Australian swimming great Ariarne Titmus sees shades of herself in teenage sensation Sienna Toohey. Still only 17, Toohey has already made two national senior teams and is among the favourites for the women’s 100m breaststroke at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, which starts today.
Toohey's rapid rise
Toohey last year admitted she was disappointed to narrowly miss selection for the Paris Olympics as a 15-year-old in 2024, but eventually made her senior Dolphins debut at the 2025 World Championships in Singapore. Of the 10 rookies on that team, the Albury product was the youngest. On the non-para side of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games team, she remains the youngest.
Four-time Olympic gold medallist Titmus, who shocked the swimming world with her retirement at just 25 last year, says Glasgow could be a major stepping stone for Toohey, as it was for her eight years ago.
Titmus's perspective
Reflecting on where her career was at when she was Toohey’s age, Titmus — who has joined Channel 7 as an expert commentator — said she can see similarities. “When I was 17, I actually was at my first Commonwealth Games, which is ironic, on the Gold Coast, and I do believe that that year really set me up for the rest of my career,” she told 7NEWS.com.au.
“I went to the Gold Coast Games and won three gold medals, and then I broke four minutes (in the 400m freestyle) for the first time that year, and then I went on to world short course at the end of the year and broke my first world record.”
“So I do think that, on the women’s side particularly, and at the ages that we peak, I think that at 17 years old it’s not unusual to see a young athlete come through and have success early on, and I do think that the Commonwealth Games is the perfect platform.”
“You learn so much about competing at a multi-sport arena, and the prestige behind the Commonwealth Games certainly doesn’t match the Olympic Games, but it’s a mini replica, and I think it’s a great rehearsal for a lot of young athletes coming through.”
Toohey's prospects in Glasgow
Titmus says Toohey’s experience in Singapore will be crucial in her push for a medal in these Games. “She’s got 12 months under her belt now, has been a part of a national team,” she said.
“I think going away to the World Championships last year was a really valuable experience for her, even seeing how much she’s grown, and even at trials, she was able to articulate her goals and what she wants from her swimming.”
“I think she’s definitely progressed immensely. Her swims at trials were really promising; I don’t think we’ve seen an Australian swim 1.05 for 100 breaststroke in five or six years now, so that’s really great for our medley relay, but also we haven’t really had a strong breaststroker since the Tokyo Olympics.”
“So she’s got a good chance of coming away with a medal in the 100m breaststroke.”
“And yes, although 17 sounds young, we’ve seen many, many athletes make their mark at the Commonwealth Games as a teenager in the past, and so I think this is going to be a really great stepping stone for her in the lead-up to the Olympic Games in two years’ time.”
Looking ahead to Los Angeles 2028
The natural and obvious progression for Toohey would be the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles and, while Titmus thinks the youngster should be there, nothing is ever a given.
“I don’t know if anyone’s a certainty, you’ve got to be able to qualify at trials six weeks prior,” she said. “Even myself, I was never a certainty — you’ve got to do it on the day.”
“But the way that she’s tracking, I do think that she’s on track to be part of that team in two years’ time.”
