- Italy’s Nicolo Martinenghi beat Adam Peaty by just 0.02 seconds in Paris on Sunday
- Peaty burst into tears but insisted he was happy despite his second place
- It comes just over a year after he was forced to take a break from the sport
Adam Peaty insists he is satisfied despite narrowly missing out on a historic gold medal in the 100m breaststroke final in Paris.
Peaty, who has endured a tumultuous personal ordeal in recent years, came very close to a third consecutive gold medal in the Olympic breaststroke when Italy’s Nicolo Martinenghi beat him by just 0.02 seconds.
The 29-year-old became almost the second man after Michael Phelps to win the same swimming event at three Olympic Games.
He burst into tears after the match as he talked about the difficult journey to Paris, which had left him struggling with depression last year.
Peaty told the BBC: ‘It’s a long way back,’ Peaty said. ‘I’ve done everything I can. It doesn’t matter what the time says, or what the result is, because in my heart I’ve already won.
Adam Peaty has insisted he is happy despite narrowly missing out on a historic gold medal
He burst into tears during his post-race interview but insisted they were ‘tears of happiness’
Italy’s Nicolo Martinenghi (center) beat Peaty by just 0.02 seconds in Paris on Sunday night
“I’m not crying because I came second. I’m crying because it cost me so much to get here. These are tears of joy because I did my best every day and I can’t be angry about that.
‘It’s just incredibly difficult. To win it once, and to win it again, and to try to win it again.
‘Everything I’ve done so far has happened for a reason and I’m so happy to be able to race against the best riders in the world and finish second.
‘I’m almost an old man here now. I can’t have that relentless pursuit every day without a sacrifice of some kind.
“It comes in many ways, my timing, my energy, my relationships. It’s very hard to compete with the youngsters, but I’m so happy about it because in my heart I couldn’t have done more.”
Peaty’s achievement is the culmination of a huge turnaround for the legendary athlete, who took a break from swimming over a year ago due to mental health issues.
After winning gold in the 100m breaststroke and 4x100m medley relay in Tokyo in 2016 and 2020, Peaty continued to chase an impressive record in the sport, going undefeated for eight years, from 2014 to 2022.
In 2022, Peaty split from his Eirianedd Munro (left) after three years together
The three-time Olympic champion is now in a relationship with Holly Ramsay, the daughter of TV chef Gordon
The 2022 breakdown of his relationship with Eirianedd Munro – with whom he has a son – combined with his battle with depression and alcoholism, saw Peaty hit rock bottom.
In April 2023, Peaty withdrew from the British Swimming Championships and spoke openly about his mental health issues, later revealing that he had spent “three years in hell” and was in a “self-destructive spiral”.
Peaty, who also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2021, admitted he ‘didn’t want to be in a swimming pool’ after being ‘broken’ by the sport, turning to drinking and partying to escape.
This came after he had previously taken a mental break following the Commonwealth Games, which also ended his eight-year unbeaten run in the pool.
Add to that a broken foot and a cut to his face after a fight with a team-mate and it’s fair to say it’s been a tough few years for Peaty.