How Ellie Simmonds rediscovered her love for swimming after almost quitting before Rio 2016 Paralympics

Ellie Simmonds has admitted that she came close to quitting swimming after losing her love for the sport in the build-up to the 2016 Rio Paralympics.

“I just hated everything about it,” the 23-year-old five-times gold medalist told BBC Sport.

But instead of retiring, Simmonds went travelling while she considered her next move.

The break did her good and she is now back in the pool bidding to win back a place on the GB team for the European Championships in Dublin at the trials which start in Sheffield tomorrow.

“I needed that time away to refocus and figure out what I wanted in life,” she said. “As the months went by, I found my love for it again.”