British National Record holder Daniel Sliwinski has dropped off of the Olympic Team for the 2012 London Games after injuring a shoulder tendon. He will face three-months of rehab after surgery next week.
He’s only 22, so he has plenty of time to come back and make a run at Rio in 2016, but to make an appearance in front of a home crowd is a special moment that he likely won’t get another chance at.
“It is an athlete’s worst nightmare. I have had a couple of injuries and I need to go back and rebuild the foundations,” Sliwinski said of the decision. “I am still young enough to think about Rio 2016, but I need to address this injury before it gets worse.
“I still want to swim for as long as I am physically able to and this operation will help with that. The important thing I need to focus on now is my recovery.”
Sliwinski topped the podium in the 100 breaststroke at March’s British Olympic Trials in 1:00.09, and was followed closely by Craig Benson in 1:00.47. Now, with Sliwinski off of the team, British Swimming says that it will use next week’s ASA National Championships to fill the spot – presuming the winner has a FINA “A” time. The favorite to take over that position is Michael Jamieson, who has been swimming well and with a 1:00.50 just missed a chance the first time around. Andrew Willis and Richard Webb are the other swimmers in the hunt.
The British men have qualified a medley relay, and now the pressure will be on the young 17-year old Benson (though that relay would have to make great improvements to final even before the Siliwinski injury).