Michael Jamieson interview: The pressure of being a hometown hero

Yes, I think so. Since the Olympic Games my life has completely changed and I think there is a lot of pressure now but that’s part of sport I guess. When you’re lucky enough to produce good results then people come to expect that. But for me it’s just about continuing to do what I’m doing in training and keep trying to improve and swim faster.

You say your life changed a lot of after London, in what ways has it changed?

I think one of them is having the opportunity to be at events like today and to try and pass on some knowledge to some younger swimmers, which is a nice position to be in.
I didn’t really have that opportunity when I was a kid. I think beyond that, being a sponsored athlete which wasn’t the case before London. I’m an ambassador for Speedo and for Glasgow 2014 as well so I have those responsibilities outside the pool.

What gets you out of bed every single morning so early for practice?
It’s just the incentive of winning medals. It’s easy for me now because I have the Commonwealth Games to look forward to which is a home Games for me, right at my doorstep.
It’s a huge event and a huge opportunity for me. After silver at the last Commonwealth Games, silver in the London Olympics, silver at the World Championships, I’m looking to keep improving and move up to the top of podium.

I believe you also have your eyes on the 200m breaststroke world record…
The main thing for me is not worrying too much about it. I want to swim faster and faster. I’m getting close to that world record time now. I’ve swam 2:07 three times now – the record is 2:07.00 so I’m kind of knocking on the door, getting close to that, and I would love to do it this summer. But I think I just need to keep in mind that it’s a major championship. If I had the choice I would pick the podium over the record.

Where are you at in terms of your preparations right now?
I’ve had a few days off now after gaining my selection to the team last week. I think early next week I’ll start to do a little bit of training out here in Dubai – some swim training, some gym work and just gradually build things up. When I go back to the UK I’ll have 12 or 13 weeks left of training until the Commonwealths so that’ll be a really intense period where I’ll be really focused.

Do you get pumped up even more after a young swimmer like Ross Murdoch beat you in the 100m at the Scottish nationals last week?
Yes of course. I think in a sense I’ve been quite lucky to race the 100m breaststroke at worlds and Olympics because in the last five years or so we haven’t really had an outright 100m sprinter. My main event is always the 200m so coming down for the 100m is always quite difficult. I think in terms of the level, I’m not at the same level in the 100 as I am in the 200. It’s always a work in progress for me.

In the 200m, you have Daniel Gyurta who’s so dominant in the event. Do you think you’re close to finally beating him?
He’s been so dominant in that event for the last four, five years now, he’s won everything.
I’ve still never beaten him. I think I’m getting closer to him. He is one of the best breaststrokers in history.

What’s your training like leading up to major events?
I think leading into the main meets, we have a long cycle of 12 weeks of really hard training and then a 3-4 week period where the volume and intensity reduces quite a lot so you can be fresh and rested to race fast at the majors.
Intense training is about 55,000-60,000m a week, 10-12 hours in the gym, so it’s about 30 to 35 hours a week in total.

Who do you draw inspiration from?
I don’t tend to pick the standout sporting idols. I’ve got a lot of respect for my team-mates I’ve had over the years especially the guys who haven’t been able to qualify for things like world championships and Olympic Games because swimming is such a tough sport and it’s a full-time commitment.
For them to come back into the sport and keep trying to progress – those are the guys I have the most the respect for.

What do you think of Michael Phelps coming back?
To be honest, it’s not surprising. I think after being in the sport for so long and having that level of commitment for so many years – just to retire and not to get in the pool again and not to train and not to have the adrenaline and excitement for competing, it’s so difficult for your head. And emotionally I think it’ll be quite hard to deal with. He’s just looking for a bit more excitement again in his life. I kind of sympathise with him really.
I think a lot of athletes kind of find ourselves in that position when they retire that they struggle to find something that excited them as much as their sporting career did.

I heard you’re into DJing…
I love music and I’ve only just started learning some software and just playing around. Maybe it’s something that develops into a hobby and something I can spend some time on out of the pool.

So when you’re training, you’re usually rocking out to electronic music…
Not when I’m actually in the pool but I love house and techno music. The UK has a really big scene for that. There’s a guy called Seth Troxler and a female DJ called Maya Jane Coles, I think those are my favourites now.