The swimmers who adapt to a silent Tokyo Olympics have the best chance of success, Australia's veteran coach Michael Bohl says.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Bohl, coach of gold medal prospect Emma McKeon, says Australia's swim team aren't surprised at the crowd ban at the Tokyo Games.
"If the meet was starting tomorrow and it happened it might have been a bit concerning," Bohl told reporters on Friday.
"But we have got two weeks for everything to resonate and I think it will be fine.
"To be honest, whatever the situation is thrown in front of you, you have just got to be a good adapter at the Olympics."
Bohl said at the 2016 Rio Olympics "so many things went wrong".
"We had hot and cold water not working, we were putting toilet paper down into a bucket beside the toilet," he said.
"There were rooms not being cleaned, lifts were breaking down - so many things that weren't going right.
"But everyone is subjected to the same conditions and those that adapt are the ones that do well."
Australia's swim team is in camp in Cairns ahead of the Games, with Bohl heartened by its all-round strength.
"If you take it back to the bare bones, when we're training every session, there is no one in the crowd watching," he said.
"And we are seeing our athletes performing at great speeds and trying to prepare themselves well for the Olympics.
"The Olympic Games is one of these competitions, the people that don't adapt are the ones that don't do well."
Bohl's star pupil McKeon is a gold contender in three events plus relays and the team has designs on making it Australia's most successful Games at the pool.
The nation won a benchmark eight swimming gold medals at Melbourne's 1956 Olympics.
"Everything is dialled back to zero once the Olympics come around but looking at the current form, the team is looking really, really good," Bohl said.
"There's a nice feel amongst the group ... people are swimming fast."
But he cautioned against expecting the Australians to knock the United States off their mantle as world swimming's superpower, noting that required around 15 golds.
"Everyone is looking forward to the chance to see what they can do in a couple of weeks," Bohl said.
"But it's a very difficult task ... to come up and surpass the US as number one."
Australian Associated Press
