McKeown doesn’t command the spotlight. She must now command respect (2024)

History was made at the pool in Paris on Saturday morning AEST.

For most of the 20,000 or so who made up the wall of noise (Emmanuel Macron included), that sentence refers to Leon Marchand.

For the (far fewer) Australians present at La Defense Arena, it is a direct reference to Kaylee McKeown.

It stands to reason that history comes at you louder when the hometown poster boy has just won his fourth individual gold medal at these Olympics alone.

And it makes sense that things would be less loud for the backstroker winning a race of rare significance some 15,000 kilometres away from home.

But McKeown has never been a headline generator in the vein of Ariarne Titmus and Mollie O’Callaghan in Paris, and she is not often talked about in the way Emma McKeon was in Tokyo three years ago.

Even so, it is wild that, in the hours before the 23-year-old defended her 200m backstroke crown, statistics were being checked and double-checked that a win in this final would, indeed, make McKeown the first Australian athlete to win four individual Olympic gold medals.

That it would bring her overall gold medal haul to five and level with Ian Thorpe. That Thorpe – an undisputed swimming icon - actually has one less individual gold than the 23-year-old about whom he was now praising on Nine’s commentary for “creating Australian history”.

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How does history happen quietly? How does McKeown become the first swimmer – male or female, from any country – to complete the 100m and 200m backstroke double at consecutive Olympics, without the anticipation of that (strong) prospect dominating Australia’s pre-Games swimming narrative?

Perhaps it is as her mother Sharon told this masthead in Paris, that “I personally don’t believe she gets the full recognition that she should get”. That the more sexy strokes get more attention.

McKeown is rightly receiving recognition now. In the 200m final, having chased American arch-rival Regan Smith at every turn, she broke free in the final lap to prevail in an Olympic-record of 2:03.73 – 0.59 of a second slower than the world record she set last year.

She has a medal from every event she has contested at the Olympics – the tally stands at six from six and could yet climb by the time the program is done.

A bonus win in the 200m individual medley final on Saturday would bring McKeown equal with Emma McKeon’s all-time high of six golds, two of which came in individual races in Tokyo.

McKeown herself is understated about all of this. Are four individual golds something she could ever have imagined as a kid?

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“Not in a million years, growing up,” she said. “I’ve always just idolised my sister and Emily Seebohm, and seeing what they do in the sport. Then training alongside Emma McKeon as well – one of the greats in the sport – and being friends with Mollie [O’Callaghan].

“I couldn’t ask much more, to be honest with you. Having that motivation and seeing those girls, not just the Aussie girls, but the whole world. Female sport has been unreal this year, and I’m just grateful to be a part of that.”

During the medal ceremony, McKeown shook her legs on the podium, keeping warm for the IM semi-final she was about to swim. Then she ran over to her coach, Michael Bohl, gave him a hug and draped her medal around his neck for safekeeping.

Less than 15 minutes after that, she was back in the pool qualifying – just – for that final. Looking knackered from the physical and emotional fatigue of the night and squeezing in at seventh place, with fellow Australian Ella Ramsay qualifying in eighth.

“I probably took my [200m] race out a little bit too hard,” McKeown said. “I was pretty nervous going in there tonight. I’m not one who gets overly nervous – probably more anxious than anything – so I went out hard and just held on for dear life.

“I did the same thing in the medley. I didn’t think I would make the final, so I’m super stoked to be a part of that and just have fun with it tomorrow. My main events are out of the way, and tomorrow’s just a fun time for me.”