Ian Thorpe glanced at the pool and felt a bit of an urge to dive in — but no chance.
The swimming community bid farewell to one of its greatest performers on Saturday night, honoring the ”Thorpedo” at the opening ceremony for the world championships in his home country.
Four months into his retirement, Thorpe appeared on stage at one end of Rod Laver Arena, wearing a stylish black suit instead of the black bodysuit that had been his trademark, his hair spiked with gel instead of tucked into a tight-fitting swim cap.
”I have a number of mixed emotions,” Thorpe said. ”One is, I really want to get back in here and swim.”
Tantalised, the crowd let out a big cheer. But Thorpe quickly set them straight. ”Not going to happen,” he said, smiling and shaking his head.
Thorpe retired in November at age 24, giving in to injury, illness and a lack of motivation even though it cost him a chance to compete before an adoring home crowd in Melbourne. He certainly had nothing left to prove, having won five Olympic golds, claimed 11 world titles and set 13 world records during his brilliant career.
Still, Thorpe’s retirement took a bit of lustre off the world championships, especially for top rivals such as American Michael Phelps, who was bested by his Aussie rival in the 200m freestyle at the 2004 Olympics.
”To tell you the truth, one of the things I was looking forward to was having a chance to swim him again and … being able to swim him in Australia,” Phelps said recently. ”It would have been would have been a very, very exciting race. It would have been fun.”
Instead, Thorpe’s lone appearance of the meet came during a ceremony that featured the usual foolishness: acrobats swinging from the ceiling, a dancing penguin and comedy provided by two guys known as the Umbilical Brothers.
As Thorpe stood on a stage set up at one end of the temporary pool — Rod Laver Arena is, of course, normally home of the Australian Open tennis tournament — highlights of his career played on two video boards.
In addition to his standout performances at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and the 2001 world championships in Japan, there was footage of Thorpey as a youngster, not yet having grown into those size-17 feet.
”He’s recognised by many as the greatest swimmer of all time,” the announcer said in a booming voice. ”You made impossible things possible. Thank you, Thorpey. We know you’ll continue to do so.”
Thorpe received a plaque from 11-year-old Tyler Rix, a junior swimming champion who played a lead role in the ceremony, portraying a young boy rising from humble beginnings to become an international sensation.
”This reminds me when I was their age,” Thorpe said, glancing down at Tyler. ”Looking back at all the things I did in the pool, the biggest achievement any of us can deliver is the hope and inspiration we give young kids like this.
”To all the athletes here this evening, I wish you the best at these world championships. I hope you continue to inspire young people around the world.”
After receiving his plaque, Thorpe took part in a parade of former Australian swimming greats, including Dawn Fraser and Shane Gould.
Then, he was gone. — Sapa-AP