Paris 2024: Adam Peaty fights burnout and aims for third gold medal

Just over a year ago, Adam Peaty was asked a question that would define the next phase of his life.

“What do you want to do?” the coach asked. Would he want to do it again?

“At that moment I just wanted to stop, I wanted it all to stop,” Peaty told BBC Sport.

“I never wanted to see the pool again. I'd been beaten up so many times.”

Peaty had won two Olympic gold medals in the previous nine years and was the first British swimmer to defend an Olympic title.

For eight of those years he was unbeatable in the pool – an astounding unbeaten run that included breaking the 100m breaststroke world record five times – and outside the pool he was a sparkling, sequined star dancing in Britain's living rooms every Saturday night.

But in 2022 and 2023 everything was different.

“Everything fell apart. I fell apart,” he says.

“I didn’t take a break after the 2021 Olympics.

“I went straight to work and did a bit of dancing, thinking it would cheer me up, but I ended up breaking my leg later that year.

“That's what's led me to severe burnout in 2023.”

Peaty missed the 2022 World Championships due to a broken leg, meaning he went to the Commonwealth Games unprepared.

There he finished fourth in the final but won the over 100 meters.

“When I lost the 100m final, I panicked,” he said. “I got pretty aggressive. It was a Adam that I didn't recognise.”

“I went to Melbourne. [for the short course World Championships four months later] And I was furious there because I didn't get the results I wanted.

“I was pointing the finger at somebody. I didn't have the maturity to get over it. I pretty much lost control of the whole ship.”

Peaty spoke about his struggles with depression and alcohol after winning the 2016 Rio Olympics.

These issues worsened, his relationship with the mother of his son George fell apart and he ultimately chose to step away from the sport altogether, citing mental health reasons, after continuing to compete in early 2023.

“At my worst, I couldn't even look at myself in the mirror or think about what I wanted to do with my day,” he says.

“Everything seemed gray. There was no color, no optimism, no healthy relationships with people who wanted you to be better.”

A year on from those dark days, Peaty says he's back and has secured a chance to win a third consecutive Olympic gold medal in Paris.

As a man who has been the face of the sport for over a decade, he has always been open in front of the cameras.

He remains calm and measured until he tries to determine what started the spiral.

“When you have your first child, it disrupts your natural flow,” says Petey, whose son was born in September 2022.

“When George came along, I had so much respect for the kid. He brought a halo into my life…”

At that moment, the entertainer's mask comes off, his jaw trembles, and the tears flow.

“People don't understand the choices you have to make to sacrifice to win an Olympic gold medal,” he explains.

“I can't afford to risk losing a tenth or two of a second because my son has a sniff, because I know that the win will be worth it if he understands. And one day he will understand.”

Peaty has a lion tattooed on his arm along with the Olympic rings, and recently had a cross tattooed on his stomach, as well as another cross hanging from a gold chain around his neck.

He said rediscovering his Christian faith helped him overcome his mental health problems, and that gardening and journaling also helped improve his mental state.

“We could have easily said, 'We've won all the Olympic gold medals we wanted,'” Peaty said.

“I've never been afraid of losing, but I've always been afraid of regretting.

“I had an obligation to myself to show that I could come back healthy.”

In his absence, China's Qin Haiyang has been performing in a Petey-esque manner.

He won the 50m, 100m and 200m at the 2023 World Championships, setting a new personal best in the 100m with a time of 57.69 seconds, making him the second-fastest man in history behind Peaty.

“At the World Championships in Fukuoka, I was not there competing in the breaststroke and I saw Hata achieve a really good time and I think that rekindled a passion that had been extinguished for a long time,” Peaty said.

Peaty returned to the world stage at the World Championships this year, but although he performed well, he finished significantly slower than his best and had to settle for a bronze medal.

If it was a boost to Qin's hopes, Peaty's victory at the British qualifying marathon in April in 57.94 seconds – just one second off the Briton's own 2019 world record – came as a shock to the east coast.

“I don't want to say it because I might come across as arrogant, but I'd be stupid if I didn't say I'm going for a triple,” Peaty said of his Olympic hopes.

“I've never cried on TV before. Emotions are just strengths. The best athletes know when and how to use them.”

Petey's first visit was good, but the second was amazing.

This is Adam Peaty 3.0, and he's not done yet.