- Emily Seebohm has her eyes set on her fifth Olympic Games in Paris
- She wants to qualify to show other moms that anything is possible
- She will be the first mother on the Australian swimming team since Hayley Lewis
Australian swimming champion Emily Seebohm wants to show her baby and her fellow mothers that anything is possible.
Eight months after giving birth, Seebohm’s sights are set on becoming the first Australian swimmer to be chosen for five Olympic Games.
The 32-year-old advanced to the 200m backstroke final at the Australian Olympic Swimming Trials in Brisbane on Thursday.
Seebohm is pragmatic about her chances of making the team.
Emily Seebohm (pictured) has her eyes set on her fifth Olympic Games and wants to show her baby and other moms that anything is possible.
Australian swimming champion Emily Seebohm with her son Sampson
Fellow Australian Kaylee McKeown is the world record holder and current Olympic champion of the event.
Chasing second place and a qualifying time for selection are a back group nearly half Seebohm’s age, including 17-year-old Jaclyn Barclay and 18-year-old Iona Anderson.
But Seebohm has extra motivation.
“I’ve had moms from the mom group come and watch with their babies, which has been really exciting,” the four-time Olympian said.
‘And moms have contacted me on Instagram or Facebook or whatever to tell me how inspiring this is.
‘When I was pregnant, I felt like I had lost that athlete that I was.
“And this is me trying to get that back… and showing other women that it is possible to not only have children but also achieve your dreams.”
The same goes for Sampson.
Seebohm says other mothers have reached out to her on social media to tell her how inspiring her quest to achieve a record fifth Olympic Games is after recently giving birth.
The 32-year-old will compete in the 200m backstroke final at the Australian Olympic Swimming Trials.
“I do it for myself and I do it to show Sampson that if you have a dream, don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it,” Seeobohm said.
“A lot of people, when I announced I was coming back, told me, ‘oh, that’s never going to happen and you won’t be able to do it.'”
‘I breastfed him for eight months straight.
‘And I was able to do that and go to training and work out and go to the gym and be at home with Sampson and go to swimming classes, go to gymnastics.
‘I was able to do that. “It was very difficult, but it is doable.”
Seebohm, who won three gold, three silver and one bronze medals in her four Olympic Games, said motherhood made her a wiser athlete.
“We always think that being 30 is the best time of your athletic career,” he said.
‘And I think there’s still more to give, there’s just a different way of doing it.
“It’s not about doing it the same way little kids do it, but in a smarter way, but I still think there’s room for movement.”
If Seebohm is successful in her bid, she will become the first mother on an Australian Olympic swimming team since swimming great Hayley Lewis in 2000.