Dean, Peaty, Scott And Proud Nominated For Outstanding Swimmer Of 2021-22 At British Swimming Awards
Olympic champions Tom Dean, Adam Peaty and Duncan Scott are joined by history-maker Ben Proud on the four-man shortlist for the Outstanding Swimmer of 2021-2022 at the British Swimming Awards.
The quartet have all made history over the past two years in the pool with a combined medal haul of 50 from international competition leading to an all-male shortlist of great quality for the category at the British Swimming: The Awards, sponsored by Speedo.
Tom Dean: Photo Courtesy: Andrea Masini / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
Dean won the 200 free in Tokyo, leading home GB teammate Scott, as they became the first British pair to win gold and silver in the same swimming event since 1908.
The duo were then joined by James Guy and Matt Richards with the quartet claiming the 4×200 free Olympic title in a European standard of 6:58.58, 0.03 outside the world record.
That followed a six-medal haul, of which three were gold, for Dean at the European Championships in Budapest.
Come 2022 and Dean was faced with three major championships in less than eight weeks, coming away with three bronzes from the World Championships, a gold and six silvers at the Commonwealth Games before concluding his season with a medal of each colour at the European Championships in Rome to make it 21 international medals in 2021-22.
Peaty rewrote the history books in 2021 starting off in Budapest where four victories in four events propelled him to the quadruple quadruple of four golds at four consecutive European Championships.
Come Tokyo and he made more history as the first Briton to defend an Olympic swimming title when he added the 100 breaststroke crown to his Rio gold.
Adam Peaty: Photo Courtesy: British Swimming
Only Peaty and Kosuke Kitajima have won 100m breaststroke titles at successive Games and should he once more reign supreme in Paris, the 27-year-old would be the first swimmer, male or female, to win three in a row in either breaststroke event.
He was also part of the British mixed medley relay that won gold in a world-record time and also took silver with the men’s medley relay.
The eight-time world champion took time away from the pool following Tokyo but was on course to return to competition at the World Championships in Budapest only for injury in the form of a fractured foot to intervene and force his withdrawal.
Peaty returned for the Commonwealth Games where he experienced the first defeat of his career over 100br, finishing fourth as fellow Team England athlete James Wilby claimed the crown.
However, he came back to win the 50br title for the first time after successive silvers at the two previous Games.
Scott started his 2021 international campaign with two golds and three silvers at the Europeans before he too made history as the first British athlete in any sport to claim four medals in a single Games.
Duncan Scott: Photo Courtesy: Georgie Kerr, British Swimming
Gold with the 4×2 relay and individual 200 silver was followed by two further second-placed finishes in the 200IM and men’s medley relay.
The University of Stirling swimmer withdrew from the worlds in June following Covid-19 but returned to competition at the Commonwealth Games where the Team Scotland swimmer made six trips to the podium, with individual golds in the 200 free and the 200IM.
Proud won 50 free silver at the 2021 Europeans but his Olympics ended in desolation when he finished joint fifth in 21.72, 0.61 outside his British record, leaving him at rock-bottom.
A realisation he needed to go back to basics if he was to continue culminated in 50 free gold at the World Short-Course Championships in Abu Dhabi.
He became the first Briton to win the world title in Budapest before he added gold in both the 50 free and fly at the Commonwealths.
Photo Courtesy: Andrea Masini / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
Come the Europeans at the Foro Italico and Proud won the 50 free once more in 21.58, 0.02 ahead of Leonardo Deplano.
With victory, the 28-year-old became the first swimmer to win that particular combination of titles – world short and long-course, Commonwealth and European – in a 12-month period.
Next month Proud will look to extend his golden streak that has seen him win every 50 free he’s competed in in international competition since Tokyo at the short-course worlds in Melbourne.