Tokyo Olympics: Adam Peaty makes history as he wins Great Britain’s first gold of Games

Adam Peaty of Great Britain has made history by becoming the first person to win gold at the Tokyo Olympics. The world record holder in the 100m breaststroke is also the first British man to win an Olympic swimming gold since 1908.

Team GB’s Adam Peaty won gold in the 100m breaststroke at the Tokyo Olympics.

Adam Peaty made history once again when he won gold in the 100m breaststroke in Tokyo, becoming the first British swimmer to defend an Olympic title.

Britain’s first gold medal of the Games was won by the world record holder, who blasted away the competition.

Peaty swam flawlessly from start to finish, finishing in 57.37 seconds, six tenths faster than the rest of the competition.

The silver medal went to Arno Kamminga of the Netherlands, who is the only guy other than Peaty to have run sub 58 seconds, while the bronze went to Nicolo Martinenghi of Italy. James Wilby of the United Kingdom came in fifth place.

Peaty smacked the water and yelled “come on” as he once again left his opponents wondering what it would take to defeat him.

“It means everything to me to be here,” the 26-year-old, who owns the event’s 16 fastest times, told Sport. “It’s not about who’s the greatest all year; it’s about who’s the best on any one day.” It all comes down to who is most flexible and who wants it the most.

“When it comes down to it, I’m not racing against the clock; I’m fighting against myself.”

“I’d want to express my gratitude to my family, my lovely spouse, and my lovely kid. This win belonged to the British team, as well as my family and friends. I’m just overjoyed.”

Peaty’s victory in Tokyo looked all but certain, considering that no one has come close to him in recent years.

In addition to his gold in Rio five years ago, Peaty has won the 100m breaststroke at the past three World Championships, has broken the world mark five times, and is the only man to ever swim sub 57 seconds.

Peaty will have the opportunity to add to his medal collection when he participates in the men’s 4x100m medley relay and, possibly, the mixed 4x100m medley relay, with heats for both events starting later this week.

More history has been created; will sports immortality be next?

Peaty poses for cameras after earning a gold medal in swimming.

For Peaty, rewriting history is second nature, and this latest triumph will just be another step on the road to athletic greatness.

Peaty talked aboutexternal-link his goal of completing Project Immortal in December of last year, a theoretical swim he characterized as “nearly superhuman” and “unbeatable.”

This wasn’t that kind of swim. Despite his domination, it was not Peaty’s fastest time, but all signs point to his achieving it one day, particularly considering that he seems to have grown stronger despite his life altering away from the pool.

Of course, there was the coronavirus epidemic that caused the Olympics to be postponed a year, but Peaty thinks that rather than seeing a year of lockdowns as a lost year in his career, it has only pushed him to reach a new level.

In a recent interview, he remarked, “The lockdown last year gave me some sort of a second wind.” external-link “I used to feel like I was constantly charging, charging, charging, but now I can simply turn off.”

In 2020, Peaty also became a father, which he thinks has helped him grow and get a fresh perspective on life.

Rebecca Adlington, a double Olympic gold medalist swimmer, told Sport, “It has given him extra drive – not that he needed it otherwise.” “He seems to be in a better mood, more calm and confident.”

“He’s just incredible. In my lifetime, there won’t be many Adam Peatys.”

Scott and Dean have made it to the finals.

On Monday, Peaty was not the only Brit in the water; Duncan Scott and Tom Dean, both from the United Kingdom, advanced to the men’s 200m freestyle final. With a time of 1:44.60, Scott won the semi-final, while Dean came in fourth.

Kathleen Dawson swam well to finish third in the 100m backstroke semi-final and fifth quickest in the final, while Cassie Wild ended 14th. Sarah Vasey just missed qualifying for the women’s 100m breaststroke final.

Ariarne Titmus of Australia won gold in the highly anticipated women’s 400m freestyle, with Katie Ledecky of the United States earning silver and Li Bingjie of China receiving bronze.

World record holder Ledecky got out to the fastest start, but world champion Titmus outpaced her by more than half a second to win by more than a second.

Margaret MacNeil of Canada won Canada’s first gold medal of the Games in the women’s 100m butterfly in 55.59 seconds.

Zhang Yufei of China won silver, while Emma McKeon of Australia earned bronze.

The USA won gold in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay final, ahead of Italy and Australia.