Col Pearse is taking on the world again.
The Bamawm export, born in Echuca, has been named in Australia’s 2024 Paralympic team, announced by Paralympics Australia on Friday in the wake of the Australian Swimming Trials, held from June 10-15.
“(I’m) relieved,” Pearse said.
“It's been quite a stressful 12 months really because as a swimmer, every swimmer in the world wants to go to the Olympic and, more importantly (for me), the Paralympic Games.
“When you go to an event like the Olympic and Paralympic trials, everything you ever think about — your dreams, everything you work for — comes down to that week, so it can get very stressful the day of/the day before.
“I've done the training. I knew I’d done the work. I had confidence I’d make the team, but nothing's guaranteed in professional sports, so there was always part of me that was really stressed about the whole thing.”
Pearse first raced in his strongest event, the 100m butterfly s10, in which he had claimed bronze at Tokyo 2020, but unfortunately he was unable to break qualifying time this time around.
“In the heat, I had swum about a second over the qualifying time,” he said.
“Thankfully, I made the final that night, so for me, that was quite a stressful sort of 10-hour break between the heats and finals on Tuesday. Just because I was a second over the qualifying time I was a bit stressed about the whole thing.
“I came into the final again that night. I felt pretty good. I felt confident I could go under the qualifying time but, unfortunately, I didn’t have the best swim.
“I went out too fast. (The) 100m butterfly is two laps, so I took the first 50 out just too hard and gassed myself in the last 20m of that 100, so I unfortunately didn't swim the qualifying time.”
On Wednesday, Pearse was able to rebound from that setback and swim under qualifying time in the 200m individual medley s10, earning him a place in Paris.
“Going into the heat for that race is probably the most nervous I’ve felt in a very long time,” Pearse said.
“Probably the most nervous I’ve been since maybe the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, just because that day was my last opportunity to make the team.
“You do all this training, 30 to 40 hours a week of training led up to that day and that moment, so for me, all I could think about was ‘God, I just have to make the team, just have to make the team’.
“But then also maturing as an athlete, you also just have to worry about your race, stick to race protocols and just focus on yourself.”
Having now qualified for the Games, Pearse’s track record will allow him entry back into the 100m butterfly and 100m backstroke along with the 200m individual medley.
Pearse is one of 30 swimmers named for the Australian team to compete in the 2024 Paralympics in Paris from August 28 to September 8.