You will never catch Michael Bohl thrusting against a stadium rail in the manner of his protégé Dean Boxhall. But make no mistake, the coach to Australia's most-decorated Olympian is thrilled.
Not only because 11-time Olympic medallist Emma McKeon has proven to the world just how good she is, but because Bohl is more than just her coach — he is a long-time friend of the McKeon family.
"I'm very close with her family, Ron [Emma's dad] and I swam together back in the 80s and I was on the Commonwealth Games team with her mum, Suzie, in 1982," Bohl said.
"There's a lot of synergy with our families," Bohl said, "and I think that makes it extra special as well."
Affectionately known as "Bohly", the 59-year-old is taking the opportunity while quarantining in Darwin to reflect and to plot.
"It's nice to have Olympic success and I think one of the things I'm most proud of is that this is the fourth Olympics in a row where someone from our program has stood on the dais at the Olympics individually," Bohl said.
"That's one of the things, from a selfish point of view — from my point of view — that I was desperate to try [to] help someone get on that podium.
Coaching a gold rush
Bohl's first Olympic success came in 2008, when Stephanie Rice won three gold medals.
"It was just the best thing that's ever happened to my coaching career, having Stephanie after four or five years achieve that triple gold medal status and to have someone now come up and get four … it's just taken it to another level," he said.
Under Bohl's tutelage, McKeon won a gold relay medal in 2016 at the Rio Olympics, along with two more silver medals and a bronze in her other events.
When the Olympics were postponed in 2020, McKeon was devastated.
"I can still remember the day at the pool, I got all the athletes around … Emma was just uncontrollably upset," Bohl said.
"She was at the top of her game and she really thought her opportunity would slip through her fingers."
What makes Emma McKeon tick?
"Having coached for about 33 years, I've seen a lot of athletes who talk a lot but don't do a lot," Bohl said.
"Emma is a very reserved young lady but it's her will and determination … she's just incredibly focused."
After 14 years at St Peter's Lutheran College in Brisbane, Bohl made "the really tough decision" to move his elite squad to Griffith University's Gold Coast Campus in 2017, ahead of the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
McKeon moved with him and trained while studying for a Bachelor of Public Health.
Their partnership has seen McKeon become Australia's most-decorated Olympian, a feat she achieved in Tokyo last week when she added four gold (two relay and two individual) plus three bronze medals to her cabinet, bringing her total haul to 11 medals, more than any other Australian in history.
McKeon could have a chance to add to that collection if she goes on to compete in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
"She's very, very good to work with, you know, whether it's up in the gym, or whether it's in the pool. She just gives everything her all," Bohl said.
"It's very rare to see her put in a half-baked effort … if she's having an off day, the effort will still be there and that's probably the thing that sets her apart from most people."
