After spending the better part of 20 years in a swimming pool, and bringing home Olympic bronze and silver, Victoria's Ryan Cochrane has announced his retirement.
Speaking to reporters at Commonwealth Pool, Cochrane called his decision bittersweet:
" I always wanted an Olympic gold medal, I always wanted a world record. And those are things that probably made the retirement the hardest decision that I've ever had to deal with because that's the pint where you say there's no more chances, you can't go more. You have to choose when to say that's enough."
Cochrane says he will take the skills he learned to his next challenge - working for a software company:
" A lot of the things we learn as athletes transfers to the real world, and whether you found that success in the water or out, I think it teaches you to be a successful person no matter what you're doing."
Cochrane says he'd like to continue his association with the sport of swimming - perhaps in a leadership role with swimming Canada.