How did we get so good at swimming? This week, millions of Australians have tuned in to watch some of the Swimming Australia trials that wrap up in Brisbane tomorrow. We’ve seen world records broken, inspiring returns to form, and an outpouring of emotion from families in the stands watching their athletes book a spot on the plane to either the Olympics or Paralympics coming up in Paris.
But we’ve also seen moments of sadness – moments where a swimmer may have won their final, but failed to qualify for the Olympic team because of the qualification time set by Swimming Australia.
In today’s deep dive we look at why Australia is so good at swimming, and why Swimming Australia’s qualification times are so tough.