Colbert’s “full circle” summer
At this week’s Aquatics GB Swimming Championships, Colbert is actually swimming in four events.
She finished third in the 100m freestyle on Tuesday (14 April), and will go in her favoured 200m freestyle on Thursday, the 400m freestyle on Friday, then the 200m medley on Saturday.
This meet acts as trials for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games and the European Aquatics Championships Paris 2026, where she is hoping to have a big impact.
“My first summer as a senior athlete was 2022, when I suddenly made the Commonwealth Games and European Championships and got on the podium,” recalls Colbert.
“Coming back around four years later, I feel like I’m a very different athlete. I’ve grown a lot as an athlete and a person.
“I’m going in like, ‘I want to top this podium’. It’s quite a different mindset to what I had my first time around. It’s a full circle moment to remind myself how much I’ve grown.”
Colbert, though, will not have it all her own way this summer, particularly in Glasgow, where she will face Australian superstar O’Callaghan among others.
“Some events can be weaker at the Commonwealth Games, but I don’t get a break,” says Colbert.
“But hopefully it’ll just give me more practice in a really high-level final, so when I get to the Olympics, I’ve got more experience against Mollie and these top girls.”