Duncan Scott's parents 'delighted' at Tokyo Olympics success

Duncan Scott has become the first British athlete to win four medals at a single games

The parents of Scottish swimmer Duncan Scott say they are "delighted" with his record medal haul at the Olympics.

Scott, from Alloa, Clackmannanshire, made history after winning four medals - more than any other British athlete at a single games.

His parents had originally planned to go to Tokyo but had to cancel their plans when the Games were rescheduled because of the pandemic.

Instead they have been watching the "nail biting" action from home.

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Duncan's parents, Joy Macnaughton and Nigel Scott, told the BBC that they have been "jumping up and down in front of the television".

Nigel said: "Duncan always gives us a good show, he's a very, very confident swimmer and we're delighted for him."

"This is really special. It adds to the two he got back in 2016 so we're really pleased for him.

"It's tremendous that it's happened, we're all delighted. He's put in a huge amount of effort."

With two silvers from Rio 2016, his six Olympic medals is a total bettered only by cyclists Sir Chris Hoy, Jason Kenny (both seven) and Sir Bradley Wiggins (eight).

The swimmer's parents said despite their pride in their son, they had not heard a "squeak" from him since his victory.

He has previously told how he likes to block out all distractions - even messages from family - to focus on his performance.

"I've had great support from back home but not replied to anyone, even my parents. I like to stay in the bubble of the competitive environment," he said.

The swimmer likes to stay in his "competitive bubble" and has not been in contact with home to keep distractions to a minimum

His parents confirmed this was the case. "That's quite normal for Duncan. We've got quite used to that over the years.

"He doesn't communicate with the outside world at all. We're quite happy with that."

When he gets home though his father added: "There will be celebrations, no doubt about it."

Crash course

The medals he brings home from Tokyo come after years of hard work, Duncan's parents said.

They told how his aptitude in the pool became apparent when he was a child.

His parents sent him and his sister on an intensive two-week crash course one summer to learn to swim.

As his potential became apparent the teacher suggested he train with a local swimming club.

"The next thing you know you're in a swimming club, the next thing is your first gala ... and for the next 12-15 years you're dragged into running swimming clubs and helping kids to swim," Nigel reflected.

After securing a sports scholarship at a boarding school in Perthshire, Duncan went on to compete around the world.

"I take my hat off to him cos it's not only [swimming], he's also got himself a degree in the process," Nigel added.

Joy said when Duncan has been competing abroad they have not usually been able to travel to watch him.

She said: "Generally when it's been in places like Singapore, Gwangju, we've been at home anyway. We didn't go to Rio. It's hugely expensive.

"We would have been in Tokyo because it was my 60th last year. It was going to be a double whammy. But it's incredibly expensive.

"Duncan was swimming in almost every session. As a parent, you have access to definitely one ticket but if we went to Tokyo we'd probably only have one ticket and at £90 a ticket parents still have to pay, you don't get that as a freebie."

But they hope there will be more medals in his future.

The 24-year-old has already said he arrived in Tokyo targeting four gold medals. He leaves with one, from the the 4x100m medley, and three silvers.

In the race he entered as favourite - the 200m freestyle - team-mate Tom Dean beat him by just 0.04 seconds.

He bagged another silver in the 200m medley, and the third in the men's 4x100m medley relay.

With the next Olympics taking place in Paris in 2024, he is still in with a chance to become Britain's most decorated Olympian.