And I guess the thing that I really sort of rely on in me is that I love racing and I love competing and so I know that you know when the time comes and the pressure’s on and I have to swim well, I’m sort of able to pull it out and sort of get the best out of myself.

I sort of set myself really high standards which is good and bad. If I know that I’ve done all I can to prepare, that’s when I race the best and in ’09 I was going through a lot of emotional ups and downs and I was never as fit as I would have liked to have been. So I never felt comfortable.

I think for me I’ve always loved being in the water and I love training and I love being at the pool so you know it’s not a chore for me to go training, but come race day I would never just train to train – I train to race.

I’m not homophobic at all and I have a lot of gay friends.

I think for most people it’s hard to understand what it is about swimming – I mean it’s such a solo endeavour.

You don’t want to line up on the blocks and know you have not done everything you possibly can.

I'm not homophobic at all and I have a lot of gay friends.

I sort of set myself really high standards which is good and bad. If I know that I've done all I can to prepare, that's when I race the best and in '09 I was going through a lot of emotional ups and downs and I was never as fit as I would have liked to have been. So I never felt comfortable.

Swimming is one of the hardest sports.

I think for most people it's hard to understand what it is about swimming - I mean it's such a solo endeavour.