For Brent Hayden, Comeback is about Falling in Love with Swimming Again<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brent Hayden<\/strong> took in the view from the middle of Sasamat Lake, somewhere that a month earlier, or a year earlier, or five years earlier, he never thought he\u2019d be.<\/p>\n

$\"Brent$
Brent Hayden with the bronze medal from the 100 freestyle at the 2012 Olympics. Photo Courtesy: Swimming Canada<\/p><\/div>\n
Something about the freedom of the lake resonated with Hayden, not just because of the restlessness of lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hayden had retired in 2012 after his biggest swimming accomplishment, a bronze medal in the 100 freestyle in London. He walked away with nagging back spasms and a tightening grip of depression. Deep into retirement, when the days of competition had long past, being in the water for anything more intensive than a swim clinic was \u201cemotionally painful.\u201d He could count on two hands the number of times he\u2019d swum more than 200 meters from 2012 to 19, his mind gravitating toward negative memories whenever a session started to feel like training.<\/p>\n
But that spring day, in Sasamat Lake, all the reasons why he has mounted a comeback in the pool swirled around him like the lake\u2019s chilly water.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s different when you\u2019re not confined between two walls and two lane ropes,\u201d Hayden told Swimming World last week. \u201cYou\u2019re in the middle of the lake and you\u2019re like, \u2018I could just swim anywhere I want. Maybe I\u2019ll go to that point or to this bridge over there.\u2019 It was kind of liberating in a way. I\u2019m really glad that I got the opportunity to experience that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The freedom Hayden has found in his comeback<\/a> swells from his renewed joy in the water. He\u2019s confident that he can swim faster at age 37, when the Tokyo Olympics (hopefully) arrive, than he ever has.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt makes me excited to see what more I can do,\u201d Hayden said. \u201cI believe I have a 21-low in me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Back to the water<\/h4>\n
Brent Hayden\u2019s journey back started in Lebanon.<\/p>\n
A five-time World Championships medalist \u2013 including the 2007 champ in the 100 free \u2013 who\u2019d won gold at Pan Pacs and the Commonwealth Games, Hayden was one of the world\u2019s veteran sprinters before the 2012 Olympics. Olympic glory had eluded him, though, missing the final in both of his previous Games.<\/p>\n
In London, he finally broke through. The first Canadian to make the 100 free final since Dick Pound in 1960, Hayden surged from lane 7 to sneak into bronze, .04 seconds ahead of Yannick Angel.<\/strong> With the back pain and depression fears, Hayden declared his retirement before the Closing Ceremonies. Eighteen days after his bronze swim, he was in Lebanon, marrying longtime girlfriend Nadina Zarifeh.<\/strong><\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t until he spent time with his wife\u2019s family in Zouk Mosbeh in 2019 that the idea of returning to the pool even remotely entered his mind. He still worked out regularly, the routine important to his post-retirement physical and mental health, and still conducted swim clinics for kids.<\/p>\n
While in Lebanon, Hayden was looking for a place to record videos of his clinic curriculum. Eventually, he cold-called the Jeita Country Club, and once he\u2019d convinced its owner that the Olympian looking for pool space wasn\u2019t a practical jokester, he was granted free reign.<\/p>\n
Something about the setting \u2013 Jeita\u2019s spacious pool opening to sprawling vistas of Lebanon\u2019s verdant hills, tiny towns cropping out of the surrounding mountains, the juxtaposition of the radiant sun on deck and the crispness of the water \u2013 triggered happy memories Hayden didn\u2019t know he still held.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not sure if I can accurately explain how it felt,\u201d Hayden said. \u201cIt\u2019s kind of like finding something that you thought you lost, that you thought was gone forever.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
View this post on Instagram<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
One of my favourite things in the world is jumping into a crystal blue pool on a sunny day. Do the things that let you do the things you love. . ?@jccleb . . . #dailymotivation #quotestoinspire #inspiredaily #swimmingtime #stoicism #RISETHROUGHCHALLENGE #theuniversehasyourback #livingmybestlife #taketheleap #youareabadass #liveyourdreams #createyourlife #livewithpurpose #embracechange #designyourlife #liveauthentically #thedailygrind #strongbody #swimmerlife #swimmer #trusttheprocess #strongfirst #swim #dreambigger #dreambig\u2728 #oceanwalker #totalimmersion<\/a><\/p>\n
A post shared by Brent Hayden<\/a> (@thebrenthayden) on Jul 8, 2019 at 5:33am PDT<\/time><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n