Olympic champion Zac Stubblety-Cook has been unveiled as part of Swimming Australia’s new-look leadership group tasked with help powering the Dolphins towards the next Olympic Games in Paris 2024.

Stubblety-Cook was one of the breakout stars in Tokyo as he clinically took out the 200m breaststroke as an Olympic rookie, surging past Arno Kamminga to claim gold in an Olympic record time.

Olympic breastroke champion Zac Stubblety-Cook joins Madi Wilson, Jenna Strauch, Tamsin Cook and Bailey Armstrong as new athlete leaders for Swimming Australia.Credit:Getty

The 23-year-old was a picture of poise and calm on his Games debut and now shapes as a key figure for the Australians as they embrace generational change heading towards this year’s FINA World Championships, the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and on to Paris in 2024.

Stubblety-Cook joins fellow breaststroker Jenna Strauch, freestylers Tamsin Cook and Madi Wilson and Bailey Armstrong in the leadership group, with Armstrong the first open water swimmer to be elevated to the panel.

It represents a new era for the Dolphins, which previously boasted veterans stars such as Cate and Bronte Campbell Mitch Larkin among its official athlete leaders.

“It absolutely is (a new generation) and that’s a sign of the strong leaders that have been there before. The current athletes are inspired and motivated because they want to be part of that and leave a legacy,” Dolphins head coach Rohan Taylor said.

“Zac put his hand up, he’s motivated to be part of the leadership. What he’s communicated to me is that he enjoyed the team and wants to continue that and build on that in the future.

“Performance is one thing, it’s more about who they are and how they carry themselves within the group. Zac is an absolute professional, very approachable young man. It’s a conduit between the administrative leadership and the athletes. He gives us the feedback we need, very clear, so we were thrilled when he wanted to be part of it.”

Wilson has been a revelation since converting from backstroke to freestyle, where she has become an elite presence in the 100m-200m range and already has two golds, a silver and a bronze to her name via relays in Rio and Tokyo.

Strauch and Cook are respected regular squad members and Armstrong breaks new ground as an open water swimmer in the athlete leader space. He will compete in the FINA World Championships in Hungary later in the year.

Stubblety-Cook said he consulted established names such as Mack Horton and Larkin before making the call to dive in the deep end as a team leader.

“I see a bigger picture. For the Brisbane Olympics in 2032, the legacy starts now, that’s how I view things anyway,” Stubblety-Cook said.

“That’s really exciting, being part of the next generation of athletes and building something very special.
We’re all quite green and hungry to learn. But this is a growth opportunity for us as individuals as well as the team as a whole.“

Aside from Stubblety-Cook, the group doesn’t feature some of the biggest names in Australian swimming, with the likes of Kyle Chalmers, Ariarne Titmus and Kaylee McKeown all throwing their support behind the new elects.

“Their leadership is them doing their thing. Priority No.1 is lead yourself and if you do that, you are leading the group in the process. Ariarne or Kyle or the big names, even they they haven’t put themselves forward, they are massive leaders. They inspire through their behaviour and their professionalism,” Taylor said.

Most Viewed in Sport

From our partners

Source: Read Full Article