During Filip Nowacki’s childhood, which was not all that long ago, his parents gave him an ultimatum.‘Me and my friends would go out to Greve de Lecq, which is a popular beach where you can go cliff jumping,’ explains the 18-year-old from Jersey.‘It’s a five-minute swim across to the rocks where you jump in. It’s maybe 15 metres high. It’s a bit hairy for a responsible adult but it’s a good adrenaline kick.‘It’s very important you know how to swim so my parents wanted me to be able to keep myself afloat when I went out with my mates.’When they doubled down on his swimming lessons, little did they know that Nowacki would be winning gold and silver medals at the 2026 Commonwealth Games.The teenager, who is still waiting for his A-level results, has been Glasgow’s breakthrough star. He beat his idol, Adam Ramsay-Peaty, on Saturday night and has become one of swimming’s overnight sensations. Teenager Filip Nowacki, who is still waiting for his A-level results, has been Glasgow’s breakthrough star after beating his idol, Adam Ramsay-Peaty, on Saturday night Last year, after finishing his lower-sixth exams, he won the 200m breaststroke at the Junior European Championships with a time that would have medalled at the 2024 Olympics in ParisSitting in the team room in Glasgow, beaming ear to ear after his victory, Nowacki takes Daily Mail Sport through his journey to the podium.His surname has Polish roots. In 2002, his mum and dad boarded a one-way flight to Jersey and landed jobs in accounting and construction.‘They took me to swimming lessons when I was five or six and I hated it,’ he recalls. ‘I hated the water, I hated getting wet and I cried before I got in. When I was seven or eight, I started to enjoy it. I went for a trial taster session at Jersey swimming club and thought, “This is a bit of me”.‘You’re never far from the sea in Jersey. You can go for open-water swims but I’ve never been the biggest, so I had to get my elbows out because of all the waves. I definitely preferred sticking to the black line of the pool.’At secondary school, students were pushed to take part in all sports. One look at Nowacki’s slight 5ft 10in frame, however, will tell you that he was not destined for contact sports.‘I played a bit of house rugby but I tended to run away from the ball!’ he laughs.‘I did a lot of sports growing up, but mainly swimming, cycling and running. When I was 14, I went to the swimming nationals. It was at Ponds Forge in Sheffield and that really sparked my journey. I was between 10th and 20th in all events when I arrived and I walked away with four golds. That was my first experience of what it feels like to win.’Nowacki has never looked back. His swimming coach at the Jersey Tigers convinced him to move to Millfield boarding school for his sixth form studies, where he could spend more time perfecting his technique.Last year, after finishing his lower-sixth exams, he won the 200m breaststroke at the Junior European Championships with a time that would have medalled at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. People talk about these games as a launchpad for greatness and his name is worth remembering for LA 2028‘This is the first competition where I haven’t had maths or physics to worry about in the background,’ he explains. ‘I had all my A levels leading up to these Games, which was quite intense. I was spending a lot of time on my iPad reading over notes and making flash cards. Knowing I don’t have any schoolwork to do whilst I’ve been here has been quite nice!’Nowacki has been staying in the same hotel as Ramsay-Peaty, overlooking the River Clyde. He is not blessed with his senior’s upper body strength – joking that maybe one day he will ‘get hench’.While Ramsay-Peaty changed the game with his bulldog-like power, Nowacki is more like a skimming stone. ‘I saw Adam in the lift after my race on Tuesday night and he congratulated me. I’ve looked up to him for most of my life. I was eight years old when he won his first Olympic gold so to be racing in the lane next to him is pretty special.‘We went for a coffee before the Commonwealth Games and I peppered him with questions for an hour and a half. I’m trying to draw as much experience from him as possible. Going up against some of those lads in the 100 breast can be a challenge because they’re so much bigger than me. I’m not the tallest of men and I’d love to put on muscle but there’s no point, given the momentum I’m carrying in the 200. If I get too big, I’m going to end up fighting the water, rather than gliding through it.’Nowacki has been gliding through the Glaswegian waters with an effortless cadence. People talk about these games as a launchpad for greatness and his name is worth remembering for LA 2028.‘Every athlete dreams of the Olympic Games,’ he says. ‘They are staging the swimming in a 40-thousand capacity arena which will be unreal. Coming here and winning medals is a big step in the right direction.’’He’s swimming times that have never been seen from an 18-year-old’By Michael Jamieson, Olympic silver medallist and TNT Sports expertWatching Filip Nowacki in the pool brings back memories of seeing Kosuke Kitajima win double gold for Japan at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics.They’re both relatively small but they possess so much natural speed. Filip is swimming times that have never been seen from an 18-year-old so he’s a real trailblazer.You don’t want to pile expectation onto his shoulders but he’s already right at the sharp end of the global rankings. There are Japanese and Chinese athletes who are swimming slightly faster times but Filip has just come out of juniors and he’s already right behind them.He lined up against Adam Ramsay-Peaty in the 50 and 100m breaststroke this week and everyone has been comparing their physical appearance. They’re very different.For me, Filip naturally set up as a 200m swimmer. Technically, he is absolutely perfect. He’s got a bit of a longer stroke, with a lower stroke rate. You can see the leg drive come in as his hands shoot forward. His streamline position is great and the timing is perfect. It’s a flawless cascade of movement patterns.With some of the heavier guys, like Adam, you see their hips drop in the last 50m over four lengths. That’s when it becomes harder and harder for those heavier, muscly guys. Filip’s hips are high when he drives his legs and his body sits right on top of the water. He seems to have the perfect blend between speed, technique and timing. That’s married up with the fitness and endurance he has for the 200m. ‘Watching Filip Nowacki in the pool brings back memories of seeing Kosuke Kitajima win double gold for Japan at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics,’ says TNT Sports expert Jamieson ‘He lined up against Adam Ramsay-Peaty in the 50 and 100m breaststroke and everyone has been comparing their physical appearance. They’re very different,’ says JamiesonHe’s burst onto the scene over the last 12 months. He’s won junior titles and swam the 2.07 benchmark that sets apart the world class. Because he speaks so eloquently, I don’t think there was any doubt that he would be affected by the occasion of these Games.The exciting thing is he has still got areas where he can improve. His muscle mass will increase as he develops towards the 2028 Olympics, where he should be in firm medal contention.It’s a monumental step to win your first senior title immediately after your junior career. He’s going to emerge as the face of the men’s breaststroke scene and his support team need to manage that. He’s made it look so easy and that’s fantastic news for both Jersey and Great Britain.Watch every event of the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games exclusively live on TNT Sports and all HBO Max plans in UK & Ireland