LONDON 2012 IS over for Irish swimmer Barry Murphy.
The Dubliner finished second in his 50m freestyle heat this morning with a time of 22.76.
Australian, Eamon Sullivan was the last-placed qualifier for the semi-finals in a time of 22.27, leaving the Dubliner to go ‘back to the drawing board’.
“Yeah, disappointed,” Murphy told TheScore afterwards. “Id already gone 22.7 this season. I thought I had a 22-low in me, this is the Olympics and I wanted to come in and swim fast and I was just disappointed that I tied up so bad at the end. I maybe should have taken a breath earlier in the race. No, not maybe — definitely should have taken a breath earlier in the race.
“I’ve put a huge block of work in. I want to come here and swim lifetime bests and break Irish record and try to get into semis. And it’s really disappointing when you come to the Olympics, the pinnacle of our sport, and you don’t perform to the best of your abilities. It’s frustrating and it’s disheartening.
“But, you know, this isn’t my final meet and I’m just going to have to go back to the drawing board and get ready for the winter short course season.
Murphy admits that he’ll leave for home with nagging regrets, saying his preparation didn’t pay off on the big stage.
“I was half a second off in the 50 and half a second off in the 100, which is disappointing. The workload I’ve put in over the past few years hasnt been reflected in the times I’ve done here you know. You just have to go back ot the drawing board and talk to your coach and see what he thinks and tell him what you think and try to hash it out. Because I have put a huge block in, I’ve sacrificed a lot to try to have the best meet possible; it’s been two years of my life. It really is disappointing but that’s life, sometimes,” he said.
Despite ultimate disappointment, murphy admits he’s enjoyed his time in the Olympic Village, mingling with the best athletes in the world.
“It’s always awesome to see people you’ve looked up to.. I’ve kept my eye out for Ryan Giggs for the week and a half I’ve been here. I haven’t seen him yet but I’ll probably lose my mind when I do. Since I’ve been seven or eight years old I’ve been wearing a Man Utd jersey with Giggs on the back,” he told Will Downing.
The Irish swimming team had a disastrous Olympics
What does anyone really expect of Irish athletes? A small country with crap facilities is never going to produce endless superstars!
Why the less than complimentary photograph.
They all seem to that Joe before each swim….a kind of chest beating to boost themselves. Dohbt any of the others would look much prettier had it been them..lol
Great arms.. I’m happy with that!