Every time Sam Long lines up at a T100 race – including this weekend’s showdown in London, where he is a late but welcome addition – the storyline feels familiar. What will the swim gap be? How long will it take for Sam to catch up? Commentators speculate. Fans debate. And inevitably, some age groupers watching at home breathe a quiet sigh of relief: “See? Even Sam struggles with the swim.” As if his performance justifies letting their own swim progress stall.
But that misses the point entirely.
Sam’s journey in the water is not a permission slip for our own swimming to stagnate. It’s proof of what is possible with relentless effort.
He started, like many of us, with no swim pedigree. No early pool years. No natural fluency in the water. And yet, through years of consistency and belief, he has risen to become one of the best in the world – reaching PTO World #1 in mid-2024 and earning podiums through pure persistence.
The Real Message: No Excuses, Just Possibility
Yes, Sam Long will likely give up time in the water this weekend. He is racing against some of the fastest swimmers in the sport – athletes with Olympic resumes and decades of elite swim training. But that only sharpens the focus on what he has built.
Sam did not stumble into better swimming. His improvement is the result of long, lonely hours in the pool, of staying committed when progress came slowly, and of choosing – deliberately – to compete in the T100 series because he knew the depth of field would force him to improve.
He could have avoided the scrutiny. He could have played to his strengths. He could have stayed comfortable. Instead, he leaned into the hard part. And after the T100 Grand Final in Dubai, when a post-race interviewer asked him to reflect – “Your whole season, it’s been quite the journey, hasn’t it?” – Sam broke down in tears: “It takes a lot of strength to fight like this every time…people don’t know…it’s so hard.”
Standing beside him, Jan Frodeno offered a quiet moment of support. “People don’t know how hard this man is fighting every single time,” he said.
This isn’t just about effort. It’s about choosing the hard road – over and over again – even when results are not guaranteed.
So the next time you’re tempted to cite Sam Long as rationale for why your swim doesn’t need to improve, stop and reconsider. Maybe he’s not your excuse – maybe he’s your evidence.
He has shown what it means to show up, do the work, and keep choosing the hard way forward. The rest is up to you.
The post Sam Long and the Swim: Why His London T100 Journey Should Inspire, Not Excuse appeared first on Triathlon Magazine Canada.