Olympic champion Anna Hopkin suspects the standard of British swimming has never been higher. The Chorley-born star swam the final leg of the 4x100 mixed medley relay as Team GB stormed to a stunning gold at Tokyo 2020.
Ad She is among a raft of famous faces returning to the pool at the British Swimming Championships, where she hopes to further her selection hopes for the summer's World Aquatics Championships.
SwimmingSchlosshan leaving no stone unturned in pursuit of Olympic dream17 MINUTES AGO With a second Olympics firmly on the horizon too, the event in Sheffield marks a significant checkpoint on the road to Paris, where Hopkin believes Team GB can better the record eight medals they picked up in 2020. «We're not just trying to make teams anymore, we want to win medals,» said Hopkin, who trains in Loughborough at the British Swimming Performance Centre. «I've not been on teams for too long, but I'd say for Tokyo it was the best the team has ever been. »Obviously, it was our most successful Olympic Games and we've just got to carry that momentum through and hopefully by next year in Paris, we'll have an even stronger team." To aid their preparation for the upcoming season, Hopkin and her teammates spent much of the winter in Australia on an intense training camp, sharing the pool with some of the best from down under.
Now back on home soil, Hopkin and team are ready to show off what they have learned and believes a shift in focus can help the team soar to new heights. «We're putting quite a lot of emphasis on relays,» she said.