t had access to the kind of lead-up meets that are par for the course in Europe or the USA. That puts a sharp focus on meets like the Australian Championships on the Gold Coast in April, which serves as the major entree to the Olympic trials in Adelaide in June.
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“Competition is the big thing for us. We need competition to get ourselves ready. But we’re in a position where we can do that. We have to take advantage of that and let everyone else take care of themselves,” Taylor said.
Olympic 100m freestyle champion Kyle Chalmers will be on the Gold Coast as he continues his way back from shoulder surgery. He will have his workload managed but Taylor believes his presence alone, along with other team leaders like Mack Horton, will rekindle the Olympic fires within the Dolphins.
Chalmers is expected to be back at full flight in coming months as he prepares for his showdown with American star Caeleb Dressel, who took gold in a sizzling final at the 2019 FINA World Championships.
“He is building really well, he’s on track, I’m not sure when he’s back to his full training loads. But he’ll be a big part of the camp and we’ll make sure his work is appropriate,” Taylor said.
“But the camps are more than just training … we want everyone to go back motivated and ready to really push ahead.”
