Nathaniel Atkinson and Ariarne Titmus would almost certainly have crossed paths long before they were both selected for the Tokyo Olympics.
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This is Launceston, remember.
Born 15 months apart in the same hospital and launching their sporting careers at venues barely a kilometre away from each other, it is hard to believe they didn't stroll down the same aisle of Riverside Woolworths at least once in their formative years.
Now in their early 20s, they have moved on, both geographically and athletically.
They live 16,313 kilometres apart (thanks Google), but are united in how they have redefined the parameters of what is achievable in their sport for their home state.
Before they came along, Tasmania had enjoyed success in soccer and swimming.
Hobart-born defender Dominic Longo had represented the state at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona and played for the Socceroos for six years.
Similarly, Titmus did not chart new waters in reaching Tokyo.
John Hayes (1956), Peter Tonkin (1964), Brett Stocks, Audrey Youl (both 1984) and Scott Goodman (1996) had all represented the state at Olympic Games (with Tonkin and Goodman claiming bronze medals) while South African-born, Hobart-raised Melissa Carlton enjoyed the most success in the Paralympic arena, yielding two gold, four silver and three bronze medals from the 1996 and 2000 Games.
However, Atkinson and Titmus have raised their respective bars to unprecedented heights.
Like Longo, 22-year-old Atkinson has established himself in Australia's national competition, attended an Olympic Games and broken into the Socceroos team, but what stands him apart is having also made a successful transition to the cut-throat European scene.
On the back of scoring and being named player of the match in an A-League grand final victory, the Riverside Olympic product landed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Scottish Premier League side Heart of Midlothian.
In the four months since making his debut with the Edinburgh club, Atkinson has established himself as a first-team regular, claimed his first goal, played the full 120 minutes in Sunday's extra-time loss to Rangers in the Scottish Cup Final and is assured of European competition next season on the back of Hearts' third-place league finish.
Titmus too has come an awful long way since first taking the plunge with Riverside Aquatic Club.
Four Commonwealth Games medals (three gold), nine at world championships (four gold) and four at her maiden Olympic Games (two gold) were impressive credentials even before the 21-year-old claimed arch rival Katie Ledecky's six-year-old 400-metre freestyle world record at the national titles on Sunday night.
Titmus was subsequently named in the Australian team for her second Commonwealth Games later this year, having opted out of contesting the world championships in Hungary a month earlier.
Before any of this, it was headline news in their home-state media when a Tasmanian swimmer reached a national final.
Atkinson and Titmus had to leave Launceston to progress their careers, but have fully justified the decision and its inherent sacrifices.
Despite living in Edinburgh and Brisbane respectively, they have become ambassadors for the state of their birth, united in the maroon colours of Hearts and St Peters Western to push the boundaries of what the next generation of Tasmanian soccer players and swimmers will consider achievable.
Both are now firmly established in the international arena and can be proud of their weekend's work at the contrasting venues of Hampden Park, Glasgow, and the South Australian Aquatic and Leisure Centre in Adelaide.
All of which speaks volumes for whatever they were serving at Riverside Woolworths about a decade ago.