James Magnussen Hails “Profoundly Positive Effect” of Missing Out On Gold
Australian sprinter James Magnussen entered the 2012 Olympics as the favorite for gold in the men’s 100 freestyle. The missed the top step on the podium by .01 seconds, thank to the swim of Nathan Adrian’s life.
With nine years of hindsight, Magnussen is not just OK with that but grateful for the direction that missing out on gold has taken his life.
Magnussen admitted that winning silver instead of gold had a “profoundly positive effect” on him, in a recent radio interview with SEN 1170 in Australia.
“I think my life was headed in a certain direction at 20 years of age,” says Magnussen, now retired at age 31. “I had all this publicity, all this press and everyone was pumping my wheels. It affected me in a negative way and I look back and I was headed down a path that would have been less than desirable.
“It humbled me a lot and that gave me a really different perspective on life, the media and how people were treating me. I had a lot of ‘yes’ people in my life and around. It had a profoundly positive effect on my life not only in swimming but certainly in my life after sport. I’m appreciative of what that moment did for me and the path it set me on.”
Magnussen did walk away with silver and added bronze later in the meet in the 400 free relay. He did not qualify for the 100 free at the Rio Olympics – such is the depth of the Australian team, with young guns Kyle Chalmers and Cameron McEvoy usurping him. But he did win another bronze in Rio in the relay.
Magnussen had plenty of success outside of the Olympic water. He won gold in the men’s 100 free at the 2011 and 2013 World Championships plus three relay medals. He won gold in the 100 free at consecutive Commonwealth Games in 2010 and 2014, and added relay gold as late as 2018. He retired in 2019.
Success doesn’t guarantee happiness, as that race indicates well. The bronze medalist, Canadian Brent Hayden, retired immediately after what was on paper the best accomplishment of his career, and only a decade later restored his joy in the sport with a comeback to race at the 2020 Olympics.
Magnussen, too, has taken time to process that race. He’s also achieved a certain peace with the result.
“I look back on it and I ticked off everything in the swimming world except for that Olympic gold,” he said. “Not everyone gets a fairy tale but all in all, I’m very appreciative of that moment.”
Listen to the full interview with James Magnussen on the SEN Breakfast show here.