Lucy Hope has announced her retirement after a career that has encompassed two Olympics, four Commonwealth Games and trips to the world and European podiums.
The Scot concludes her time in competitive waters with an extensive collection of relay medals since making her Great Britain debut at the 2016 European Championships in London, two years after her Commonwealth bow at Glasgow 2014.
She was part of the British 4×2 quartet that won silver at the 2024 World Championships in Doha, months before fifth at the Paris Olympics where she also came seventh with the 4×100 free squad.
Hope also claimed bronze in the mixed 4×100 free at the 2023 worlds in Fukuoka. She was part of the women’s 4×100 free team that finished fourth in a British record of 3:33.90, lowering the standard they set at the Tokyo Games on Hope’s Olympic debut.
She won seven golds and two silvers across three European Championships as well as gold and bronze continental short-course medals at Otopeni 2023.
Hope – who was coached by Brad Hay at the University of Stirling – posted on social media, saying: “Swimming 🏊🏼♀️ What a journey it’s been! All the highs, the lows and most importantly the people who made it all worthwhile. I gave this sport my all, and I’m walking away with a heart full of gratitude and memories that will last forever.
“If you’d told 8 year old Lucy that she’d be a double Olympian and Scotland’s most decorated female European swimmer she’d have thought you were lying. Thank you to everyone who supported me along the way, looking forward to what’s next. 🫶🏻”
