A West Cumbrian swimming prodigy will learn from Olympics hero Adam Peaty as he eyes a spot at the Tokyo games in 2020.

Gilcrux-born Edward Baxter, 18, will train with Peaty, who took gold in the men’s 100m breaststroke with a world record time on Sunday, over the next four years in the build-up to the next Olympic Games.

Baxter was invited to join Peaty and his team in Australia for two months recently and said watching his friend’s heroics only increased his desire to reach that level.

He said: “Obviously I know Adam so well now, we’ve become such good friends and watching someone that close to you do what he did is incredible. It was just a huge amount of pride because he deserves it so much.

“He’s always been a world class swimmer but this year he’s blown everyone away and taken it to a different level so being able to train with someone like that, it couldn’t be better.

“It also really puts the fire in you to want to make it to the next Olympics and show the world who you are as well.”

Baxter lived in Gilcrux until he was 14, when he moved to Crosby.

Now living in Loughborough, close to the training base where he will work with Peaty and coach Mel Marshall, Edward has begun a gruelling regime to prepare him for competition against the world’s best.

Baxter will have just two weeks off a year until the next Olympics, training 10 times each week in the pool and five times in the gym to reach the standard required.

He said: “The facilities are crazy. I like that you can’t succeed unless you’re doing things other people aren’t.

“I’m picking up things in and out of the pool but it’s more the mental side and other little things.

“I love the feeling of racing and I’m really competitive so I love winning.

“I genuinely couldn’t be more excited about it because I’ve got the best coach and training partner in the world.”

Baxter set the British record in the 200m breaststroke when he was 16 and was last year’s Youth Commonwealth Games champion but he credits all of his success so far to Cockermouth Swimming Club, where he spent 12 years.

He said: “I feel like I’ve been swimming since I was born but they developed all my skills and technique so everything I’ve achieved so far is really down to them. I still talk to most of the people there a couple of times a week, sometimes every day because they’re friends.”