Cody Simpson returned to his ‘first love’ by swapping his music career for swimming and is set to compete at the Commonwealth Games

CNN — As Cody Simpson stood behind the starting blocks at his first Olympic swimming trials last year, the experience felt completely new but also strangely familiar. “It put me on a trajectory of rapid improvement because I just had to learn how to deal with it – whether that was throwing up at least twice a week for the first six months, just adapting to what I was trying to put my body through.” getty/leah abucayan cnn illustration Earning a place on the Australian team for the Paris Olympics has been Simpson’s goal ever since he returned to swimming, but right now, he is preparing to compete in his first international event at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, with his 50-meter butterfly heats slated for Friday. Brenton Edwards/AFP/Getty Images “To have people like that in my corner and to be able to call or text them and ask for things or advice is very special,” says Simpson, “especially because these are the guys who I had on my wall and on my computer screensaver and things growing up – Ian being one of them and also Michael being another.” To be able to turn to Phelps for advice brings Simpson’s swimming journey full circle: during his first trip to the US, he made his dad drive from New York to Baltimore to try and meet Phelps at North Baltimore Aquatic Club. “I love the sport, so if that’s all I ever do for swimming is try and bring some more eyeballs to it, then I feel like I’ve done part of my job because I love it and I want more people to love it.” Simpson is scheduled to compete in the 50m and 100m butterfly competitions at the Commonwealth Games; reaching the final of one of those events, he says, would be “pretty special.” For now, his music career is on hold, but it continues to play an important part in his life. “I’ll continue to write and cultivate my guitar playing and all that stuff and definitely jump back into it after swimming,” says Simpson.