This time around, Erika Fairweather knows she belongs with the best.
It was a different feeling the 17-year-old swimmer gave off yesterday, compared to the previous time she was preparing to race the world’s best.
Then, she was just 15 and heading to her first world championship.
But rather than being surprised and excited as she was in 2019, this time there is a clear sense of confidence.
The year 13 Kavanagh College pupil still showed plenty of emotion and excitement though.
But after being named in New Zealand’s team for next month’s Tokyo Olympics, the growth and experience in the Neptune swimmer was notable.
"I don’t know if it will be less intimidating, but I think I’ll be more comfortable," she said of her second foray on to the world stage.
"They’re still the big dogs, they’re still the best in the world and you get to go and race them.
"But you’ve earned your spot there. I deserve to be there and that’s so exciting to me."
Fairweather was confirmed as part of the team at a Kavanagh school assembly yesterday.
The announcement was made by former Otago Olympian and dual international Suzie Bates, who played basketball at the 2008 Beijing Games.
Fairweather qualified for the 400m freestyle late last year and snatched one of the wild-card spots for the 200m freestyle, having missed automatic qualification by 0.1sec.
She will join former Kavanagh College pupil Carina Doyle, Ali Galyer and Eve Thomas in the 4x200m freestyle relay team.
Her target race will be the 400m and her time of 4min 06.54sec ranks her in the world’s top 20 for the season.
A medal would be impressive for someone so young, although that was not her focus.
"For me it’s just about executing performances.
"The Olympics is such a hard stage to be on; it’s the biggest sporting stage in the world.
"Just to execute a really good performance will be really cool."
Coached by Dunedin and New Zealand team coach Lars Humer as well as Kurt Crosland, she said her training had been going well.
Moana Pool is set to open its main pool to the full 50m for her the week before she leaves, which she is excited about.
She had not changed much in her approach, still going for the less is more approach she has adopted throughout her career.
While her seven sessions a week have gone up to eight, it is still fewer than the 11 or 12 others her age did.
"I’m definitely more the quality of quantity kind of thing still.
"All my sessions in the pool I’m there, I’m there to train.
"I’m not going to take it easy, that’s a waste of a session."
Doyle also provides a very strong Otago connection in the squad.
While she is now based in Auckland, she attended Kavanagh and swam with the Waves club until she moved to Wellington aged 19 in 2013.
She has also been a regular competitor for St Clair in surf life-saving.
Her coach, Andy McMillan, is also from Dunedin.
Doyle and Fairweather’s relay team-mates Galyer and Thomas are two other Auckland-registered swimmers.
Auckland’s Hayley McIntosh, Wellington’s Lewis Clareburt and New Plymouth’s Zac Reid round out the squad.
