Kaylee rides wave
Teen tearaway powers to another record
AUSTRALIA’S new teenage swimming sensation Kaylee McKeown came within a whisker of breaking another world record on Sunday after an equipment malfunction almost derailed her latest assault on the history books.
The 19-year-old again showed why she is quickly emerging as one of Australia’s best medal hopes for this year’s Tokyo Olympics with another head-spinning performance in the lead-up to next month’s national trials.
McKeown had already stolen the show at the Sydney Open — the last warm-up event before the trials — by winning four gold medals, including two that were a blink
of an eye away from breaking world records.
The Queenslander came within just 0.06 seconds of breaking the 100m backstroke world record on Saturday, then 24 hours later she missed the 50m backstroke mark by 0.18sec.
Even more incredible was that her close shave with the 50m backstroke world record came 30 minutes after she had won the final of the 200m individual medley, one of the most exhausting races in swimming, in 2min 8.73sec, the fastest time in the world this year.
If that wasn’t dramatic enough, when she jumped in the pool for her surprise crack at the 50m record, she had to climb back out of the water and take a seat on the blocks because the starting ledge in her lane was broken.
Unflustered by the postponement as officials went to fetch a replacement foot ledge from a storeroom, McKeown made a flying getaway when the race did start, bursting off the blocks in just 0.57, then motored down the length of the Sydney Olympic pool to stop the clock at 27.16.
She just missed the world record, held by China’s Liu Xiang Liu, by a fingernail but still managed to post an Australian and Commonwealth record — her third in three remarkable days that have sent shockwaves through the swimming world.
McKeown now heads to next month’s Olympic trials in Adelaide as the red-hot favourite to qualify for the Australian team in the 100m backstroke, 200m backstroke and 200m individual medley.
She is ranked No 1 in the world in all three individual events and could be included in up to three relays in Tokyo, the women’s medley, mixed medley and women’s 4x200m freestyle, which Australia is the early favourite to win with the likes of Emma McKeon and Ariarne Titmus involved.
McKeown said she did not plan to enter the 200m freestyle heats at next month’s trials but head coach Rohan Taylor said the in-form teenager remained in the mix because every swimmer who made the team for Tokyo was a candidate for the relays.
“When we pick the team, we have a number of relayonly potential selections (but) we have people in the team who can fill spots and we consider that,” Taylor said.
“So if Kaylee and others have posted 200m free times, we can consider them … everybody on the team has an opportunity.”