Swimmer Takeshi Matsuda competed with his ultimate goal to beat the world's elite like Michael Phelps and win an Olympic gold medal.

He wasn't able to achieve that, but it didn't leave a bad taste in his mouth. Looking back, he treasures every moment and is proud of himself for sustaining his challenge for such a long time.

"I have no regrets," Matsuda, 32, said at a Tokyo news conference to officially announce his retirement on Monday. "I came up short with regards to winning a gold medal at the Olympics, but I cherish every single one of the four Olympic medals I won and they represent who I am."

A butterfly and freestyle swimmer, Matsuda competed in four straight Olympics starting from the 2004 Athens Games. He racked up two bronze medals in the men's 200-meter butterfly in Beijing and London, while he also helped Japan win silver in the men's 400 medley relay in London and bronze in the 800 freestyle relay at last month's Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Besides all his accomplishments, Matsuda, who finished third in the men's 400 free last Friday at the national athletic meet in Iwate Prefecture in his final race, has also been known for his exceptionally long-term working relationship with his female coach Yumiko Kuze, who began instructing the swimmer when he was 4 years old back in his native Nobeoka, Miyazaki Prefecture. Except for a period of two years where the two were separated, Matsuda has always been coached by the 69-year-old Kuze.

Matsuda expressed his appreciation for Kuze by saying he wouldn't be who he is today without her guidance. But Kuze thanked Matsuda as well and was delighted to have seen a 4-year-old grow into an Olympic medalist.

"Thinking back to our time, it feels like, 'it's over now and it felt like a short time,' " said Kuze, who has continued to take notes about Matsuda during his practices and races for all those years (she said she estimated to have accumulated over 250 volumes of notebooks).

"(Matsuda) has always made me have a dream as well, and I'm thankful to have been able to meet a young man like him."

Kuze proudly said that it's unprecedented, whether in Japan or overseas, for one coach to teach a swimmer for so many years.

"Both of us are positive thinkers and I believe that that's one of the reasons why we've been able to be together this long," she said.

Matsuda, a three-time world championship medalist, said that he was undecided about his post-swimming career but hopes to get involved in the sport, trying to promote it. He also did not rule out becoming a coach.

Record attempt off

Sacramento California AP

An endurance swimmer ended her attempt on Saturday to become the first woman to accomplish the longest solo, unassisted swim after facing high winds during the 150-km swim from Sacramento to Tiburon on the western edge of San Francisco Bay.

The journey was expected to take 48 hours, but Kim Chambers called off her bid after swimming for 24 hours.

"The windmills were just spinning and there were kite surfers and wind surfers everywhere," Chambers told the Sacramento Bee. "So it was just the wind that was gusting and it was unsafe for everyone involved."