{"id":462055,"date":"2021-02-13T16:39:47","date_gmt":"2021-02-13T23:39:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=462055"},"modified":"2021-02-13T16:39:47","modified_gmt":"2021-02-13T23:39:47","slug":"emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/","title":{"rendered":"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia’s Most Underrated Star"},"content":{"rendered":"

Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia’s Most Underrated Star<\/strong><\/p>\n

(From February’s\u00a0Swimming World Magazine<\/em><\/a>)<\/strong><\/p>\n

After not qualifying for Australia\u2019s Olympic team in 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit, but over the next several months, she had a change of heart and understood what was necessary to compete at a higher level. Since then, she has become a significant international force, a consistent podium presence and one of the world\u2019s most impactful relay swimmers.<\/em><\/p>\n

**********<\/p>\n

At Australia\u2019s Olympic Swimming Trials in 2012, Emma<\/strong> McKeon<\/strong>, then 17, finished seventh in the 100 free, one spot away from qualifying for her first Olympics in the 400 free relay. That same week, she watched her older brother, David<\/strong>, win the 400 free and place third in the 200 free to qualify for London.<\/p>\n

She was ready to give it all up!<\/p>\n

\u201cI was really upset when I missed that team\u2014obviously because my brother made it, and our other training partner, Jarrod<\/strong> Poort<\/strong>, he made it as well in the 1500. I was really upset after that, and then I actually stopped swimming not long after the Trials,\u201d McKeon said. \u201cI knew I wanted to go to the Olympics, but I didn\u2019t want to wait another four years, so I was like, \u2018I\u2019ll just stop.\u2019\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

But over the next several months, around the time she traveled to London to watch David compete, McKeon began to understand the level of effort necessary in order to qualify for international meets and to become one of the world\u2019s best swimmers. So when she returned to the sport in late 2012, McKeon said, \u201cI guess I just knew that you have to be showing up to training every day and doing everything properly to be able to perform at the level I wanted to perform at.\u201d<\/p>\n

And then, less than 12 months after London, McKeon found herself in a key spot on an Australian relay battling for a World Championships title\u2014and she has been in that same central role each year since.<\/p>\n

\n

Emma McKeon’s Swimming Family<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Speaking of McKeon\u2019s family, her father, Ron<\/strong>, was a two-time Olympian for Australia\u2014in 1980 and 1984\u2014and he won four gold medals at the Commonwealth Games, including gold medals in the 200 and 400 free in 1978. McKeon\u2019s mother, Susie<\/strong>, swam at the Commonwealth Games in 1982, and McKeon\u2019s uncle, Rob<\/strong> Woodhouse<\/strong>, swam at the 1984 and 1988 Olympics for Australia. During her childhood, McKeon grew up constantly around the pool and the beach, and her parents ran a swimming school in Wollongong, New South Wales. So, quite literally, the only life McKeon knows centers around swimming.<\/p>\n

\"emma

Emma and David McKeon with their dog, Jax — Photo Courtesy: McKeon Family<\/p><\/div>\n

Ron actually coached both Emma and David through the early parts of their careers, so the family had to find balance between the swimmer-coach and parent-child relationships. But during Emma\u2019s late teenage years, both McKeons decided to move to Queensland to continue training. Putting his ego aside, Ron gave full support to Emma and David making that change.<\/p>\n

\u201cI loved having my dad as my coach, but he also wanted the both of us to know what it was like to have a coach that wasn\u2019t your dad. He wanted to let us have that opportunity,\u201d Emma said. \u201cIt was hard because it was just what I was so used to, but it was also good for me to grow and also work harder.\u201d<\/p>\n

Concurrent with Emma\u2019s success, David became one of Australia\u2019s best in the middle distance events. He qualified for both the 2012 and 2016 Olympics in the 400 free and 800 free relay. He won a Commonwealth Games gold medal in 2014 on the 800 free relay and a silver in the 400 free, and he qualified for the 400 free Olympic final in 2016, finishing seventh. In Rio, David and Emma became the first brother-sister combination to represent Australia in Olympic swimming since John and Ilsa Konrads in 1960. Emma remembers feeling nervous as she watched her brother compete in between her own swims in the 100 fly semifinal and as part of Australia\u2019s 400 free relay.<\/p>\n

