Ariarne Titmus retires just as she swam – at the top of the sport and uniquely herself

Australian swimmer Ariarne Titmus celebrates winning gold in the women's 400m freestyle at the Paris Olympics Games. Photograph: Dan Himbrechts/AAP

Ariarne Titmus has always done things her own way.

So it was when she first blazed to glory in 2019 – a teenager unheralded outside Australia, upstaging American swim queen Katie Ledecky on the world stage. So it was in 2022 when, as reigning world and Olympic champion, Titmus decided to skip the world titles. “I’ll definitely be asleep,” she told me at the time – the championships were held in Budapest, and Titmus remained in Australia, not ever tuning in to the overnight broadcast. And in 2023 when the women’s 400m freestyle turned from “race of the century” to coronation and ultimately procession, as Titmus dominated rivals Ledecky and Canadian prodigy Summer McIntosh at the world titles and again the 2024 Olympics.