Uttoxeter swimmer Adam Peaty not ruling out return to Olympics in 2028

Adam Peaty refuses to confirm if he will be competing at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, as ITV News Central's Sports Correspondent Dan Salisbury-Jones reports.

He was one of the most-talked about athletes at the Paris Olympics, but Uttoxeter's Adam Peaty has refused to confirm if it will be his last.

The swimmer, who has won three gold medals and three silvers across three Olympic competitions, spoke exclusively to ITV News Central about how he has spent his time since Paris.

Peaty, who trained in Derby as a child and more recently at Loughborough University, revealed that he has not been in the pool since the competition, and instead focused his energy coaching young swimmers in his AP race clinics.

Speaking to ITV News Central's Sports Correspondent Dan Salisbury-Jones at a children's coaching session in Coventry, the swimmer said:

“We are trying to link the grass roots to the teenagers to the elite level. Showing the skills that you learn here aren't just for sports. These are skills you are going to use for the rest of your life."

Peaty refused to confirm if he would get back in the pool to race for Team GB.

He said "I think we're all going to see the landscape after a few months, reassess in a year, reassess again, maybe even two years, as long as it needs."

He also said, as an older athlete, he'll be 33 at the time of the next Olympics, and he has more responsibilities - but he did not rule out an appearance in LA.

'Swimming needs to change'

When asked if he felt the sport needed to change, Adam said:

"There is going to be a lot of change over the next four years but I think, were we are now, especially domestically, it needs to change a lot faster."

He said the long training hours and the high expectations on young athletes pushed children away from the sport, and said that young children need to have fun swimming.

"You have to be very hard, you've got to be tough, resilient which is why it's made me the person I am today. But, knowing the world is changing, young people are changing, we need to make it more approachable."

Analysis from ITV News Central's Sports Correspondent, Dan Salisbury-Jones:

Adam Peaty is still trying to understand his feelings about finishing second at the Olympics.

Whilst coaching kids in his AP Race Clinics he is letting them hold his Olympic medals - but the silver from Paris is nowhere to be seen.He is though rightly proud of his performance there, especially given the fact he had Covid.

But more than that, he's proud of the response he's had from the public.More 'heartfelt' is how he describes the difference between how people speak to him now compared to when he was posing with his previous golds.

His openness and maturity is impressive. He jokes about piling on weight since the Games because of a slowing metabolism.

I made a mistake by saying "you'll have empathy from everyone in their 30s" about that. Adam is, of course, just 29.Retirement is still on the table, he hasn't been in a pool since Paris, and he would walk away a legend.

But if he wants it, there are many lengths left in him and no shortage of support.

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