Adam Peaty returns to the Olympic scene as swimming gets ...

Adam Peaty is standing on business at Paris 2024.

In a comparatively slow first round of the men’s 100m breaststroke, the reigning Olympic champion checked out in 59.18 seconds.

That seeds him second for tonight’s semi-finals.

"It was good,” said the world record holder. “The whole field was a bit slow, in a sense. I saw the times come in and thought I didn't have to push anything too far or push anything.

“We'll see what we get tonight. We can't win the battle now, we have to win it tomorrow.”

Peaty has been open about his struggles with motivation and injury in 2022.

But he is now back on the Olympic stage and could become the second male swimmer after Michael Phelps to win three successive golds in the same event with gold on Sunday.

"The headspace is very good,” he said. “If anything too relaxed, it doesn't feel like we're here at the moment but getting that swim wakes up the mind.

“I think that's just experience knowing I don't have to spend the energy here. I was saying to (coach) Mel (Marshall) that it's about business, business and business again, so that's purely it.”

The 29-year-old couldn’t spot three-year-old son George in the crowd, but he was there.

They shared a FaceTime call this week in which Geroge asked: 'daddy are you the fastest boy?'

"It felt very different to Tokyo,” said Peaty. “I was a younger man back then and had a little bit more to prove, a bit more angry back then.

“Obviously we've got a nice job to do and that field is a little bit clustered so we'll have to be on our A-game to make sure we make that final in a good lane."

James Wilby also progressed from the heats with a stellar 59.40 seeing him sixth.

Keanna MacInnes was the first British swimmer to dive into the drop-in pool at La Defense Arena, the second-largest indoor arena in France.

In the women’s 100m butterfly, she set a new Scottish record of 57.90 to secure the 16th and final qualifying spot.

Kieran Bird laid it all on the line in the men’s 400m freestyle.

The Tokyo Olympian went out hard but 3:47.45 was only enough for 16th overall. He could yet be involved in the men's 4x200m freestyle relay on Tuesday.

The first relay action of the Games saw Team GB comfortably book places in tonight's finals of the women's and men's 4x100m freestyle.

Sportsbeat 2024