Adam Ramsay-Peaty is chasing a 33rd major gold medal on Saturday night, and the swimmer standing between him and the top of the podium is an 18-year-old from his own training programme.

Filip Nowacki, who competes for Jersey at these Glasgow Commonwealth Games, is part of Ramsay-Peaty's AP Race programme — set up to develop the next generation of swimmers. On Friday the two raced side by side in lanes four and five of their 100m breaststroke semi-final, Ramsay-Peaty building an early lead and holding off the teenager through to the wall.

Afterwards they spoke together in the mixed zone. Ramsay-Peaty, a three-time Olympic champion, told media he had spotted Nowacki's fast start but backed himself to respond. BBC Sport

"I saw his front wave, but at the same time that is what I train for," he said. "I know I am a sprinter. I know I can go out fast."

"It is going to be a good scrap, especially down that last 25m, and I do love a good scrap."

Nowacki learned to swim under Nathan Jegou on the Channel Island. He grew up watching Ramsay-Peaty race at three consecutive Olympics — Rio, Tokyo and Paris. To share a lane with him, rather than being what he called "a random competitor," meant something.

"Adam is a true role model in the sport," Nowacki said. "To race him and not be a random competitor but give him a race is special to me."

Asked if he believed he could win, he grinned: "Course I do." A beat, then: "No, I wish. I'm gonna give it my best shot."

The final is scheduled for Saturday shortly after 21:00 BST. Australia's Sam Williamson, who won the first semi-final, will also be in the field.

The stage carries plenty of weight for both swimmers. Ramsay-Peaty won his first Commonwealth gold in this same Glasgow pool in 2014, the launch point for an Olympic title at Rio two years later. He has not stood atop a major podium since the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, where he won the 50m breaststroke but lost his 100m crown to James Wilby. At the Paris Olympics he settled for silver.

He suffered a broken finger in June. The road back has not been straightforward. Earlier in Glasgow a lane rope detached from the wall before his heat, causing a delay he simply shrugged off before posting the quickest qualifying time. Yahoo Sports

For Nowacki the stakes are different but no smaller. A medal of any colour would be Jersey's first at a Commonwealth Games in 36 years. The island has only ever won one gold at the Games.

Ramsay-Peaty has called Glasgow 2026 "like a homecoming." If the final goes his way, he will have come full circle — a title reclaimed in the pool where his career truly took flight, against a young swimmer he helped bring through.

If it goes the other way, the apprentice will have beaten the master at his own game. Either way, the last 25 metres should be worth watching.