Kaylee McKeown Wins The 100 Backstroke With A New Record
On the third night in Singapore, Kaylee McKeown reclaimed the 100 backstroke title. The 24-year-old touched the wall in 57.16 to clock the second fastest time in history. She was followed by her long-time in-pool rival, Regan Smith, who swam her third-fastest time ever in 57.35. Team U.S. also picked up bronze as 24-year-old Katherine Berkoff placed third in 58.15.
The order for the podium was the same as the Paris Olympics and the 2023 Worlds, despite McKeown dislocating her shoulder a few weeks before. Nonetheless, with the full-time efforts of her medical team, she was able to swim her new personal best in Singapore, setting a new championship, Oceania, Commonwealth and Australian record in the process. McKeown, who has previously opened up about the post-Olympic blues, admitted not looking forward to racing the backstroke event on Monday. But now the swimmer is happy with her results as she is "trying to love the sport again."
At the 2023 World Championships, she won her first individual long-course world title in the 100 backstroke, surpassing Regan Smith. However, over the next two years, McKeown faced setbacks, struggling to maintain her passion for the sport. But one thing continued to remain the same: her dominance in the 100 backstroke category.
Last year, after claiming two gold medals in Paris, McKeown decided to withdraw from multiple events and take a break from the sport. 'After constant training for five years, she opened up about the onslaught both mentally and physically.' In April 2025, the swimmer also decided to return to the Sunshine Coast to train with Michael Sage after three years at Griffith University.
'It's a personal best too..so I'm so, so happy with that… It's really emotional after the lows I came back from after the Paris Olympics,'said McKeown, who was happy to forget the press and the stress that comes along with the sport and just swim with her mother,'Sharon, in the crowd holding that 'Boxing Kangaroo' mascot.'
McKeown was not expecting to set a new personal best tonight, lowering the previous record by 0.17 seconds. Her time was only 0.03 seconds off Smith's world record.
Smith was also happy with her performance as she swam top times, despite several team members falling ill with gastroenteritis. 'We had a really unfortunate situation happen to us during a training camp and I did not think I was going to go 57.35.'
Smith and McKeown both have showcased a strong front in the 100 backstroke category, on and off, claiming the world record in the event since 2019. Last year, Smith managed to reclaim her 100-meter backstroke world record, which she had first set at the age of 17. At the Olympic trials, she touched the wall in 57.13, lowering McKeown's record set in 2023 by 0.2 seconds. However, the swimmer is yet to break Kaylee McKeown's streak of winning the 100 backstroke event at major meets for six years.
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