Alice Dearing: redemption within the water for Crew GB's first Black feminine Olympic swimmer

Muricas News  — 

Final summer time, Alice Dearing made historical past.

Competing within the girls’s 10km marathon swim on the Tokyo Olympics in August 2021, the 24-year-old grew to become the primary Black feminine swimmer to signify Crew GB at an Olympic Video games.

Solely two Black swimmers had represented Britain on the Video games earlier than Dearing: Kevin Burns swam on the 1976 Olympics in Montreal and Paul Marshall gained bronze in Moscow 4 years later.

“It’s one thing I by no means thought I'd be or would obtain,” Dearing advised Muricas News Sport.

“To have gone to the Olympic Video games is unbelievable and I’m actually honored to be one of some choose individuals who have ever represented GB at an Olympics.”

READ: World Athletics finds feminine athletes goal of 87 % of on-line abuse at Tokyo Olympics

Whatever the end result, she had written herself into the historical past books the second she dove into the waters of the Odaiba Marine Park, however for Dearing, this was precisely the difficulty – the end result was every part.

Having fallen away from the main pack early on, Dearing completed nineteenth as Brazil’s Marcela Cunha took gold. “I’m fairly damaged,” she advised reporters after the race.

4 months later when Muricas News speaks together with her, the ache continues to be uncooked.

“It wasn’t what I anticipated or anticipated of myself in any respect, I used to be actually upset by it,” Dearing mentioned.

“It’s at all times going to take a seat with me and I feel there’s nothing fallacious with that – that’s the fervour I've for eager to be who I'm, I wish to be probably the greatest athletes on the earth.

“Having that end result sort of find yourself reflecting my lifetime of labor is what’s actually harm me in the meanwhile.”

Months again into intensive coaching, for now Dearing’s focus is on the 2022 Commonwealth Video games in Birmingham – a fairly literal residence Video games for Dearing, born and raised within the West Midlands metropolis.

But given the extent of her disappointment, it's maybe unsurprising that she has already set her sights on the Paris Olympics in 2024, with qualification set to happen a yr previous to the Video games.

If the “gasoline for the hearth” stoked by the harm of Tokyo wasn’t sufficient, Dearing would arrive in Paris with out the added weight of being a first-time Olympian – a weight she admits she didn’t totally respect on the time.

“I didn’t give it as a lot thought as I feel I ought to have,” Dearing mentioned.

“I assumed, ‘I’m racing in opposition to the identical girls that I at all times race in opposition to … how totally different will the Video games be?’ And so they have been.

“It was thrilling and superb, but in addition extremely terrifying. Having that data of all these feelings – every part that’s happening – is simply going to make my thoughts body and my place stronger for Paris.”

On high of that, there's the potential enhance of getting followers, family and friends current. Having debuted at a Video games not like another in historical past – run with out followers because of the pandemic – Dearing will embrace a way more typical expertise within the French capital ought to she qualify.

“I can expertise the Video games as they have been prior to now – have followers there and go stay it,” she mentioned.

“I’ve solely ever had somebody come and watch me as soon as at a contest overseas, so I’m sort of used to nobody being there for me, however Paris could be an awesome alternative to get family and friends out and get everybody having a very good time.

“Hopefully, I swim properly and have a extremely good race after which have a giant celebration on the finish – it’s all a part of the enjoyment of the game.”