Australian swim coach Rohan Taylor admits Paris is the major focus for his team despite preparations continuing for two major meets in 2022.
The Dolphins are spread across the globe currently, some are at-home training in pools across Australia while others are competing in the Northern Hemisphere based International Swimming League (ISL).
The Dolphins performance in Toyko was breathtaking. A total of 21 medals including 8 gold ranks Taylor's team as Australia's most successful Olympic swim team of all time.
Rohan has moved on from the success of Toyko but is looking to use the lessons learned from the campaign in the run to Paris 2024.
"We just had a big coaches workshop where the high-performance coaches came together last week and reflected on what went well," said Taylor.
"We really had at two and bit year preparation when you take into account the postponement.
"We looked at what we did well in that period and how we can repeat that. I think we're going to look at it that way, this is a long preparation".
While the eyes of the Dolphins high-performance team are firmly fixed on Paris, Rohan knows 2022 will provide a perfect platform from which to launch that campaign. The Dolphins next major meet is ironically back in Japan.
The 19th FINA World Championships will be held in Fukuoka in May next year followed by the Commonwealth Games in late July. Before that comes the Australian team selection trials which swimming Australia has confirmed will be held in Adelaide during April.
To have three major meets in such close succession is unchartered waters for athletes and coaches however Taylor believes it's the perfect platform to launch an assault on Paris.
"From our perspective were looking for ways to create as many opportunities for competition as we can,"
"Looking at the ISL now and the coming Australian Swimming League (ASL) were looking for ways to keep our Athletes engaged in racing and get a reward for the hundreds of hours they spend training".
April is a long way away but Taylor is engaged in preparing the next generation of Australian swimming to join the current stars. He says there is a couple of new names that look likely to breakthrough in the near future with Aprils trials firmly etched on their schedules.
"A young man from Queensland who broke Kyle's national age record, a young boy by the name of Flynn Southam, he's an emerging talent,"
"There's a few that just missed out on the Olympic team Lizzy Deckers, Sam Short, Ty Hartwell are ones were hoping to see come through".
Taylor is proud of the culture of the current team and admits it has been a focus. While acknowledging the issues of the past, he doesn't dwell on them and is instead focused on what his high-performance team can do to create a welcoming environment for its athletes.
"It's a great environment to work in. Our job is simply to enable them to do what they do best,"
"We created the environment but they did the job. To serve them in that capacity and to lead the team is a privilege and I've loved every minute of it."
The man who began his elite coaching days working with perhaps the greatest breaststroker of all time in Leisel Jones is now firmly in command of the next generation of Australian stars.
Adelaide swimming fans are set to get a close up look at what Rohan's next generation of happy Dolphins has to offer in April 2022 at the Australian trials.
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