Timothy Hodge is an Undergraduate in WSP’s Mining and Energy team. Working in Transmission & Electrical, Timothy has a weekly calendar that puts most of us to shame, combining studies and work with a rigorous training regime as he counts down to competing on the world stage in Paris next year.
Timothy is familiar with being in the international spotlight for his swimming prowess. He has competed at two previous Paralympic Games – Rio in 2016 and Tokyo in 2021 – as well as the 2018 Gold Coast and 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. He is the current World Record holder in the 200-metre individual medley event in his classification.
We spoke to Timothy recently about his journey to Paris 2024, and his aspirations in and out of the pool.
Timothy is currently completing a Bachelor of Engineering at Western Sydney University. With his father working as a linesman on power lines, he was drawn to the field at an early age and it’s now a family affair with his brother working as an electrical apprentice. Having developed a passion for renewable energy, Timothy is working at WSP two days a week to gain hands on experience.
Having turned competitive at the age of nine, Timothy has been a member of the Australian swim team since 2015. It takes dedication and a lot of planning to achieve his goals in the pool whilst also studying and working, and Timothy’s schedule isn’t for the faint hearted.
Rising at 4am, Timothy knocks out laps in the pool from 5am until just after 7am, from Monday through to Friday. On Mondays and Fridays, he’s typically at work but is able to change his days as needed. After work, training recommences from around 3.30pm to 6pm.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, instead of work, Timothy hits the gym at the NSW Institute of Sport after his morning pool session, followed by an appointment with his physio or dietician. Then, it’s time to hit the books or work his way through a practical task.
Wednesday is usually dedicated to training followed by university. Saturday involves a more leisurely training start of 6am followed by a workout out of the pool, recovery sessions and catching up with homework for the week ahead.
His week can change depending on his swimming commitments but Sunday is, as a rule, his day off to spend with friends and family.
Timothy explains, “Swimming comes first at the moment. As an athlete, you don’t have a long career so work and uni move to fit around it. Uni is great with recording lectures and WSP has provided me with the flexibility to move things when I need to.”
“My best achievement was last year at the World Para Swimming Championships where, in the 200-metre individual medley, I was lucky enough to break the world record for the first time.”
The World Record had previously been held by Matthew Cowdrey, Australia's most decorated Paralympian, since 2008. Timothy says, “That record had been standing for quite a while, and no one had been able to touch it. I surprised myself by breaking it.”
Timothy elaborates, “During the race you have an idea of where your competitors are but you don’t know how fast you’re going. The first thing I noticed when I hit the wall was the noise.
“If you hit the wall first at a World Championships, the music starts up and the commentators usually start screaming but I heard him screaming ‘New World Record!’ and I thought ‘You’re kidding me’.
“I turned around and looked at the board and saw the number one and World Record against my name. That was incredible – it was something I’d been chasing for 10 years and I finally had it!”
Since that moment of glory in Portugal, Timothy has gone on to break the record another three times.
What is Timothy hoping to achieve in Paris 2024?
With qualifiers looming in January and February, Timothy is hoping to compete in six to seven events in Paris. His main events are the 100-metre backstroke, 100-metre butterfly and 400-metre freestyle. Timothy is also hoping he’ll be selected for a couple of relays. Of course, there’s also his favourite event - the 200-metre individual medley. The medley combines butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle, in that order. Timothy has won the event in the last two World Championships and, as the current World Record holder, he’s hoping to take home Gold in Paris and possibly another World Record!
As a talented young athlete and spark in the Energy Transition space, the best for Timothy is yet to come!