A lengthy injury spell left Teong Tzen Wei in a depressed state of mind, but now the butterfly swim star is ready to take flight again.
It had been a gloomy year for the 27-year-old as his hopes of qualifying for the Paris Olympics were dashed after tearing his left elbow ligament during training in March, a recurrence of the injury he suffered in December 2022.
However, missing the quadrennial Games did not hurt as much as the physical and mental strain from sitting on the sidelines for six months, as the Singaporean told The Straits Times: "Being injured is the worst. It's like a bird with a broken wing, it's depressing.
"Things in life happen, they come and don't come, so I was more okay with not making the Olympics, but getting injured was very hard to take.
"The toughest thing was keeping my mind straight. Thankfully, people around me kept me in check to help me stay as positive and consistent as I can."
Now, he is reaping the rewards of his persistence during the enforced break as the short-course season comes around.
At the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in Singapore, the 27-year-old led at the halfway mark of the 100m butterfly to claim bronze behind Switzerland's Noe Ponti (48.60 seconds) and Dutchman Nyls Korstanje (49.12sec), while lowering his own national record to 49.37sec on Oct 31.
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