Still, Okaro knows that when she splashes into the water at the Olympic Aquatics Centre in Saint-Denis, located in the northern suburbs of the French capital, she will have the power to influence future generations of athletes back home.

“I really enjoy inspiring the younger athletes in general, but mainly young black swimmers just to know that they can do whatever they want to do,” she said.

Okaro grew up near Maidstone, in Kent, and counts her twin sister Izabella as her first rival in the pool.

She competed for clubs in Gillingham and Sevenoaks in the South East before relocating to Derbyshire where she boards and trains at Repton School.

As someone who has her A-levels to prepare for next year, selection for the Olympics and the history that beckons has been a lot to absorb.

She added: “Obviously it’s exciting, but I don’t think it has really dawned on me yet.

“I think it will really hit me when I’m behind the blocks about to swim and think ‘Oh wow, this is the Olympics’. It just hasn’t hit me yet.”

As the youngest member of Team GB’s 33-strong swimming squad, Okaro sees the Games as one of a number she may reach in years to come.

But she doesn’t see her age and inexperience as reasons not to perform on her debut.

“I think being youngest on the team does give me that leeway in a sense, but at the same time I don’t want to be the slowest on the relay team,” she said.

“I don’t want to put myself in a position where I don’t perform at my best just because of my age or anything like that.”