Sisters of swim run their own race in lead-up to Games

CATE and Bronte Campbell are cutting themselves a bit of slack and broadening their horizons as they chase Commonwealth Games gold.

DOMINATING the Commonwealth and Olympic Games trials is nothing new for swim star sisters Cate and Bronte Campbell. This month, the pair flew through the Gold Coast trials, with older sister Cate breaking her 50m freestyle national record as well as the 50m butterfly record.

MORE COMMONWEALTH GAMES NEWS:

CHAMP YET TO CONFIRM IF SHE’LL CHASE DOUBLE

SWIM STARS CHOOSE BRISBANE TO BOND

RILEY PUTS 18TH BIRTHDAY PLANS ON HOLD

WHEN TRACEY WAS QUEEN OF THE POOL

She will lead the Aussie charge in those two races, as well as the 100m freestyle alongside Bronte (who is also racing in the 50m freestyle) in April for their hometown Commonwealth Games.

But breaking records and winning gold medals in the trials is no guarantee of success in the meets that mean the most, as the girls know only too well.

Cate, 25, has famously referred to her disappointing performance in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio as the “greatest choke in Olympic history”. Despite being the world record holder for the 100m freestyle, she came sixth in the final. Cate also missed out on a medal in the 50m freestyle. She took out gold in the 4x100m freestyle and silver in the 4x100m medley relay.

“For a long time I was so deeply, bitterly ashamed of how I’d performed and so embarrassed,” Cate says.

Swimmer Cate Campbell with her medals from the 2016 Rio Olympics. Picture: Adam Taylor

But when the pair take to the blocks in two weeks they will be approaching the competition with fresh eyes and a new attitude.

Both have broadened their view on life, enjoying activities they’d never allowed themselves the freedom to try, spending more time socialising with friends and even finding new loves, who couldn’t be further removed from their swimming lives.

Cate took an unprecedented year off swimming after the Games to reassess her life and career, while Bronte loosened her strict routine to incorporate more fun, pool-free activities. Bushwalking, surfing, guitar lessons, kayaking, cooking for friends and going to gigs are all activities the sisters have embraced post Rio.

“I feel like I’ve broadened my horizons,” Cate says. “I feel like I’ve become a more holistic person. I feel I’m a richer person after what happened in Rio and I’m going to be a person a lot longer than I’m going to be a swimmer, so there is a positive to take out of every situation.

“I’ve probably seen more of my friends in the last year and a half than I saw them in the four years leading into Rio. I’ve broadened my domestic goddess skills, cooking for friends. I recently bought myself a kayak, so I’m heading out to all the local reservoirs and trying pretty much anything outdoors that requires physical activity.

“I really enjoy music and supporting local artists, so if there’s a gig on, I love to be able to do that. Musicians keep the opposite hours to swimmers, so it’s nice for once to stay up late and sleep in late, or rock up to training tired and then nap during the day.

“I’m definitely cutting myself some more slack and a bit of breathing space and being like, ‘No Cate, you really enjoy these things, they enrich your life and so you need to take the time to enjoy it’.”

Cate and Bronte Campbell are using bushwalking as an escape from the pressures of training and competing, hitting the trails at Mt Cootha in Brisbane. Picture: Adam Head

Bronte says while she was pleased with her Rio results, as she was battling injury (she competed in the 50m and 100m freestyle, and won gold in the 4x100m freestyle relay team, setting a new world record), she, too, felt the need to reassess her approach to swimming.

“That first year after (the Olympics) is a time to really step back, take stock and look at your life and see what bits you can maybe splash out on and not be so regimented,” Bronte says.

“That’s been fantastic to experience and try different things instead of being in the same old routine. I’ve really enjoyed it and I think that can’t be bad for your swimming.”

Cate’s year out of the pool involved a lot of soul searching and recovering from the biggest, and most public, disappointment of her life. Walking through the mountains that surround her Brisbane home was a first step in finding her feet again.

“There was this mountain I used to go to and I would walk up there and watch the sun set when I got back from Rio for about three months,” Cate says.

