Adam Peaty qualifies fastest for 100m breaststroke final at World Championships

Peaty clocked a time of 58.60 seconds to reach Monday’s final.

Adam Peaty qualified fastest for the final (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) (AP)

Three-time Olympic champion Adam Peaty qualified fastest for the 100 metres breaststroke final at the World Championships in Doha.

Peaty, who was absent from the championships in 2022 with a foot injury and also missed out last year after stepping away from the sport to prioritise his mental health, clocked a time of 58.60 seconds to reach Monday’s final.

“I feel good,” the 29-year-old said.

“My objective for this meet was to progress through the rounds, progress physically and in results, but also progress mentally and see what strategies are working, what isn’t working.

“It’s more of a test event for us, but obviously we’re going to put our best foot forward and put a good fight on.

“After the heats I was like, ‘OK, I know what I’m working with and I know what I’m capable of’.

“But tonight was just about going out there, showing a little bit of Adam Peaty, getting a little bit angry with myself like I normally do. Tonight I showed that I can still get it down that back end when I really need to.”

Great Britain’s men finished fourth in the final of the 4x100m freestyle relay behind China, Italy and the United States, but the quartet of Jacob Whittle, Tom Dean, Duncan Scott and Matt Richards qualified for an Olympic quota spot with their performance in the heats.