Kaylee McKeown and Zac Stubblety-Cook Shake The Life Out Of Their World Records On Final Night In Sydney

by Ian Hanson - Oceania Correspondent

14 May 2023, 04:57am

Kaylee McKeown and Zac Stubblety-Cook Shake The Life Out Of Their World Records On Final Night In Sydney

Olympic champions Kaylee McKeown and Zac Stubblety-Cook have chased their own respective world records on the final night of the 2023 Sydney Open And UNISPORT Nationals at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre, finishing just a second outside their respective marks.

One month out from the Australian World Trials in Melbourne and two of the Dolphins premier performers have sent signals to the world that they will take some stopping in Fukuoka at this year’s World Championships in July-August.

OFF THE WALL:  Kaylee McKeown in full flight. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming NSW

The Australian Trials in Melbourne from June 13-18 could well see the top Australians in world record form if the last three days at the Sydney 2000 Olympic pool are any indication.

McKeown completed a non-stop three-day program, clocking the second fastest 200m backstroke of her career, stopping the clock at 2:04.18 (29.18; 1:01.04; 1:32.68) – 1.04 secs outside her own world time of 2:03.14 (29.34; 1:00.73; 1:31.84).

It was only in March this year at SOPAC that McKeown added the 200m backstroke world mark to her 100m WR, and she has again been in scintillating form here – setting a new Australian All-Comers record in the 200IM (2:07.19) and a personal best in the 400IM (4:31.68), as well as a world class time of 58.33 to win the 100m backstroke.

McKeown never lets a chance go by for the swimmer who now owns six of the fastest 10 200m backstroke times ever swum and 11 of the fastest 25 times between her world record of 2:03.14 and the 25^th fastest time of 2:05.55.

Day One Recap

Day Two Recap

While Stubblety-Cook stopped the clock at 2:07.62 (29.81; 1:02.69; 1:35.43) in his specialist 200m breaststroke – 1.67 secs outside his own world mark of 2:05.95 (29.43;1:01.89;1:34.32), set in Adelaide last May – and takes him into third place on the 2022-23 world rankings.

Queenslander Stubblety-Cook only arrived in Sydney yesterday for today’s final day’s racing– his only swim of the meet and in the event he has owned for the past three years.

Former world record holder Matthew Wilson (SOPAC) took the race out as he did in the 2022 world record swim, leading Stubblety-Cook narrowly at the 50m mark, before the reigning World and Olympic champion built through the 100 and 150m marks, extending his lead over Wilson, who stopped the clock in an encouraging 2:11.30.

In other highlights of the final night, Lani Pallister (Griffith University Swim Club) won the 800m freestyle in 8:22.93 ahead of New Zealand’s 200 and 400m freestyle winner Erika Fairweather (8:30.70) with Madeleine Gough (Bond University, QLD) third in 8:34.05.

THE CAP FITS: World record holder Zac Stubblety-Cook in full cry. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr (Swimming NSW)

The men’s 200m freestyle saw Bond University’s 17-year-old Flynn Southam just outside his best time, winning in 1:46.36 and taking out both the inter-club and UniSport National titles.

With Southam’s Bond Uni teammates, 16-year-old Milla Jansen winning the women’s 100m freestyle (54.83) and 21-year-old Ben Armbruster the men’s 50m butterfly in 23.35 from Cameron Gray (New Zealand) 23.67 and Cameron McEvoy (Somerville House, QLD) 23.70.

Meanwhile, Kyle Chalmers was back in the pool in the morning (after his third fastest time in the world this year of 47.69 to win the 100m freestyle last night) cruising through his 200m freestyle heat in 1:51.51.

But along with his Marion, SA, teammates Matthew Temple (1:51.05, 200m freestyle and 24.08, 50m butterfly), Meg Harris (100m butterfly and54.08,  100m freestyle) and Madison Wilson (53.63, 100m freestyle) as well as Tea Tree Gully’s Brittany Castelluzzo (59.76, 100m butterfly and 55.74, 100m freestyle) – the South Australian contingent all skipped their respective finals.

As part of the South Australian Sports Institute (SASI) the top SA swimmers left Sydney this afternoon for a final pre-World Trials Camp in Darwin – one of four groups chasing warm weather, with Dean Boxall (St Peters Western) in Cairns and Damien Jones (Rackley) and Richard Scarce (Miami) in Townsville.

And after three days of competition, it was Bond University (Coach Chris Mooney) who were crowned the UNISPORT National University Champions, awarded the Bill Berge-Phillips Trophy with 724 points from the University of Queensland (543) and the Queensland University of Technology (336) third.

Bond also won the Men’s pointscore on 375, from the University of Queensland (184) and Western Sydney University (180) while the University of Queensland (359) won the women’s pointscore from Bond University (349) and Queensland University of Technology (207).

