I only try to do my personal best. I do not consider anyone my rival.

I am aware of my rivals and interested in what they do but that does not change my focus on the way I train. I always look forward to head-to-head competition as that will bring out the best performance in me.

My three biggest opponents are Stephanie Rice, Kirtsty Coventry, and Jessica Shipper. They stand out because they are the best the world has to offer in my events.

There are definitely more than 3 key opponents in 400IM. The event has become very competitive over the last 2 seasons. Stephanie Rice and Kirsty Coventry are the only two people who have gone under 4.30 for the 400IM, which is amazing! Steph is a great Fly swimmer and always swims hard at the front of her race. Kirsty is an incredible backstroke swimmer – this combination makes the first half of the race on the World Stage very fast indeed! Also Katie Hoff, she is an extremely tough competitor and has held the 400IM world record in the past; her strength has always been Breaststroke & Freestyle. There is also Katinka Hosszu who is definitely one to watch and she swam amazingly at the world championships. In 2005 she won Gold at the European Juniors & I came second to her. Obviously her move to USA has paid huge benefits and it is great to realise that we are working so hard towards the same goals. I am very aware that I am building on my experience every time I race against these girls so it is great to have such tough challenges to ensure that I perform to the best of my ability.

My biggest motivation is the desire to be the best. I always only focus on the next competition, which helps me to stay motivated for each practice.

I enjoy what I do, which is a key part to my motivation; I like the feeling of pushing my body to its limits, then having that high afterwards from working hard. Knowing that I'm doing things in my training that no-one else is doing keeps me highly motivated. Sometimes it does get hard as I often train on my own and have to have that mental capacity to push myself when there is nobody there to work off - this toughness and the inventive approach to my training generated by my coach makes my training very special and effective. We often use the Aquapacer with great effect in some key sets and training situations.

My hardest training set ever was, 4x(4x100 + 400 + 4x100 + 400) Round one was fly, IM, Free, Free. Round two was Back, IM, Free, Free. Round Three was Breast, IM, Free, Free. and the final round was Free, IM, Free, Free. This was not the only set of workout, and the set was made even harder because the intervals were extremely fast.

It's hard to pick out some of the hardest training sets throughout my swimming career as there have been many. I do sets of 1,600m IM, where every 3rd 100 is added together and targets a time within 10 to 15 seconds of my best time. Sometimes, the shorter, really fast work also proves to be very tough and I enjoy these sets when I have individual stroke swimmers to race off.

I never really had a set race strategy. I usually just go out after it.

I use it every day so that when it comes to the race it is second nature and there is nothing that can surprise me or affect me.

At USC, I train in the distance group and probably average somewhere over 50,000 metres per week. For dryland workouts we do about four hours a week of general dryland activities.

I cover around 80km on average, 26 hours in the pool over 12 sessions, then 7 hours on land with a mixture or gym work, running and Pilates.

Both my USC and Hungarian coaches work together to make sure i am fully prepared for race day. I usually just do what I am told.

My coach is my dad, so there is a strong relationship between the two of us, and as an athlete I couldn't ask for anything better: he knows me best, he knows my limits and will push me if he knows I can go that little bit further. He has ensured that I can operate independently too; this is vital to the way that we work as a team.

My Parents, family and friends fully support me in my career.

Parents play a huge role in my success, as I still live at home. The family environment is the best. I am studying at Robert Gordon's University in Aberdeen and enjoy the contrast and challenge that this brings. My brothers (Alastair and Joseph) are also swimmers! I guess the best way to describe us is Team Miley.

I love the ready room, I love the feeling you get right before a race. The feeling that something is just about to happen. I live off the adrenaline.

The ready room is a place where races can be won or lost - I keep my preparations there very simple and my mind is often clear and nothing distracts me. I look forward to the race. The feelings that you experience within the ready room are entirely normal. I'm aware of them but focus on my music and visualisation techniques. There is nobody else in my lane: it is my place.

I am always afraid to make new pre-race rituals, but i do have a favourite pair of shoes i love to wear behind the blocks.

I listen to my music and let my mind "get ready" I've done the training physically and just need to plug in my head, and then I'm ready. My warm-up is specific to me and covers all aspects of my physical and mental preparation. I listen to my body very closely and adapt the warm-up to suit my needs. It feels gladiatorial. One trait that I always do is lie on the floor. This helps me to feel totally relaxed and to be different.

For me the perfect race is simply one in which i gave it everything i possibly had.

Where I know that I have carried out all of the components of preparation and racing to the best of my ability.

I became aware of them, when they broke the previous world records and won the olympic gold medals ... [success in the pool at the highest level]. However, I never focus on them.

I first raced Katinka Hosszu at the European Juniors Budapest 2005 in the 400IM where she won gold; I came second to her. It was my first international event swimming for GB and loved every minute of it, coming away with the silver in the 400IM was a significant event early in my swimming career, giving me the confidence to believe in my potential. Then later in 2005 I raced against her again at the European short-course Championships in Trieste; this was my first senior GB swimming experience.

Before the 400 IM at worlds, I just focused on my lane and forgot that i was in the finals of the world championships.

