Trickett to end retirement, hopes to compete in London 2012

Trickett to end retirement

SYDNEY — Triple Olympic gold medalist Libby Trickett is coming out of retirement in the hope of representing Australia in swimming at the 2012 London games.

The 25-year-old Trickett told an Australian TV network Wednesday she realized in the months since her retirement that she wasn’t quite ready to stop competing.

“Throughout the course of this year there were little things that made me miss it,” she said. “Just the smell of the pool during race time, just things that twinged my memories.”

Trickett said her decision to return was “solidified” by watching swimmers at last month’s Pan Pacific championships.

“I guess I was just ready to test myself again and really I just want to see how far I can take my swimming and see how fast I can get,” she said.

Trickett first raced for Australia at the 2003 world championships, winning a bronze medal in the 50-meter freestyle and 400-meter relay. She went on to win her first Olympic gold in the 400 relay at the 2004 Athens Games and peaked at the 2007 world championships, where she won five gold medals.

She won relay and individual golds at the 2008 Beijing Olympics but her performances waned by the 2009 world championships.

Trickett announced last September that she was taking a break from the sport and announced her retirement in December.