Adam Peaty, a three-time Olympic swimming champion for Great Britain, claims that winning gold medals won’t make his troubles go away.
The addition of more gold medals to Adam Peaty’s already opulent collection, he claimed, would not be the panacea for his problems.
The three-time Olympic gold medallist withdrew last month from the British Swimming Championships due to mental health problems, and he later acknowledged that he had been on a “self-destructive spiral.”
Peaty has previously discussed his struggles with depression and alcoholism, which he claims got worse last year as he battled injuries, lost motivation, and experienced a strained relationship with the mother of his young son.
He is still optimistic about competing at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Paris as he chases a third straight victory in the men’s 100m breaststroke, but he was adamant that this would not be a magic cure for him.
“A good friend of mine said a gold medal is the coldest thing you will ever wear,” Peaty told BBC Breakfast.
“It’s the coldest thing because you think it will fix all of your problems. It will not.
“I took a break because I was on this endless search of a gold medal or a world record and I looked into the future and I said ‘OK, if I do get that is my life fixed or any better?’ No.
“So take the time now to really think about who you are, what you want out of life and then get the gold medal.
“Hopefully when I get to the Olympics I will be in a very good mindset, very grateful and most importantly happy.”
