Any medal at the Olympics is a massive achievement -- recognition of years and years of hard work and sacrifice by not just an athlete, but also those around them. But for Kyle Chalmers, that he was even able to make it to Tokyo, let alone win a silver medal in the men’s 100-meter freestyle and two further bronzes in the relays was truly remarkable. 

A significant beneficiary of the 12-month delay to the Games of the XXXII Olympiad, the 23-year-old was forced to battle a list of injuries that realistically retired several athletes in the years leading up to the games, as well as a series of personal battles that gave him significant pause. 

At one point, he was even courted by AFL teams Port Adelaide and Geelong about making a potential shock switch in codes before ultimately opting to stay in the pool and target Tokyo -- where he took his career Olympic medal tally to six.

But now, the 100-meter men’s freestyle champion at the 2016 Rio Olympics is eagerly anticipating the next three years as he targets a re-match with American rival -- and good mate -- Caeleb Dressel at Paris 2024. 

A fierce advocate for Closing the Gap for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, Chalmers has also committed to confronting and challenging the racism and system barriers they face in their everyday lives -- and challenging Australia to do better. 

Chalmers joins ESPN’s Joey Lynch to talk Tokyo, the years ahead and the years just gone, how close he came to going to the AFL, country football, his impressive reptile collection, NBA fantasy leagues, Josh Giddey and much, much more. 

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