'We were wearing masks on the bus' - MacInnes backs health measures

Swimmer Keanna MacInnes believes the extra measures the Scottish and British teams have taken to ensure their competitors stay healthy has been a big factor behind her own breakthrough summer.

Her potential has been hampered by a combination of injury and illness in recent years.

She has had no such issues this time round, winning the first senior international medals of her career – three silvers and a bronze – at the recent Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

That feat was bettered a few weeks later at last month's European championships in Paris where she won double gold.

And MacInnes, 25, told BBC Scotland: "These performances have probably been brewing over the past few years, I had a couple of disappointing summer meets just with injury and illness the past couple of years.

"I felt we have managed illness really successfully this year, the Scottish team and the British team, we were all wearing masks on the buses to and from the pool, which is something that not every team does.

"I am really grateful that our team has taken those steps and maybe some people are less prone to illness than others but everyone wants to help each other on that front so that is a big one."

Edinburgh's MacInnes is part of an exciting group of Scottish female swimmers that includes Katie Shanahan and Angharad Evans, who have also been racking up major medals over the past few months.

"Our squad training environment is just so positive right now, everyone is bouncing off each other, there has obviously been so much success, particularly with the girls at Stirling and I think we have definitely got loads of up-and-coming swimmers," MacInnes said.

"No one dragging their feet and being ready for retirement, everyone is fully committed to the LA cycle, so we all keep each other accountable and we are all just excited and happy to be there."

MacInnes made her Olympic debut in Paris two years ago and has got the Los Angeles 2028 Games very much in her sights.

"Maybe a decade ago people would have said that 25 was the end of a swimmers' career, especially a female swimmer," she explained.

"That view is definitely changing. Being funded by the UK lottery definitely helps people extend their career.

"There are so many things I can fix and improve and work on but I will need to sit down with my coach and decide what things we are targeting this year to drop time.

"It is everyone's dream to win an Olympic medal, there is a lot of data and stats saying that around 80% of the medals are made up from the top five from the worlds the year before so I guess short-term the target would be to be in that top five at the worlds this year."