Article by Jacquelin Magnay, courtesy of The Australian.
Elijah Winnington couldn’t stop caressing his silver medal.
When he touched the wall, knowing that the German world leader Lukas Märtens, had led from start to finish in the 400m freestyle final, the Queenslander just wanted to check he had finished second.
For finally Winnington could hold an Olympic medal.
His relay medal won from the Tokyo Olympics three years ago has stayed in the drawer unopened and he was so despondent from those Games, not living up to his top ranking and missing an individual medal, that he had given up on swimming entirely.
Winnington took time away from the pool, thinking his swimming career was over until “I was getting fat and lazy” – and he then tentatively dipped his feet back into the water.
“At one point you know, you got to get out of bed and stop feeling sorry for yourself and I just wanted to go back to something and just have fun with my friends,” he said.,
“It was a slow build back as I had a couple of months out of the water. And then one day I just fell in love with it again.”
Winnington’s elation at the La Defense Arena was at odds with the tears of teammate Sam Short, who kept his head down and didn’t want to talk to anyone.
Short had just missed the podium by 14 hundredths of a second, the South Korean Kim Woo-min out-touching him for the bronze.
Woo-min’s medal revised the controversy around the Australian coach Michael Palfry, who coaches the South Korean by email and who was admonished by team officials for encouraging him to beat the Australians in the race.
Kim said: ”I felt like my legs and arms were burning out. I didn’t realise I’d won a medal until the moment I touched the pad. I looked at the crowd and I saw the Koreans waving the flag and cheering, and I felt, ‘Did I make it?’ I made it.”
Winnington immediately empathised with Short’s predicament, “I wouldn’t count him out yet” from the longer distance races later.
“He’s still so young. He’s younger than what I was in Tokyo. And, you know, I’m still here three years on, and he’s got so many years ahead of him. He’s already a world champion. He’s got a great head on him.
“He’s also still got a big week where I would arguably say that the 800 and the 1500 are more suited to him.
“I wouldn’t count him out yet. He’s a great kid. I’m sure I’ll have a couple words to him tonight to make sure he’s okay, because he is my teammate after all.’’
Winnington noted how the Olympic village environment was not conducive to high performance and a slick time.
“Walking kilometres a day, the foods crap, your sleeping on crap beds”, so it just comes down to a race.
A different style of Winnington strutted to the blocks at the beginning of the race, turning to his family and doing a little dance. It was a sign of what was to come.
“I was thinking of this as Disneyland,” he said.
“I was relaxed.
“I never normally come out and do a weird walk, but I just let it be me.
“And, I mean, it worked.
“I had a lot of fun out there, and I’ve got a silver medal around my neck.”
Winnington said he was relieved about his performance and gave thanks to God for giving him confidence going into the race.
“After this morning’s heat swim, a thought dwelled in my head that I was lane six in the Tokyo final,” he said.
“It’s very well could all repeat itself. But it didn’t.’’
