Heading into the Olympics the favourites in the men’s 100 freestyle included the world’s top ranked swimmer Australian Cameron McEvoy, defending Olympic champion American Nathan Adrian and reigning world champion Ning Zetao of China. Not many thought that once the race concluded 18 year old Australian Kyle Chalmers would have been the first to put his hand on the wall.
Unlike the favourites heading into Rio Chalmers did not feel the pressure of the moment because for him he had already fulfilled his main aim which was making the team, “I had already done a job, making an Olympics was an amazing experience for me and once I got there I just knew I could go there and relax and just swim,” Chalmers told The Daily Telegraph.
A year earlier Chalmers won the 50 and 100 freestyle at the World Junior Championships an impressive feat, but one that still left him unrecognizable to most on the street. That has not been the case since Rio, “Life has changed massively,” Chalmers says.
“It is absolutely unreal. The four weeks before Rio compared to the last four weeks have been just incredible. I went away and no-one knew who I was, and then coming home people are stopping me on the street wanting photos and autographs.”
“Everywhere I have been, I have been stopped. I got stopped in Dubai airport the other day. It has been different and I have had to adjust to it, but I am also pretty excited about it.”
Part of the last four weeks has included being involved in a new marketing campaign being put together by Adidas for a new Zero Negative Hoodie which is designed to help athletes achieve the focus they need for peak performance. He joins Ana Ivanovic, Paul Pogba, Gareth Bale and James Harden as part of the campaign.
Chalmers is very familiar with Bale and Harden, “Gareth Bale is someone I play as on FIFA every single day, and James Harden I play with his team on NBA2K on the PlayStation as well,” said Chalmers.
“So to be in an advertising campaign with those guys in real life is absolutely out of this world. It’s something I never thought was possible. Words can’t describe it.”
Chalmers is represented by TLA Worldwide and Peter Nicholls who is helping him have a very long term view of his career and giving him direction on how to manage his brand, “Kyle is a young and highly marketable athlete,” Nicholls told The Daily Telegraph.
“He is targeting long term success in his sport, and as such we will not be rushing into any partnerships that might compromise his training, and ability to achieve his long term goals. We will partner Kyle with companies that share similar brand attributes to himself such as adidas; as a young, powerful, successful, reliable athlete, and who are keen to share in Kyle’s journey through to Tokyo.”
Throughout the whole process Chalmers seems to be staying true to his relax nature something that helped him achieve what he did in Rio and hopes will serve him well moving forward, “That will be the key for me in the next few years: just staying relaxed and not getting caught up in the moment. I think I have learned that from those guys this year. They put a lot of pressure on themselves, and it was put on them by media and doing so well in previous years as well.
“So it is just something I have to make sure I don’t get caught up in. I just have to stay me.”
