Watching Andrew Chetcuti dive effortlessly into the national pool last week, only days ahead of the Rio Olympics opening ceremony, it was hard to believe that the 23-year-old was once terrified of swimming.

Until the age of five, he would burst into tears every time he found himself anywhere near a swimming pool, which prompted his parents to take him to swimming lessons.

“I would get a glimpse of the swimming pool and start crying and not want to get in. But you cannot be scared of the water in Malta, and so my parents wanted me to get over this fear.

“After some time, I started to love it,” said Mr Chetcuti, who will be swimming the 100-metre freestyle heats on Tuesday.

But it was not this prospect that was making him anxious as he completed his last training laps ahead of the big day – it was carrying the flag for Malta during yesterday’s opening ceremony.

“It’s such an honour to carry the national flag at an event of this cali­bre. I’m excited and still taking it all in, since I was only informed about this recently. Carrying your country’s flag is something many athletes dream about.”

I would get a glimpse of the swimming pool and start crying and not want to get in

In the event, he had nothing to be nervous about at all. In a Facebook post after yesterday’s ceremony, Andrew’s father described the moment as “priceless”.

The swimmer was born in Malta but grew up in Dubai after moving to the emirate at the age of two, when his father started working for an airline there. He went to university in the US and is now based in Atlanta but returns to his family’s Marsascala home every chance he gets, often spending the Easter, Christmas and summer holidays here.

This is the second time he will be competing in the Olympics, after having already been part of the London Olympics delegation in 2012. He swam at the World Championships in 2011, 2013 and 2015, as well as with the Georgia Tech College swimming team in the US, where he read for a degree in biology and applied physiology.

“In 2012, I was very anxious. I remember walking out on to the deck and I was shaking. But after swimming in other big competitions, I’ve now become used to that sort of pressure.”

Swimmer Andrew Chetcuti has come a long way from his childhood fear: yesterday he was the Maltese flag-bearer at the Rio Olympics opening ceremony. Photos: Darrin Zammit LupiSwimmer Andrew Chetcuti has come a long way from his childhood fear: yesterday he was the Maltese flag-bearer at the Rio Olympics opening ceremony. Photos: Darrin Zammit Lupi

Having started swimming lessons at the age of five, he was 10 by the time he took part in his first competitive swim.

“I remember winning this small competition in Dubai, where I won a gold medal, and I was super excited about it. From then on, I just didn’t look back.”

He usually trains nine times a week, swimming about nine kilometres every training session, and lifts weights in the gym another three times a week. As he prepared for the Olympics, however, he eased up on his training to give his body time to rest ahead of the big race.

As he was growing up, how did he manage to balance his academic work with his rigorous training regime? Being a student athlete actually made the academic work easier, he replied, as it helped him reduce stress and focus better on his work.

His parents, brother and girlfriend will be heading to Rio, while his grandparents and cousins, who live in Marsascala, will be following his progress avidly, equally proud of his progress.

In Rio, he is hoping to break a national record – one he only just set last month, completing the 100 metre freestyle in 50.95 seconds. But he is not losing sleep about it; he tends to maintain a laid-back attitude, as this helps him perform better, he said.

“The trick to all this is to have fun. When I focused solely on swimming, I ended up swimming slower. If you don’t enjoy the sport, you will never improve.”

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