Kaylee McKeown has defended her Olympic gold medal in the 100m backstroke, setting a new Olympic record.
The 23-year-old swimmer was in fifth place at the turn, before pushing up to first place in the final metres to beat US rival Regan Smith by 0.33 of a second. McKeown’s time of 57.66 seconds is the new Olympic record.
It was set to be an exciting race, after Smith took McKeown’s world record just last month, but the Aussie swimmer came out on top in the end.
“The nerves were definitely there,” McKeown said after the swim. “But I just reminded myself it’s a pool, in a different venue, and I train every single day of my life. It was a great atmosphere to be amongst.”
McKeown also paid tribute to her late father, who passed away after battling brain cancer in 2020.
“I like to think I have a super power and that’s my dad. I believe he was with me tonight,” McKeown said.
“He would be extremely proud. I’m grateful to have my family here because he would be here in spirit.”
Fellow backstroke teammate Iona Anderson also competed in the 100m backstroke final. She finished in fifth place.
McKeown, freestyle swimmer Ariarne Titmus and swimming legend Dawn Fraser are now the only Australian women to defend their swimming Olympic gold medals.
The backstroke champion will now prepare to defend her Olympic gold medal in the 200m backstroke on Thursday. She will also compete in the 200m individual medley and the 4x100m medley later in the week.
McKeown’s gold medal is Australia’s sixth for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. All of Australia’s gold medals so far have been won by women.
Australia is currently leading the Women’s Medal Tally – check it out here.