Matt Wilson has broken down after being named in the Australian swimming team for the Tokyo Olympics, dedicating his selection to his grandmother, who died just days before the trials.
Wilson was left in tears earlier this week after narrowly missing the qualifying time in the 200 metres breaststroke, with his time of 2:08.52 less than a quarter of a second outside the qualifying time of 2:08.28.
He missed selection for Rio in 2016 by a similar margin.
Unknown to most, Wilson's grandmother had died just days before his swim. In announcing his selection, Swimming Australia confirmed it used its discretionary powers to include him in the 35-strong squad.
"I'm still trying to wrap my head around it quite honestly," Wilson told Amazon Prime Video. "Just 24 hours ago I didn't think I was going to be on this Olympic team.
"I was getting ready to plan my break. It's funny, sport. It's been such a roller-coaster 24 hours. I'm just stoked to be here and hopefully I can repay the faith for Tokyo."
Wilson choked back tears when asked about his grandmother.
"The last couple of weeks have been really tough and I'm glad I could make the team for her (grandmother). I'm sure she'd be proud of me."
Swimming Australia head coach Rohan Taylor said they weren't aware of Wilson's grief until after his swim.
"We got informed (on Wednesday) that there were some extenuating circumstances we needed to look into," he said.
"We had a discussion as a selection panel last night. We determined based on the fact we have a former world record holder, won a worlds silver medal not that long ago, we wanted to give him the opportunity to add value to the team," he said.
Elsewhere Cate Campbell and Emily Seebohm were named to compete at their fourth Olympic Games, joining Leisel Jones as the only Australian swimmers to achieve the feat.
Popstar turned swimmer Cody Simpson missed selection, but finished a credible eighth in the 100m butterfly, setting him up for the 2022 Commonwealth Games and 2024 Paris Olympics.
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from WWOS https://wwos.nine.com.au/olympics/tokyo-olympics-matt-wilson-named-in-australian-swimming-squad/1c1c8477-5a47-4265-853c-03410b654b17
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