Two notable Australian Olympians have announced their retirement from competitive swimming.
Both Travis Mahoney of Marion Swimming Club and Tristan Hollard of Southport revealed that they would be hanging up their goggles this week.
31-year-old Mahoney has been a mainstay on the Australian national team, first representing the nation during the 2012 FINA World Cup Series. The highlight of his lengthy career came in 2016 when he qualified for the Olympic Games in the men’s 400m IM. Mahoney ultimately placed 7th in the event there in Rio.
On the International Swimming League (ISL) scene, Mahoney raced for Energy Standard, with the Aussie finishing 231st overall in the season 3 MVP standings. His highest points earning match came in the first playoff round, where he finished 6th in the 200m back (1:54.71), 7th in the 100m back (52.29) and 6th in the 400m IM (4:13.47) to give ENS 8 points total.
Mahoney most recently competed at the 2022 Australian Swimming Championships where he finished 8th in the 200m back (2:02.20).
In Mahoney’s retirement post, the teammate of Kyle Chalmers stated, “What a ride! it’s incredibly hard to put it into words.
“I am so fortunate to have had so many amazing, incredible experiences in my life thanks to swimming.”
He continued, “The thing I’ll miss the most is the incredible people that this sport has connected me with. I have no doubt all these people have helped shape who I am as an athlete and a person, I end incredibly proud of the person I have become.”
As for Hollard, the backstroking ace placed 10th in the men’s 200m back in Tokyo last year. 25-year-old Hollard, who competed for DC Trident in the ISL’s season 2, cites losing the swimming spark as the primary reason why he is saying goodbye to the sport.
Reads his social media post, “In 2016 I made the decision to see if I had what it took to be an elite level swimmer. Little did I realise how much my life would change over the next 6 years.
“Despite the end result all coming down to a time on the scoreboard, it’s the people, places and experiences that I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life. Swimming has given me so much to be thankful for and I’ll forever be grateful.
“I’ve found it incredibly hard to rekindle the fire after achieving my goals last year and have found myself excited to move onto the next chapter of my life. After taking the time to consider my options I’ve decided to hang up the goggles and step away from the pool. I wish nothing but the best to my competitors and friends who continue to face the monumental grind that is competitive swimming.”
Both of these excellent swimmers have bowed out of the elite class of aquatics with a sense of grace and thankfulness; that has to be to their great credit. OK, no Olympic golds clanging around in the closet, but I sense that they were involved in swimming for so many other reasons which transcend ‘the glitter gold’ of an Olympic dream. Swimming was good for them, and they were good for Aussie swimming! Bravi!
Totally agree!