AUSTRALIAN OLYMPIC HERO Ian Thorpe celebrated his return from five years in the competitive wilderness to take second place in a qualifiying heat for the 100m individual medley at the Singapore World Cup.
The swimmer retired in 2006 after a combination of mental fatigue, illness and press hysteria interrupted his preparations for the Beijing Olympics.
After recording a time of 56.74 seconds in the preliminary heat, Thorpe explained to the BBC that he “couldn’t remember the race” and was “a little bit nervous” beforehand.
The winner of the race, Colombia’s Omar Pinzon, was intrigued by the prospect of facing Thorpe in the final.
“When he was retiring I was just starting to get into swimming seriously.“It was exciting swimming next to him, we will see how the race (final) goes.”
In addition to competing in the 100m IM, Thorpe also plans to compete in the 100m butterfly.
Both events are significantly shorter than the 400m and 200m freestyle, the races on which he built his reputation, and reflective of the limitations the Australian believes age has imposed on his capacity to train effectively.