Ryan Murphy spoke to the press after winning bronze in the 100 backstroke and learning the sex of his unborn baby.
On the result: “I’m happy. It’s a very talented group. What I’ve improved over the years is my ability to frame things very quickly. When you hit the wall, you hope to win, that was my first emotion. Thomas (Ceccon) and Xu Jiayu, they’re both very talented guys, they’ve been very good at this sport for a long time. They handle the pressure well. Being third behind them, I’m not disappointed.”
On whether the rest of the world has now closed the gap on the United States, which has long dominated Olympic swimming: “Absolutely. The world is really talented, especially on the men’s side. The Europeans are incredible. It’s going to be exciting over the next couple of days, and we’ll get those touches at some point.”
On his wife Bridget Konttinen revealing the sex of their baby, who is due in January, tonight: “When I came back, Bridget was holding a sign that said, ‘Ryan, it’s a girl!’ So I’m having a little girl in January, that’s what revealed the sex. That was the first I’d heard about it. Obviously, I knew she was pregnant. We both thought it was going to be a boy. It’s all going to be about that little girl.”
