Graeme Smith (pictured), the Olympic, world and Commonwealth 1500 metres freestyle medallist, who retired from competition following the 2004 Olympics, has been given a major new role in motivating Britain's top swimmers.

Smith, 30, remains desperate to affect British medal counts of the future and hopes that his experience and involvement will do just that as he works with a large and mixed British squad in Canet and Barcelona during the next few days.

Ranked inside the world's top 10 over 1500m for 11 years, Smith brings a unique level of experience and understanding to his role of athlete liaison and this week he will be imparting that knowledge on Britain's swimmers at the Mare Nostrum tour across France and Spain.

"What I do in my role will evolve over time," he said. "I support the swimmers, pass on my experiences and provide communication between athletes, coaches and support staff. I think it's vital and I hope I can make a difference to our results in Beijing in two years time.

"It's a similar to all of the support staff that work with the squad in that we're a service to be utilised by the athletes. That's all we're here for - to support the swimmers and to make sure they have what they need to do their job properly.

"I hope there's something I can bring to the team that will turn that ninth place into a final swim or that fourth place to an appearance on the podium in Beijing. If I can do that then it's a job well done."

Scottish born Smith will be working across a wide range of swimmers this week as part of British Swimming's Mare Nostrum squad. Not only will he be assisting former team mates and coaches, he'll be helping to introduce a group of talented youngsters to top international competition featuring the world's best swimmers.

Putting the younger swimmers together with the more experienced athletes within the British ranks is something Smith believes can only benefit the sport in terms of international results in the future.

"It may not happen this week in Canet and Barcelona but what these young swimmers are doing is perfect preparation for the future," said Smith.

"It's great having the juniors here with the seniors. Many athletes in action this week will actually be the nucleus of the squads that will compete at the 2008 Beijing and London 2012 Olympics.

"We're missing some key people through exams back in the UK and we've got a group of young guys at an offshore centre in Australia but in the main we've got the present and the future of the sport together in one place."

Smith believes team spirit can be key to success in the international swimming arena and his role is ideally placed to ensure this important factor isn't overlooked.

"Over the past few years the team spirit has been a vital component to success. By integrating the swimmers together on the Mare Nostrum tour it creates a strong team bond and gives us something to continue to build on," explained Smith.

"It's never a bad idea to include youngsters when you've got so many experienced and talented athletes for them to work with.

"It's not just a one-way street either as the younger athletes bring something new to any squad. They're a breath of fresh air and change is always a good thing when you're as dedicated and committed to sport.

"Going away with the same people for 20 plus weeks a year can get a little bit stale. The benefit of bringing together two generations is immeasurable. That interaction between different people keeps things interesting and fresh."

To promote that team spirit ethic, Smith together with sports psychologist Duncan Richards put the swimmers through their paces today in France as part of a two-hour team building exercise.

Swimmers were put in various situations where they were able to learn about, understand and trust each, and in turn binding them together as a unit.

"The session went well and I hope everyone got a lot from it," said Smith. "It's designed to create that bond straight away and I think it did just that."

There will also be other valuable lessons learned as the Mare Nostrum will provide ideal competition ahead of Britain's major challenges of the season.

"This week will be about preparation for most of the swimmers with the European Championships, both senior and junior, coming up next month," explained Smith. "More than that though it's preparation for the world's biggest event in Beijing just two summer's away.

"It's valuable experience for the younger athletes to use this meet. The guys competing in the backstroke for instance will find it tough. It gets windy outdoors, the flags will be blowing all over the place and it will be difficult to spot your finish and your turns but it's something they need to get used to as most of the world's major meets these days, including the Olympics, are outdoors."

Smith, who has recently finished a finance and management degree in Manchester where he lives, won Olympic bronze in 1996 and World silver in 2001 to add to a haul of impressive international medals.