Olympic ace Adam Peaty missed out on the medal places on Sunday as England's James Wilby instead starred in 100-metre breaststroke final at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Three-time Olympic gold medallist Peaty came into Sunday's decider with a qualifying time almost a full second faster than any other swimmer. However, the 27-year-old failed to sustain his fine start as Wilby touched the wall in 59.25 seconds to snatch the gold at Sandwell Aquatics Centre.
Peaty came into the Commonwealth Games after recovering from a serious foot injury but had looked back to his best before Sunday. He finished fourth, however, while the Australian duo of Zac Stubblety-Cook and Sam Williamson claimed silver and bronze, respectively.
Two-time Olympic gold medal-winner Rebecca Adlington told BBC Sport Wilby had "lived in Adam's shadow" but grasped his opportunity to outshine his countryman. The 28-year-old previously won 200-metre breaststroke gold on the Gold Coast in 2018, but this latest win arguably trumps that feat.
Peaty assured after the race that his plans "of course" still include competing at the Paris Olympics in 2024, though he acknowledged he has plenty to work on. "Yeah, when it comes down to the race sometimes it doesn't go to plan," he said. "I was hurting from the 50m but you know that’s a lack of training, lack of racing… it is what it is.
"I can't overthink it. I’m a fighter and sometimes you have got to have these moments to keep fighting. Always learning. This is a huge moment for me really because I'm at a part in my career where you choose to go on or keep at it or whatever… I know this is probably my last Commonwealth Games so it’s great. Wilby had a great race. I was a lot slower than yesterday, it was just a bad race."
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Just behind Peaty, Scottish duo Ross Murdoch and Craig Benson followed in fifth and sixth, respectively. Scotland may claim an unofficial medal for their tally considering Wilby was born in Glasgow.
"Yeah I mean I love racing and racing alongside him [Peaty] is always so much fun," said the newly crowned 100-metre champion. "Tonight, I was able to execute my race the best I could. At the end of the day we’re both incredible racers, we all know what Adam is capable of. We’ll both be back to race again and race each other and It's always going to be an exciting one. But that one was really fun."
Despite missing out on the medal places, it speaks volumes of Peaty's potential that even at a training deficit, he was able to finish so close to the top times. But the pressure is on to recapture his best ahead of Paris 2024, while Wilby will look to make a much greater impact with Team GB.
