Now his time has come.
For anyone listening to Daniel Wiffen over the last number of months, especially after becoming the first Irish swimmer to break a world record in December, his achievements inside the Aspire Dome in Doha this week may not have been entirely surprising.
Not just because Wiffen is well able to talk, he’s even better at letting his swimming talk for him, now loud and clear for all the world to hear after his astonishing double gold medal strike at the World Aquatics Championships.
At age 22, it continues his trajectory of improvement since qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics as a 19-year-old, finishing some distance outside the finals there despite setting then Irish records of 7:51.65 for the 800m (finishing 14th) and 15:07.69 for the 1500m (finishing 20th).
In Doha this week, he won his first gold medal in the 800m on Wednesday in 7:40.94, a full two seconds clear of next best, before adding his 1500m gold on Sunday evening in 14:34.07, a full 10 seconds clear of next best. You do the math.
In both cases his race tactics and execution were entirely without fault, Wiffen unquestionably benefiting from his move to Loughborough University, also in that Tokyo Olympic year, to train with their elite swimming programme under the guidance of Andi Manley.
The rewards are coming thick and fast, Wiffen earning $20,000 for each of his gold medal wins, pocket money compared to some other professional sports, but no one goes into elite swimming expecting any great fortune to go with the fame.
Wiffen could have landed another $30,000 had he broken the world record, the mark of 14:31.02 still belonging to Sun Yang since the 2012 Olympics in London.
On Yang’s world record surviving, Wiffen said: “It’s definitely one of my goals to beat that, at one point, I’m 22, I’ve got at least eight years, another couple of Olympics in me, and I’m sure it will go at some point, and I hope to be the person to do it.”
His 14:34.07 does moves him up to number five on the all-time list, and second fastest European ever behind only Gregorio Paltrinieri from Italy, who missed out on the final here by one place.
Indeed Wiffen had already made Irish swimming history when breaking a world record last December, trimming the short course 800m mark by a full three seconds on route to winning his third European Short-Course gold medal, and it would appear to be only a matter of time before he makes this 1500m mark his own too.
In the end, after Ireland waited over 50 years to win a first medal on this stage, Wiffen had single-handedly placed Ireland joint 10th on the final medal table in Doha, ahead of - often considered swimming superpowers - Germany and Japan; in all 30 nations won medals, topped by USA, China and Australia.
[ Who is Daniel Wiffen, Ireland’s first swimmer to break a world record?Opens in new window ]
Some veteran swimming commentators have been highlighting the fact several Paris podium contenders are not in Doha. It’s true Wiffen didn’t have to worry about Bobby Finke from the US, or the Australian Sam Short, who filled two podium positions in the 800m and 1500m in Fukuoka. Last year’s 800m and 1500m World champion, Ahmed Hafnaoui from Tunisia, failed to make either final.
Still, Wiffen’s performances also earned him the golden trophy for Best Male Swimmer, after making three finals in all, and with any sort of company on Sunday evening he might well have gone faster again.
Mona McSharry also closed off her third final in Doha finishing eighth, this time after the suitably tight margins of 50 metres breaststroke, a non-Olympic event.
In the event she describes herself as the “splash and dash”, McSharry was mixing it with the best breaststroke specialists in the world, victory going to Ruta Meilutyte from Lithuania, the world record holder and defending champion, who touched home in 29.40.
McSharry, swimming in lane one, finished in 30.96: “I’m a little hard on myself, but three finals is definitely progress, something positive,” she said. “The main goal coming into this was to practice coming through the rounds, what looks best throughout the meet, because it will be the same in Paris.”
With two fifth place finishes already in the 100m and 200m breaststroke, the Sligo swimmer will also be part of Irish women’s 4x100m medley relay in Paris, their time of 4:01.25 from last year’s World Championships enough to see them through in 15th of the 16 invited teams.
That team of Danielle Hill (backstroke), McSharry (Breaststroke), Ellen Walshe (butterfly) and Victoria Catterson (freestyle) also have two individual qualifiers, in McSharry and Walshe, crucial for Olympic selection. It’s the first time Ireland have qualified a relay in a women’s event since 1972.
[ Mona McSharry: ‘I’d come to the conclusion that I hated swimming’Opens in new window ]
“And one of the positives as well is finalising the relay spot,” said McSharry, “I think it’s the last event in Paris, and kind of shows where swimming is going to Ireland.”
Earlier, the men’s 4x100m medley relay made Ireland’s first relay a world long course championships final, Conor Ferguson (backstroke), Darragh Green (breaststroke), Max McCusker (butterfly) and Shane Ryan (freestyle) finished seventh in the final with a time of 3:35.28, promoted one place after the Poland team were disqualified
The race was won by United States with a time of 3:29.80, and while the Irish men are also inside the top-16 places in 13th, they will also need two individual qualifiers to seal their spot.
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