Elite squad 'not pampered brats' Towering disappointment ... James Magnussen and Brant Best pose before London's Tower Bridge before entering the troubled waters of the London Olympics last year. JAMES MAGNUSSEN'S coach, Brant Best, has defended the nation's swimmers, saying they weren't lacking in heart and some were simply guilty of trying too hard at the London Games. Two reports released on Tuesday pulled the covers on the dysfunctional state of Swimming Australia before and during the Olympics, highlighting cultural deficiencies, chronic mismanagement and favouritism, among a catalogue of other issues. Some athletes were also accused of bullying, abusing prescription drugs, failing to remain in the stands to cheer on team members and, one report says, drunkenness on the flight home. Best said there were significant mistakes made leading into London, many of which had been acted on as Australian swimming readied for this year's world titles in Spain and beyond. But he rejected the notion that the swimming squad was full of pampered athletes more interested in showboating and partying than racing. "These are good kids and hard workers," Best said. They just went in the wrong direction but they have responded. These guys can handle that they didn't swim so well, and they're disappointed. But some of the comments are nasty and personal, and they hurt the kids. They have a big heart and they do care, so when people say they aren't training hard, it matters. Central to Best's view is Magnussen, the star sprinter in his stable who was part of a men's 4x100 metres relay team that has become the symbol of Australia's mortality in the London pool. The team was unplaced after emphatically talking up its chances. Magnussen rebounded to take silver in the 100m freestyle, where he was touched out by American Nathan Adrian by just 0.01 of a second. His pre-Games swagger, then perceived flop in London, was greeted with waves of criticism, and he took much of the heat for Australia's worst swimming effort since 1976. "Magnussen's performance in London was because he tried too hard," Best said. The guy just felt like he let his country down, and that was his primary concern. A selfish person worries about themselves but all he was concerned about was how he'd let everyone down. That doesn't come from someone who is selfish and a spoilt brat. Best hasn't put his head in the sand, and said harsh truths had been confronted and significant strides already taken to reform the sport. He said the nation's leading coaches locked themselves in a room before the Aquatic Super Series meeting in Perth last month to thrash out many of the issues that appeared in the scathing reports. We sat down as a group in Perth and talked very, very frankly about the things we thought had been done well and hadn't been done well. We were going to, as a group of coaches, help to lead the sport out of what happened," Best said. We felt the best teams in the world produce the best individual performances. I think the direction into London was more about individual performances. It's already turned around very quickly. After failing to pick up an individual gold in last year's Games, Best said Australia still had the potential to be one of the world's elite swimming nations. But he said future public expectations should be tempered by the fact rivals had invested vast resources in their aquatic programs. "A lot more money has been poured into swimming by a lot more countries, and they are taking a more professional approach," he said. Looking at the amount of Australians overseas, we've shared a lot of our knowledge. The English have got their lottery, the French are putting more money in. It's happening all over the world, and people can make more money out of swimming. It is a bigger sport globally, so we've got a lot of competition. We've got more people to beat but I still think we've got the coaches and the system in the country to compete. We've got to be changing because if you stay still, you are falling behind. He backed Magnussen and Emily Seebohm to emerge from the haze of London and become influential leaders. It's up to this next group, some of whom have come off the back of disappointment like Emily and James, who can really help to lead the sport into a new era ... There's some disappointment but with that comes fire in the belly.