I try not to think too much and just try to keep relaxed which is what I guess everyone wants to feel. I know that t is vital to make sure that I don’t force anything or think too much as I know that I have done all the practice and preparation in my training so now its putting all that practice together and let my body take over my mind and do what it needs to do. Usually right before I stand up on the blocks the last couple of lines from the song that I have been listening to goes over in my head apart from that I take one big breath and just let the swimming do the talking. I know that I need to be able to stand up on the block and not have any "what if's?" all of the work has been done so there is no turning back.

I have no idea, i do not really pay attention to them.

I focus on myself. Strength: I am always consistent in my preparations - both throughout the season's training and in the preparation for the meets. I love to race. I have a long term view of where I want to be. I have a very unique thinking coach who guarantees that I can continue to improve season on season. Weaknesses: Getting pretty angry when other swimmers in my lane do NOT do things right! Also salt & vinegar Pringles ... mmmm!

The greatest female medley swimmer in history would have to be Yana Klochkova. She  is the only female swimming to win both IM events in the 2000 and 2004 olympics.

I think that Yana Klochkova was one of the greatest. From a young age she ruled the medley swims and seemed like she was untouchable. Whenever she swam the medley races it looked like she destroyed her competitor every single time. Although it was an extremely close race in Athens 2004. I think based on last season's performances and for her World record swim at the Olympics that Steph Rice has to be in the picture. Although she is still swimming I am sure that there will be more to come, but she has already proven herself to be a phenomenal medley swimmer.

The greatest moment i have experienced so far in my career would have to be the 350 meter mark during the 400 IM at the finals of the world championships.

The one moment that has stayed with me was the feeling of euphoria of winning my first international medal. I was 15 at the time and was racing at the European Junior championships in Budapest 2005. I swam in the 400IM and came second, it was my first international medal and words cannot describe how excited and happy I was. It was a real turning point in my career, it made me realise that this is what I wanted to do. I want to swim.

I think by 2012 we will have reached a few of the world record without wearing the new suits. I'm glad they are gone, simply because they were just too hard to put on.

It's quite interesting to think where the world record times would be in 4, 10 or even 20 years time. Would some of them still be standing from the suits era or would they have fallen due to the old-fashioned hard work and effort in training? I think by London 2012 the world record fort he 200IM and the 400IM might stay pretty much the same (2: 06.15 and 4:29.45). In ten years time though I think that the records will drop more so in the 400IM but I reckon the 200IM could go down to 2:05 or possibly a 2:04 and then the 400IM I think would drop to 4:25 or faster. The new generation of suits will hopefully make the swimming world a more even playing field in which to perform, but I have no doubt that there will still be efforts made to try to get the edge through some sort of suit technology which has yet to be considered. Meanwhile I look forward to the possibility that “how hard you have trained and how skilful you are” becomes the key to swimming success at International level in the future. I am not on of the biggest of swimmers in the world and I am not sure how much benefit I have gained from the suits over the last 2 seasons; I guess we are about to find out.

I enjoy the beach, surfing, going to the movies,  and spending time with my friends and family. I love shopping!

I love watching movies. If there is one thing that I love doing on a Saturday night and that's curling up on the sofa with a movie and something to munch on as well. I love shopping. When I was younger, I used to do all sorts of stuff like play the piano, horse ride, netball etc., but found I had little time to continue with these activities [once swimming became the biggest thing].

 Zsuzsanna Jakabos, Evelyn Verraszto, Stephanie Rice, Kirty Coventry and Jessica Shipper. I would invited them and serve them anything they would want. I am sure we would all have a great time at dinner.

Katie Hoff, Steph Rice, Kirsty Coventry, Alessia Fillippi, Maria Garcia Belmonte. We would have a proper Scottish meal of Haggis, "neaps and tatties" (turnips and potatoes) followed by homemade Bread and Butter pudding which is the only pudding I am able to make.

If I was on a holiday i would not be working out at all. if hannah Miley was next door I would ask her to come lay out in the sun with me and then SHOPPING!

I would just get in to "get wet" and enjoy the cooling effect. If Steph Rice was next door I would do exactly the same (both of us would need to burn off the calories after the Haggis!).

I want to become a NCAA champion,  and European Champion in 2010. I do not look past that point yet, we will see when the time comes.

I want to continue to progress in my chosen events and build confidence in every component of my racing. I believe that the new era of different suits will help identify swimmers who have worked hardest and trained smartest and as I cannot affect the training or performance of my competitors my hope is that I make significant advances during the next 2 seasons and work confidently towards London 2012. The last season was a significant progression for me, but fourth place is a tough one to accept; I have learned that it is also an incredible motivational factor to feed upon when training. The ultimate goal would be competing at the London 2012 Games and winning the gold but its a long hard road to get there as nothing comes easy and I know that I am not the only swimmer with the same dream. Therefore I need to remain focussed, enjoy my swimming and take on all of the many a various innovative training methods and challenges that my coach provides. I know that my training environment is very different to most and we will always continue to do many unique things in training; things that I know my competitors do not do. For 2010 I get to repeat my first international meet (the Commonwealth Games) so I'm excited about that and looking forward to it. Ultimately I'd like to maintain good health and be injury free.