BUCKS GB swimmers Simon Burnett and Craig Gibbons failed to upset the odds at the Velodrome yesterday morning as they failed to get past the heats of the 4x100 freestyle.

Burnett led GB off and Gibbons brought them home, but GB's time of 3.17.08 was more than three seconds slower than France, who went on to win the final in the evening.

Afterwards Burnett, who began swimming at Wycombe District Swimming Club and holds the British 100m and 200m freestyle records, announced that he was retiring from the sport.

The 29-year-old said: "It would have been nicer to finish off my career with a better swim than I had. It sounds easy to say but I've had a long career with plenty of ups and downs and it's got easier to deal with over the years.

"There is no point dwelling on it, I've just got to put a brave face on so I can deal with it.

"I felt really good going into the race and was confident of leading off our relay but it just didn't happen for me and at the moment I can't really say more than that.

"I haven't looked at the tape or looked at the splits yet, perhaps in a week I will. For the moment I'm just trying to enjoy the rest of the Games."

However, Burnett, who is planning to live in America now, said the GB fans had been fantastic.

He said: "It was brilliant and it can't be underestimated how important that is.

"It's been amazing and their support without a doubt increases our performance and everybody who swims out there is absolutely buzzing because of the support.

"I just want to encourage everyone to keep turning up and keep supporting Team GB because you do make a difference."