Australia's storied association with the 1500-metre freestyle means Mack Horton will find himself carrying the weight of history at the pointy end of the swimming program. The truth is, he could well have a gold medal in his keeping well before the famed distance finale.
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Horton knows it, too. It may be 1100 metres shorter than Grant Hackett and Kieran Perkins' pet swim, but the 400 metres is steadily rising in his estimations, so much so that he is realising his best hope of Rio gold is in an event where he has been very much the accidental tourist.
At 20, Horton has already been declared the heir to the distance crown. At the Olympic trials in Adelaide, he surpassed Perkins and only Hackett has gone faster over the long course in terms of Australians. That was the swim that made casual fans sit up and take notice.
Horton says that race remains his passion but he can't escape the time he put on the board in the 400m, one that has him ranked on top of the world a month out from the Olympics and in pole position to storm the podium early in the meet.
While his 14:39.54 is still five seconds off Italian distance ace Gregorio Paltrinieri in terms of 2016 bests, his 3:41.65 for the 400m has him almost two seconds ahead of nearest rival, China's controversial former doper Sun Yang.
Taking the No.1 ranking into Rio has put a target on Horton's substantial chest, but the Victorian said he had been right up to the mark in training, despite that being briefly interrupted by a car accident and now illness, which has seen him barely dip his toe in the water at the farewell grand prix meet in Brisbane.
"I always have my eye on everyone else," Horton said. "It's harder being the hunted than the hunter. Hopefully I can stay on top and follow through in Rio.
"Yeah it [the 400m] has [risen in my priorities] ... I'm enjoying a bit more as well. I finally know how to swim it. Two years ago, I was way out of my depth. I had no idea. But I get a lot more enjoyment out of it now.
"I love the 1500m. It's my favourite. But I'm still very keen to swim well in that 400m. I've got eight days between them so there's plenty of time to focus on both."
400m vs 1500m: Horton is a medal chance in both events, despite the longer race being his pet event. Photo: Getty Images
Horton didn't swim the 400m in Brisbane in what represents the final racing opportunity for the Dolphins ahead of Rio. They will have a training camp in America before heading to Brazil on July 31.
What he must do is try and stay healthy, with a parasitic infection demolishing his hopes at the FINA World Championships in Kazan last year. Better to get the cold and flu that is doing the rounds of the Olympic squad now rather than in a month's time.
"It started in my throat and I ended up wth body aches and now it's all gone up into my sinus," he said. "I just have to get that sorted before I get back into training.
"But yeah, it's been awesome. Really happy with it. This has been the only little hitch and it hasn't been that bad. I would have liked to have done my 400 but I didn't want to get back into a hole."
Asked whether he had been hitting the right benchmarks behind closed doors, Horton said: "You're not going to get an answer."
Take that as you like but it would suggest he's flying in the training pool and wants to ensure he plays down the hype ahead of the Games.
Now he must wrap himself in cotton wool to avoid any more brushes with unwanted ailments. He's not quite at the stage of taking his own tinned baked beans on tour, as did Shane Warne, but a few boxes of Weet-Bix might well be packed in the team luggage.