Among the Multi-Class winners were Tom Gallagher (Somerset, QLD) 52.83 in the men’s 100m freestyle, Alexa Leary (St Hilda’s, QLD) 1:00.66 the women’s 100m freestyle, Ricky Betar (Cruiz, ACT) 2:18.45 and Jasmine Greenwood (University of Canberra, ACT) 2:34.83 in their respective 200m individual medleys as the 30-strong Australian Para team prepare for their World Championships in Manchester in August.

2023 Sydney Open And UNISPORT Nationals, Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre, Day 3, FINALS:

 MEN

200m freestyle

1. Flynn Southam (Bond University, QLD) 1:46.36 *
2. Edward Sommerville QUT, QLD) 1:49.82
3. Ryan Wilkes (University of Sydney, NSW) 1:50.20

Flynn Southam. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming NSW

100m backstroke

1. Josh Edwards-Smith (Griffith University Swim Club, QLD) 54.75
2. Bradley Woodward Western Sydney Uni, NSW) 54.84
3. Ty Hartwell (QUT, QLD) 55.71

200m breaststroke

1. Zac Stubblety-Cook (Chandler, QLD) 2:07.62
2. Matthew Wilson (SOPAC, NSW) 2:11.30
3. William Petric (Nunawading, VIC) 2:13.95

Zac Stubblety-Cook. Photo Courtesy:]Swimming NSW

50m butterfly

1. Ben Armbruster (Bond University, QLD) 23.35 *
2. Cameron Gray (Coast, NZ) 23.67
3. Cameron McEvoy (Somerville House, QLD) 23.70

Ben Armbruster. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming NSW

400m individual medley

1. Brendon Smith (Griffith University, QLD) 4:17.51
2. Evan Chee (Melbourne, VIC) 4:30.99
3. Jami Mooney (Wagga Wagga, NSW) 4:31.75

Brendon Smith. Photo Courtesy:Delly Carr Swimming NSW

MULTI CLASS

100m freestyle

1. Tom Gallagher (Somerset, QLD) 52.83
2. Jack Ireland (UQ Swim club, QLD) 53.17
3. Timothy Hodge (Western University, NSW) *

Tom Gallagher . Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming NSW

200m individual medley

1. Ricky Betar (Cruiz, ACT) 2:18.45
2. Col Pearse (Nunawading, VIC) 2:17.06
3. Alex Saffy (Bunbury, WA) 2:18.37

100m backstroke

1. Tom Gallagher (Somerset, QLD) 1:02.87
2. Ricky Betar (Cruiz, ACT) 1:05.32
3. Luke Ahern (Western Sydney Uni, NSW) 1:27.93

WOMEN

100m freestyle

1. Milla Jansen (Bond Swim Club, QLD) 54.83
2. Rebecca Jacobsen (QUT, QLD) 55.37 *
3. Chelsey Edwards (Coast, NZ) 55.68

Milla Jansen. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming NSW

50m breaststroke

1. Talara-Jade Dixon (St Hildas, WA) 31.72
2. Mia O’Leary (Bond University, QLD) 31.94 *
3. Felicity Chan (Uni of NSW) 32.15

Talara-Jade Dixon. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr Swimming NSW

100m backstroke

1. Kaylee McKeown (Griffith Un Swim Club, QLD) 2:04.18
2. Olivia LeFoe (Monash University, VIC) 2:14.52
3. Tameeka Johnson (Engadine, NSW) 2:16.23

Kaylee McKeown. Photo Courtesy: Swimming NSW.

100m butterfly

1. Elizabeth Dekkers (Uni of QLD) 59.49 *
2. Gemma Cooney (Uni of QLD) 59.82
3. Isabella Boyd (Nunawading, VIC) and Mikayla Bird (Bond Swim Club, QLD) 59.82

MULTI CLASS

100m freestyle

1. Alexa Leary (St Hilda’s, QLD) 1:00.66
2. Jasmine Greenwood (University of Canberra, ACT) 1:02.46
3. Keira Stephens (Southport, QLD) 1:02.99

Alex Leary. Photo Courtesy:Delly Carr Swimming NSW

200m individual medley

1. Jasmine Greenwood (University of Canberra, ACT) 2:34.83
2. Kiera Stephens (Southport, QLD) 2:36.11
3. Lakeisha Patterson (UQ, QLD) 2:44.14

100m backstroke

1. Katja Dedekind (Griffith Uni, QLD) 1:08.52
2. Taylor Corry (Kincumber Pacific Dolphins, NSW) 1:14.62
3. Michelle Fawer (Uni of Wollongong, NSW) 1:17.23

Australian University Champion *

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