“Every two weeks I’d take dinner up there, either by myself or with a friend, and it was a really good way to heal the soul. There is something about looking out over a vast landscape that makes you appreciate what you have.

“Bronte got dragged along as well, it was nice to see each other outside the swimming pool.”

She admits her path back to the pool has been uncertain and painful at times.

“People would come up and say, ‘Great job in Rio’, and it was like they were dragging their fingernails down a chalkboard in my head. I couldn’t bear it,” Cate says. “There were definitely some dark times, but I’ve come full circle. I’ve learnt failure is a part of life. For me to go out and fail at an Olympic level, it took a lot of time and effort and courage to even get to that stage.

Cate and Bronte Campbell at Bondi Beach 100 days out from the Rio Olympics in 2016. .Picture: Gregg Porteous

“I feel like we need to applaud people who at least go out and are brave enough and work hard enough to put themselves in a position where failure is possible.”

Cate says the weight of her own, and the public’s expectation, got too much for her before Rio.

“In the lead up to Rio and a Games it’s easy to begin to cut off things in your life that you once enjoyed because you fear they may interfere in your training and competition. It happens really slowly and for me it happened over a number of years. Once you’re at the top, people expect you to stay at the top and you keep trying to do everything right to keep at the top,” she says.

Bronte says Cate’s determination not to disappoint others is a blessing and curse.

“I think the problem with Cate is she cares too much about letting people down and that ultimately was her downfall,” Bronte says. “It’s so good to see someone go through that and come out the other side, that’s exciting to see and you definitely take lessons from it.”

Though 23-year-old Bronte concedes there were some advantages to having Cate out of competition.

“It wasn’t too bad when she was away. I won a few races, which was fun. But no, it’s good to have the rivalry back again.”

Sibling rivalry has been a part of Cate and Bronte’s lives since they were young, but instead of damaging their relationship it has strengthened their friendship as well as their performance in the pool. Among their many achievements, they were the first Australian siblings on the same Olympic swimming team since 1972 and the first Australian sisters ever to compete in the same event at the Olympics.

Australian swimming star sisters Cate and Bronte Campbell. Picture: Adam Head

“Having Cate back in training properly and having her back on the pool deck, it may seem like a negative thing if she is ultimately going to beat me, but I think it also makes me a better swimmer having that daily competitive environment,” Bronte says.

Two of five siblings to parents Jenny and Eric, Cate and Bronte are excited to be competing on home territory with family and friends watching from the stands.

“There is something to be said when you can touch the wall and look up into the stands and see the faces of your family and friends, the people who have supported you the most and who have sacrificed the most for you to achieve your dream,” Cate says.

Both say they feel for their parents watching them compete against each other when the stakes are so high.

“I think they have gone prematurely grey watching us. I think it’s more stressful for them than it is for us,” Bronte says.

Joining their families will be their boyfriends. Cate’s boyfriend, Adam, is a geologist and Bronte’s boyfriend, Benfield, owns a fake grass business.

“Adam had no idea who I was. Normally when I meet people who don’t know who I am I tell them I work in sports PR, which isn’t too much of a stretch,” Cate says.

“But then we were getting to know each other a little more and I was like, ‘So I may have lied to you’ and came clean. He’s refrained from Googling me which is really nice. So he’s gotten to know me the real, natural way with no preconceived notions, it’s really nice.”

Cate Campbell celebrates after winning the final of the women's 50m freestyle event during the 2018 Australia Swimming National Trials at the Optus Aquatic Centre on the Gold Coast earlier this month. Picture: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images

Bronte’s boyfriend is a family friend who lives in Sydney, meaning they are commuting and spending a lot of time on Facetime.

“He’s pretty understanding (about the demands of swimming), he’s got a different perspective which I appreciate,” she says.

While Cate now has her sights set on the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo beyond the Commonwealth Games, Bronte is taking a page out of her sister’s book.

“After the Games, I’m going to take about three months away from the pool and try to get all those injuries back to an acceptable level so I can go another two years through to 2020. It will be the longest break I’ve had since I was seven, by a long way,” she says.