Kaylee McKeown thought she’d better fight her demons sooner than later.
True to form, she won.
McKeown has kept Australia atop the medal table entering day four of the swimming world championships in Singapore.
After initially being reluctant to race the women’s 100m backstroke, McKeown won Australia’s third gold of the titles, one more than any other nation.
“I just didn’t want to keep steering away from fear,” McKeown said after her Tuesday night triumph.
“Because the more that you feel fear, it becomes like a monster. And you have got to chase your demons at some point.
“I thought it was better to start sooner rather than later.”
McKeown suffered severe post-Olympic blues after winning double gold in Paris last year, when she was Australia’s joint flag bearer at the closing ceremony.
Her long-time coach Michael Bohl moved to China; McKeown intially moved training camps to the Gold Coast, then back home to the Sunshine Coast.
After Australia’s selection trials, she dislocated a shoulder.
And, despite a glittering career featuring five Olympic golds, she arrived in Singapore with a point to prove.
“There were a lot of comments of me, saying that I’m scared to lose,” McKeown said.
“But that’s not the case at all. If anything, I’m scared to fail myself.
“I have worked really, really hard to get up there and prove to myself that I am a good athlete and swimmer. It doesn’t matter if I come first or last.”
McKeown now has five career individual gold medals at the worlds. Only Ian Thorpe has more – six.
The 24-year-old saluted in a personal best of 57.16 seconds, just 0.03 seconds outside American Regan Smith’s world record.
“It’s a little bit emotional,” McKeown said.
“I have worked so hard just to get myself into a happy state and it’s just what I’ve been focusing on.
“It goes to show that a happy swimmer is a fast swimmer.
“I have trained hard but I wasn’t expecting to make a personal best tonight.”
McKeown will chase more medals on Wednesday night as part of Australia’s mixed 4x100m medley relay team.
Mollie O’Callaghan enters as favourite in a women’s 200m freestyle final also featuring Australia’s Jamie Perkins – the event’s world record holder Ariarne Titmus remains on a post-Olympic break.
Australia’s Sam Short, two nights after snaring silver in the men’s 400m freestyle, races for gold in the 800m freestyle.
And Dolphins stalwart Kyle Chalmers starts his individual program in men’s 100m freestyle heats and semi-finals, two days after anchoring Australia’s win in the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
© AAP
