What, what was that work this year then heading into the major competition? What does that look like?

Um, it's been [laughs] a lot.

Uh, it's been awesome.

I...

You know, after Singapore, you know, I got really...

I was still pretty sick, um, in Singapore, and I was just super frustrated.

Like, I was ready to go in Singapore and I did get sick with a couple of things, and then I just kept training all the way through, and then I went to, had a big block of work from, like, October, November, December.

[laughs] So if they're watching, listening to this now, what, uh, what training set would you give them? Like, if they're saying, "Okay, I, I wanna be like Sam Short," what, what are they gonna need to do in training to, uh, mix it with you?

Are you like that in training as well?

Yeah.

I, I, I am.

I love, uh, I love...

There's no better feeling than seeing like an improvement, like when, when it's on paper and you can just see it.

That's the good thing about swimming, I think.

Like the stopwatch doesn't lie, your heart rate doesn't lie, um, the lactate monitoring, that sort of stuff doesn't lie.

Yeah

S- split a great anchor leg, 1:45.1, helped Australia get silver, but, uh, [laughs] that 14:33.9, was that a surprise for you?

I- if you would've asked me earlier in the year if I would've gone 14:33, I would've said probably not, 'cause I, I don't really focus on it anymore.

I, you know, I know I can do a good one 'cause I, you know, do so many kilometers and, you know, naturally have a pretty good aerobic engine on me.

But yeah, that was a time I didn't really think was possible.

I, I actually thought during the meet, and I was like to my coach, "I reckon I can go sub 14:30 if I get Hackett's record in this.

I feel really good, and I reckon I can just bang out some good, good 100 splits." And then p- earlier in the day, we, I watched, I literally watched it with Loni.

I was like, and watched, um, Johannes go 14:26, and I was like-

Mm

So was that, like, part of your strategy, like, to intentionally go out that fast? Or do you feel, or was it just kind of like by accident? [laughs]

Uh, yeah.

I love going out fast.

It's kind of when I do my best races.

Uh, like, uh, it was the plan to go out, um, fast.

Like, um, 3:45 in the 800, I was feet on wall in the f- at the 400 split.

And then, um, in the 400 I was out faster than I thought I was kind of capable of, 1:47.3 or something, which is probably a smidge too quick, but, um, didn't really know I had that in me, so it's a good problem to have.

Like how do you even... how do you, I guess, mentally prepare for that? You know, like it's different than, you know, "Oh, I don't train for the 200, but that's just half of my best race or whatever." Uh, I feel like that's mentally easier to do than, "Oh, I gotta basically double my race now." Um, so what is, what is that like mentally for you, like I guess going down to the 200 and also going up to the 1500 and not training for either of those events?

What's the most impressive thing you've done in a pool set?

Um, I mean, I've heard some insane stories from other people, but I think in Australia I, I haven't heard anyone go faster than this.

I did...

We did, like, six fours, and my...

Tommy Neal went, like, six threes, and I heard him go, like, three minutes or something on the, on the last one.

He was like, "Hell yeah." And I was like, "Oh, I reckon I can beat that." Pool buoy, band, and I ended up going...

I went 3:53 push, pull, uh, pool buoy, band.

Yeah.

But what about favorite sets? Any particular sets that you do on a regular basis that you quite enjoy?

Before Worlds we did this really cool set.

It was like four twos, the sh- all 400 pace, and then, like, four ones all 400 pace, eight 50s fast and 400 pace, like no recovery, just all in a row, and that was pretty good.

I think the four 200s were around maybe four minutes, so a lot of rest.

I think best time I did it, I was like 1:50, 1:50, 1:51 and 1:51 off a push, and then the 100, 54s and 53s, and then into the 50s, like 26 lows, maybe finish on a 25.

And after that I was like, "I'm ready to go." And so stuff like that, it's very hard and you got that constant vomit feeling.

Um, but it's... you know, you look back at it saying, "That was pretty hectic."

What about things that you've maybe picked up or learnt over the years that, uh, you, you wish you'd known when you were younger?