Haughey facing ‘very long journey’ back to her best, won’t commit to 2028 LA Olympics

Hong Kong’s four-time Olympic medallist Siobhan Haughey made a winning return to competitive swimming on Saturday, but said her journey back to the top was “gonna be very long”.

The 27-year-old won the women’s 100 metres breaststroke final at Hong Kong’s Long Course Swimming Time Trial, coming home in one minute and 8.49 seconds. In second was 15-year-old Eunis Man Wui-kiu, with a personal best time of 1:09.38. Claire Cheung Wing-yi, 16, finished third in 1:11.31.

Haughey said despite feeling “mentally fresh”, there had been a significant drop off in her times after a three-month break from a sport that has made her Hong Kong’s most decorated athlete.

“It was tough, but it’s good to be back,” Haughey said. “The first few days of training felt great, and then suddenly it just hit me, I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, I am so tired’.”

After a 2024 campaign that saw Haughey win two 200m world titles and Olympic bronze in both the 200m and 100m freestyle, in December the Hongkonger revealed she would be taking a break to assess her future.

Last month, Haughey’s coach Tom Rushton told the Post she had decided to fight for her sixth world championship title in Singapore in July and would be at the National Games in November.