Sport - Hackett hangs up his swimming goggles

Julian Linden

Australia's Grant Hackett announced his retirement Monday, ending his career as one of the world's most decorated long-distance swimmers.

The 28-year-old said he was hanging up his goggles to pursue other interests because his body could no longer cope with the constant grind of training.

"I have been doing this for a long time... and it is now all just a memory for me," the 28-year-old said at the Australian swimmer of the year awards.

Hackett's announcement came two months after he finished a close second behind Tunisia's Oussama Mellouli in the 1500 metres freestyle final at the Beijing Olympics, failing narrowly in his bid to become the first male swimmer to win the same individual event at three Olympics.

Hackett won a total of seven medals, including three golds, from his three Olympic appearances at Sydney, Athens and Beijing.

He also won a stack of 18 medals, featuring 10 gold, at five world championships, as well as setting world records for 200, 800 and 1500 freestyle, the latter two of which still stand.

Despite his versatility, Hackett's favourite and most successful event was the 1500, the most gruelling race in the pool.

He was unbeaten in the event for almost a decade with no-one getting within six seconds of his world record of 14 minutes 34.56 seconds, set in Japan seven years ago.

He won four world titles in a row from 1998 to 2005 as well as back to back Olympics, his first in Sydney when he was struggling to fight off a virus and his second in Athens when he had a partially-collapsed lung.

Hackett spent most of his career battling comparisons with his team mates Kieren Perkins and Ian Thorpe but outlasted them both and snatched their world records.

He broke Perkins 1500 record at the 2001 Fukuoka world championships then Thorpe's 800 mark at the 2005 world titles in Montreal, where he upstaged Michael Phelps to win the award as best male swimmer.

WEAR AND TEAR

But just when he seemed unstoppable, the constant wear and tear of training finally started taking its toll.

He underwent shoulder surgery in November 2005 and was forced to pull out of the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.

Later that same year, he began having back problems and was diagnosed with exercise-induced asthma.

He used his time away from the pool to complete a university degree in commerce and law and left his Gold Coast home to marry Australian singer Candice Alley.

He arrived at the 2007 world championships in Melbourne in the worst shape of his career and he finished seventh in the 1500, ending his unbeaten run in the 30-lap event.

His best years seemed behind him but he defied the odds to register the second fastest time in history and qualify fastest for the final at Beijing's Water Cube.

When the younger Mellouli surged clear halfway through the final, Hackett summoned up his last reserves of energy over the last 100 to give it one final shot, drawing within a body length of the Tunisian by the end.

Hackett immediately ruled out going to the 2012 London Olympics and said he wanted to take his time before making a decision about his future.

The announcement that he was retiring was not a surprise after he recently started a job as television presenter in Australia.

(Editing by Justin Palmer)