Murphy eyes return to top of the podium in Paris, Ryan Murphy expressed unwavering determination to reclaim his Olympic 100m backstroke title, declaring his desire stronger than ever after securing his place in the Paris Games on Monday.
The 28-year-old set an Olympic record when he took gold at Rio 2016 but could do no better than bronze in the event in Tokyo in 2021.
“There’s definitely no shortage of motivation from my end,” Murphy told reporters in a resolute tone after clinching victory at the U.S. Olympic trials in Indianapolis, underscoring his unwavering determination to reclaim his Olympic 100m backstroke title in Paris.
“I’m a really motivated person and definitely coming off the last Olympics, I want to win every time I touch the water, whether that’s a Monday morning practice or an Olympic finals.
The four-time Olympic gold medallist finished third in the 100m in Tokyo behind to two Russian athletes and made headlines when he said after the race that doping was still a problem in the sport.
He later clarified that he was not accusing the swimmers who beat him of any wrongdoing.
Russian athletes have been unable to compete under their own flag at the Olympics since the Rio 2016 Games due to sanctions imposed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). These sanctions were a result of findings that revealed systematic doping practices among Russian athletes. As a consequence, Russian competitors have been required to participate under a neutral flag and with the designation “ROC” (Russian Olympic Committee) since then.
The issue of doping raised its head again this year when the World Anti-Doping Agency confirmed reports that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a banned drug before the 2020 Tokyo Olympics but it accepted the country’s findings that this was due to substance contamination.
