Eamon Sullivan very much still active and chasing gold in Glasgow

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Despite most people, and even a few of his sponsors, assuming he’d hung up his Speedos, turns out Sullivan never actually uttered the “R” word.

“Even to this day people go: ‘Oh are you still swimming?’,” Sullivan says.

“It’s like: ‘yeah, got the Commonwealth Games in a couple of months, actually’.”

He isn’t simply clinging to a relay spot for Glasgow either; he’ll go as one of Australia’s top medal hopes after qualifying fastest for the 50m freestyle.

Having dropped the 100m to focus on the one-lap frenzy, Sullivan shocked everyone to upset big boys James Magnussen and Cameron McEvoy at the national trials in May and book a ticket to his third Commonwealth Games.

With a slick 21.65sec in the semi, he is the third fastest in the world this year.

“It was a textile (non-suit) PB, it equalled (Alex) Popov’s old 50 world record, it was 0.13 quicker than I went in the (50m) final in London, and I was probably only 80 per cent of where I want to be,” Sullivan says. “So … it was a good race.”