Ian Thorpe quits swimming

Thorpe has told a packed news conference in Sydney that he is moving on to a "next phase" in his life.  

He has singled out "one person" who has helped him through the soul-searching of recent days, but he would not say who that person is.

The Sydney and Athens gold medallist has said he decided on Sunday to leave the sport that had "catapulted" him into the limelight 10 years ago.

"I know there is a lot of people out there that want me to keep swimming. I only hoped that I wanted to swim half as much as other people want me to," he has said.

"It would be dishonest to myself and to others (to continue) as I would be fulfilling other people's dreams."

Thorpe leaves the sport with 11 world titles, nine Olympic medals - including five gold - and having set 13 world records.

He has decided to pursue other interests after realising competitive swimming was no longer his top priority in life.

"It's like swimming lap after lap staring at a black line - then all of a sudden you look up" at the world around you, he has said.

"I started looking at myself, not just physically, but also as a person. I haven't balanced out my life as well as what I should have."

He has said the decision to retire was a "dark question" to confront, but he is excited by what lies ahead for him out of the pool.

Thorpe has hinted at a possible television role on Pay TV operator Foxtel, but would not elaborate further.

He has thanked his coaches, supporters and sponsors, but paid special tribute to his legion of fans across the country.

"I want to thank everyone in this country for the support they have given me. It's been unwavering.

"I know I have inspired people, and I have been inspired by the people get inspiration from me."

Asked how he would like to be remembered, he said the way he was choosing to leave the sport was one of his proudest moments.

"I'm not going to regret how honest I was with myself at the point I walked away."

Swimming Australia president Neil Martin has said the sport will miss the superstar, whose 400m freestyle world record is regarded around the world as "almost unbeatable".

He has said Thorpe will, in years to come, be the benchmark by which all athletes will be judged.

Thorpe took 12 months off after the Athens Games before contracting an illness that kept him out of the Melbourne Commonwealth Games.

He changed his training regimen and spent time in Los Angeles in a bid to escape the pressure of his routine.

But neither that - nor the prospect of defending his titles in Beijing in 2008, have been enough to convince him to return to the pool.

He said parents should tell his young fans that Thorpe had left the sport "because he had done everything he wanted to do".

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