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Dean Boxall Explains His Awesome Meltdown After Seeing Ariarne Titmus Win Gold

Dean Boxall Explains His Awesome Meltdown After Seeing Ariarne Titmus Win Gold

The coach threw his hands in the air, ripped his face mask off and swung on the railings like he was suffering from an electric shock.

Anonymous

Anonymous

By Stewart Perrie

Dean Boxall has opened up about the reaction that has been seen around the world.

The Australian swim coach absolutely let it rip in the coaching stands at the Tokyo Olympics after Ariarne Titmus won gold in the 400m freestyle event.

He was seen throwing his hands in the air, ripping his face mask off and holding onto the railing like he was suffering from an electric shock.

It was pure, unadulterated happiness at seeing someone compete at their best.

Now he's spoken about becoming the Tokyo Games' biggest meme.

He told Channel 7 that he was imitating popular American wrestler The Ultimate Warrior, who was massive back in the '80s.

"He's my favourite," Boxall said. "I used to follow him. I used to wrestle at home with my brother when I was about 10. I just loved him."

Dean said he couldn't contain his emotions after seeing Ariarne stick to their game plan and bring home the gold.

"We had a race plan but in this situation and under that amount of pressure, Ariarne executed it to perfection," he said. "And so when I saw it starting to build, I thought, 'Here we go, she could do this!'

"Unbelievable to execute that under pressure."

He also explained how intense emotions are at the Games and how much blood, sweat and tears go into getting someone ready for an event like this.

PA

"I lost it. I think I went outside my body. I just lost it. That's a moment of being with this girl for five years and having a dream together," Boxall said. "The Americans might not like it, I don't know. But I bleed with my athletes.

"When they leave the pool deck with me, they go and start the recovery process and go home. I don't ... I go home and dream for them. I go home and try to find a way for them to get better. I don't turn off, so that's why I got emotional."

Titmus' win was particularly spectacular because she upset Katie Ledecky, the American who has never been beaten in an Olympic final for the event.

While Boxall represented everyone in Australia during that epic moment, his antics copped a warning from the International Olympic Committee.

The IOC issued a reminder to all athletes, coaches and staff to stick to the mask wearing and social distancing rules so that the Tokyo Games can be as safe as possible.

Featured Image Credit: Channel 7

Topics: Coach, olympics, Tokyo Olympics, swimming, Australia