Retired Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe talks during a chat session on the final day of the three-day Doha Goals Forum at Aspire Zone in Doha yesterday. Thorpe is a five-time Olympic champion.
BY DENZIL PINTO
DOHA: Five-time Olympic champion Ian Thorpe says he regrets not telling his family and friends earlier of his depression problem.
The 30-year-old Australian swimmer, who revealed in his autobiography that the illness made him so bad that he considered suicide, admitted that it was ‘the worst thing’ to keep the issue to himself.
“I did not tell anyone. Only the doctors knew I had depression. I did not want people to know,” said the Australian during a panel chat at Doha Goals Forum, yesterday.
“The only reason I spoke about this (depression) is that I did not know it was okay to talk to people about having this condition. And people should not be embarrased to talk to people to who they are close to. Those people can actually help. The worst thing was not to tell my friends and family and keeping it to myself,” added the 6ft 5inch athlete.
The ‘Thorpedo’ admitted that he struggled to cope with depression as well as swimming. He said: “I had all this tremendous success and behind all of this sometimes. Whilst everyone was enjoying my performances, I wasn’t feeling that happy. I had to deal with that and train on top of it. I realise that was probably a struggle.”
Thorpe, who made his comeback in 2011 having initially retired in 2006, was ‘shattered’ not to compete at the 2012 London Olympics. He said: “I was shattered. I let a lot of people down including myself.”
Despite not qualifying, the Australian enjoyed a successful stint as a media commentator for the BBC at the London Olympics, which earned him rave reviews on both sides of the globe.
Reflecting on his experience, he said: “I had the best seat in the house to talk about something that I loved. I would have loved to have been swimming there, but this was the second best option.”
The Australian, who received a ‘Human Rights’ award for his charity work with indigenous children earlier this week, had a glittering career before his first retirement, having won 16 World Championship medals. He cited determination and being mentally prepared as the key elements to be successful.
“When I competed, psychologically, I thought there was no-one better than me. Sports psychology is completely different. When I competed in the pool, there was no-one better than me,” said Thorpe, who became the youngest ever male champion when he won the 400m Freestyle event at the 1998 World Championship in Perth.
“To be determined, you have to take risks. As life goes on, it become more calculated because when you do the training you are expected to make a big performance. When I competed, psychologically, I thought there was no-one better than me. Before a race I would chat to people, but as soon as I am about to race I am ready to go,” he added in front of an audience that included children from all parts of the world.
With early success in the pool, endorsement offers soon arrived for the Australian. However he said that he only chose to promote products which he believed in.
Thorpe, who is targeting to compete at the World Championship in Barcelona next year, said: “You have to add immoral values. If I won prize money in swimming, I would give the money away. I was happy to promote products I believed in. I was offered a tremendous amount of money to endorse a fast food chain. It was one of those things I said ‘no’ and I was encouraged by my agent to look at the numbers.”
“We have to take steps as athletes. We have to make a decision for what we are doing, that we actually are promoting sport. I think taking the short term opportunities saying it’s okay to promote junk food is not acceptable to what athletes should be doing,” he added. THE PENINSULA
