Carles Coll is thinking about the future: an autumn of competitions, learning another method, or Australia.

Spanish swimming bid farewell to the World Championships in Singapore with a modest performance, commensurate with the level of the team that traveled to the Asian country, which lacked more established swimmers in relays and individual competitions, such as Hugo González, Luis Domínguez, and Mario Mollá, to name a few. Two finals were achieved (only one individual), while the performance of Carles Coll and the emergence of Luca Hoek were the best news for medal contenders at European and World Championships. The technical directors are delivering a realistic message and acknowledge that some swimmers have failed in detail.

The best performance was by Coll, the swimmer from Tarragona who trains with Sergi López in Virginia, United States. After being crowned world champion in the short course in December, he now broke the Spanish record in the Olympic pool and finished seventh in the final. "I'm hungry for more, and that's positive, as I continue to work harder to have a real chance of winning at the Games and World Championships," he said.

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Coll, 23, is at the ideal age for his event; he'll even arrive in Los Angeles in his prime. With the best underwater swimmer in his event, he's gained consistency, but he knows the medals are at least a second away. Therefore, he wants to use this time to define a new strategy. Nothing is certain, he's mulling over. "I've already graduated, but I'll return to the United States to prepare for the World Cups, which are held there, with Sergi López, who is the best breaststroke coach in the world. Then I want to try out alongside another top swimmer, in another training group in the United States or Australia, to raise my level with other people," he told La Vanguardia.

Many swimmers take advantage of year-round stays to learn other methods, as Summer McIntosh did with Fred Vergnoux before these World Championships, or as Léon Marchand himself, who spent a season in Australia. "I want to focus three years leading up to the Games, do everything possible to be at my best in 2028. I'm in a period where I have to put everything into swimming."

Aside from Coll, Sitges native Luca Hoek was another of the swimming names at these World Championships. At 17, he broke the Spanish record for the 100m freestyle (48.04) and was key in the relays, swimming the best laps of all the participants. For 2026, he will introduce a new event, the 200m freestyle, although it will take time to establish itself. The young talent, a junior European champion, will prepare for the 50m, 100m, and 200m to maintain that top speed that will help him in long races.

Another newcomer will be Carmen Weiler. The Virginia Tech swimmer, who has performed better at these World Championships in the freestyle than in the backstroke, will continue to improve upon the first event in order to incorporate it into her program and improve it for the relays. The swimmer had previously won a European Junior medal in the sprint.

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After the results, the technical directors will analyze in detail what happened with the majority of swimmers, who have not improved their personal bests, and will have to analyze their training plans and peak fitness levels, although it is not considered a problem for the June trials. Next July, in Paris, a European Championship will take place, where Spain must take a step forward if it wants to maintain confidence in this project with a view to Los Angeles 2028.