McKeown Crushes 2:07.19 200 IM Personal Best, Drops Nearly One Second

By Retta Race on SwimSwam

2023 SYDNEY OPEN & UNISPORT NATIONALS

• Friday, May 12th – Sunday, May 14th
• Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Center (SOPAC)
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Site
• Start Lists
• SwimSwam Preview
• Day 1 Prelims Recap
• Live Results

With the Australian World Championships Trials on the horizon for next month, swimmers are taking the opportunity to get in some final tune-ups at the 2023 Sydney Open which kicked off today at SOPAC.

Among the eye-catching swims on day one was a new personal best by Kaylee McKeown in the women’s 200m IM.

21-year-old McKeown ripped a new career-quickest result of 2:07.19 en route to gold tonight, becoming the world’s 7th fastest woman ever in the process.

The Olympic multi-medalist scorched the 2IM field this evening, with the next-closest competitor represented by Ella Ramsay who touched in 2:14.15 for silver while Kayla Hardy rounded out the top 3 in 2:15.05 for bronze.

As for McKeown, the Griffith swimmer’s lifetime best entering this 3-day competition rested at the 2:08.16 she recently put up at the Australian National Championships last month. That already scored a new All Comers Record and rendered her the 3rd fastest Australian in history.

Splits below show how McKeown attacked the race on the front half, while her breaststroke split represented a .29 drop from her April PB.

MCKEOWN’S NEW 2:07.19 PB	MCKEOWN’S PREVIOUS 2:08.16 PB
27.88	28.14
31.95	32.45
37.03	37.32
30.33	30.25

With tonight’s effort, McKeown now frog-hops Alicia Coutts to sit only behind Stephanie Rice as the #2 Australian in history. In fact, McKeown is fast approaching Olympic champion Rice’s longstanding Australian Record of 2:07.03, falling just .16 shy of the mark Rice logged over a decade ago.

Top 5 Australian Women’s LCM 200 IM Performers All-Time

1. Stephanie Rice – 2:07.03, 2009
2. Kaylee McKeown – 2:07.19, 2023
3. Alicia Coutts – 2:08.15, 2012
4. Jenna Forrester – 2:09.32, 2023
5. Emily Seebohm – 2:09.93, 2010

McKeown already ranked #2 in the world entering this Sydney Open and she remains in that slot, however, she further sets herself apart from the rest of the world. She only ranks behind Canada’s phenom Summer McIntosh who established a monster World Junior Record of 2:06.89 at the Canadian Trials.

 

SwimSwam: McKeown Crushes 2:07.19 200 IM Personal Best, Drops Nearly One Second