Adam Peaty: His Elite Athlete Mentality

Adam Peaty currently has 6 Olympic medals under his belt. He recently won his silver medal for the men’s 100m breaststroke and despite being 2 hundredths of a second behind first place, he was ecstatic. This is just won of the many ways Adam has shown that he has an elite athlete mentality.

In his post-race interview, he is on the brink of tears. He was so happy with success he has in the sport. Peaty talks about how no matter the outcome of the event, he knew in himself that he had won, as he put in his best efforts in preparation. This is an excellent example of controlling the controllables. As athletes, we cannot control whether we win or not, but we can control how we prepare. Placing your focus on that often empowers an athlete to success and its something that Peaty has used to propel him forward.

He continues to acknowledge the effort and sacrifice that it takes to get to the position that he’s in. Being a top athlete comes from a huge amount of effort over a very long period. There is no real secret to being great. It is a matter of effort and consistency. Adam knows this and celebrates that he’s continued to put the effort for his goals.

Adam talks about the process being incredibly hard. It may seem easy on the face of it when you just see the end result, but Adam shares the hardship of the process. We can take this wisdom for ourselves; to reach those kinds of heights in performance is very difficult and we should expect to face difficulty in the pursuit of improvement. If it’s too easy, then you’re probably not pushing yourself. Push your outer limits to get the most out of yourself.

It is also important to acknowledge the journey Peaty has had during recent years. He has faced problems away from swimming that will have impacted his training and performance. He split from the mother of his child in 2022, which one can imagine the complications that brought for Peaty and his family. He also faced issues with alcohol during this time. Both factors contributing to him not wanting to return to the main stage ever again. Despite this, Peaty competed at Paris and won a medal.

Elite athletes are human like everyone else. They can face addiction issues with things like alcohol and have difficulties with family. Yet, they manage to show resilience to commit to the work and achieve their goals. Overcoming challenge is part of the journey, and it comes in many different forms. The road to success is a difficult one and Peaty story shows this. His performance in Paris shows what it’s like when you get through to the other side.

“It’s not about the end goal, it’s all about the process’

Adam Peaty