He had made it.

"It was all a bit surreal," Murphy said.

"Klimmy (Michael Klim), Hackey (Grant Hackett), Thorpey (Ian Thorpe), Leisel (Jones), Jodie Henry and Libby Trickett, these were all people that I looked up to.

"Now I was part of that team.

"It was definitely an eye-opener and a great experience."

Rewinding to where his dream began, his story starts on the border.

Murphy was born in Albury before moving to Fiji with his family when he was four.

The hot and humid climate meant he was often in the pool as a kid, but it wasn't until he moved back to Australia to attend boarding school at Melbourne's Xavier College that he started to really pursue the sport.

"Once you hit the elite phase, we were swimming 70 kilometres a week with 10 sessions in the pool for at least two hours, sometimes three," he said.

"When you're at school it's tough to juggle.

"I took swimming off in year 12 because I just wanted to be a normal kid.

"At the end of 2002 it was about 18 months out from the Olympic trials.

"There was a coach, Vince Raleigh, who moved down from Queensland and they were setting up a semi squad at Monash University.

"I just decided to give it a go and see what happened."

Murphy had originally set out to get into the 100m and 200m freestyle relays, but to his surprise he found himself booked for a spot at the Olympics in the 200m backstroke event.

He made the qualifying time by 0.07.

And that's how he found himself surrounded by the crowd in Athens.

"I think my goal going into it was just to make the semi-finals," he said.

"Ironically I made the team by 0.07 and I came 18^th by 0.07 and missed the semi-finals.

"I was in Ian Thorpe's training group with his coach, so it was a bit surreal seeing what goes on behind the scenes and the highs and lows.

"Regardless of the results at any of the meets, I would hope that any swimmers would say that it's the experience you have that's memorable."

Some shoulder issues then forced Murphy to abandon backstroke to focus on freestyle training.

In 2005 he became a Dual Bronze Medallist at the World Championships in Montreal, Canada in the 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle events.

His sights had already been firmly set on qualifying for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but he had some obstacles to overcome, with 2007 presenting its own personal challenges.

After losing his best mate, Murphy moved to Canberra.

"I went to the AIS and went back to my coach to escape everything that was happening and to focus on my swimming," he said.

"It was the best decision I made as it just made me focus on what I wanted to do and how to do it."

However, Murphy recalls having a level of disappointment with his trials in the lead up to the 2008 Olympics.

"I swam really fast in the semi-final and bombed out in the final and only scraped in," he said.

But he had still booked his place in the 4x100m and 4x200m events.

It was in Beijing that he found himself on the podium alongside Grant Hackett, Nick Frost and Grant Brits after claiming bronze in the latter.

"Second time around for the Olympics is a lot more meaningful," he said.

"I knew what I was in for, the first time I was just in awe of everything.

"I don't know what it was but I always swam better in a relay compared to individual races.

"Yes it's great to walk away with a medal, bit I think being able to perform on the big stage at the right time is rewarding for anyone.

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"I definitely walked away from that very happy."

Murphy's time of 1:44.36 recorded at the 2009 World Championships remains in the top 20 Men's 200m freestyle relay splits of all time, with no lead-off legs.

Illness forced him out of the Commonwealth Games, with his career in the pool coming to an end in 2011.

Looking back, he admits the hard yards were worth it.

"I was a good swimmer, but I wasn't awesome," he said.

"Maybe that gave me the drive and hunger to keep going and push through, because it didn't necessarily come easy.

"There was a lot of hard work behind it and I've always had good coaches who supported me and taught me life lessons."

However, Murphy didn't completely walk away from the sport and is still a FINA Athletics Committee Member representing Australia and Oceania.

He was also a member of the Australian Swimmers Association from 2011 to 2017.

"I love the sport and the community," he said.

"The benefit from my perspective is that I have an Australian lens from a high performance perspective, but I've also seen what it's like to learn to swim in Fiji.

"I enjoy giving back to the sport that gave me so much and want to make it as rewarding for others coming through."

Murphy now resides in Brisbane with his wife, fellow Olympian Bronte Barratt, and their son William Oswald, named after Murphy's grandfather.

He credits his family and friends for their endless support.

"Without those support networks I wouldn't be where I am," he said.

"I haven't officially lived in Albury for such a long time, but it's home.

"One of my favourite pools is the Albury pool."

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