The two siblings trained in different squads for a time, but both swam in Michael Bohl\u2019s<\/strong> group on the Gold Coast prior to David\u2019s retirement in January<\/a>. Bohl previously coached three-time Olympic gold medalist Stephanie<\/strong> Rice<\/strong>, and the group now includes Australian standouts Emily<\/strong> Seebohm<\/strong>, Thomas<\/strong> Fraser-Holmes<\/strong>, Georgia Bohl<\/strong> and Taylor<\/strong> McKeown<\/strong>. On the Gold Coast, the McKeon siblings actually live together, and Emma called the dynamic positive and supportive\u2014even if she occasionally wishes for a little more of her own space.<\/p>\n

\n

Emma McKeon’s International Success<\/strong><\/h3>\n

One year after her near miss in making the 2012 Olympic team, McKeon found herself in a key pressure point on the first day of her first major international meet. Swimming the third leg on the 400 free relay at the 2013 FINA World Championships after sisters Cate<\/strong> and Bronte<\/strong> Campbell<\/strong>, McKeon dove in with the lead and maintained the advantage, splitting 53.19. Australia would end up with the silver medal that day, and McKeon would win two more silver medals at that meet as a prelims relay swimmer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always knew that I perform well on relays, and even before that, all my fastest times in relays were well faster than my PBs,\u201d McKeon said. \u201cI knew I could do a good job being a part of those relays, so I wasn\u2019t nervous to be a part of them. I knew I could contribute quite well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"emma

Emma McKeon after winning bronze in the 100 fly at the 2019 FINA World Championships — Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr\/Swimming Australia<\/p><\/div>\n

The first taste of individual success came one year later at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland. There, McKeon captured gold in the 200 free\u2014her time of 1:55.57 setting an Australian record\u2014and she also won individual bronze medals in the 100 fly and 100 free (behind the Campbell sisters) and helped Australia win gold medals in all three relays to give her a total of six medals. McKeon had the fastest split in the field for the 800 free relay and the fastest fly split in the medley relay, and she set her first world record as part of the 400 free relay team.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was my first time swimming at that kind of meet doing individual events. I won a lot of medals there, so I think that\u2019s probably a point where I was like, \u2018OK, I\u2019m good at this against the world, with everybody else,\u2019\u201d McKeon said. \u201cI think that was probably a big turning point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two years later, she would qualify for her first Olympics, and in Rio, McKeon won four medals. On the meet\u2019s first night, she led off Australia\u2019s 400 free relay team that would end up winning gold in world-record time. McKeon touched seventh in the 100 fly final, a disappointing result after she ended with the No. 2 qualifying time, but she rebounded in impressive fashion to win bronze in the 200 free, her 1:54.94 setting a lifetime best and placing her behind only the dynamic duo of Katie Ledecky<\/strong> and Sarah<\/strong> Sjostrom<\/strong>. The following day, McKeon split 1:54.64 on Australia\u2019s 800 free relay, vaulting her country into the lead on the way to a silver medal, and she won another silver for her efforts on the 400 medley relay.<\/p>\n

In the years since, McKeon has shown remarkable consistency, never winning an individual gold medal on a global level, but placing among the top finishers in both the 200 free and 100 fly at each major international meet. McKeon calls the 100 fly her favorite event, but she considers the 200 free the most stressful for her. \u201cThere\u2019s so much more tactic to it. I know exactly how I want to swim it, but just getting it right can be hard at times. I love racing it, but it definitely takes more mind space.\u201d<\/p>\n

And every year, McKeon plays a key role on Australia\u2019s free relays\u2014always medal-winners, often gold\u2014and handles the fly leg on medal-winning medley relays. Through many years of handling big moments at significant competitions, McKeon has mastered the mental strategy required to ensure she is always on point.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a lot more relaxed going into big meets, not overthinking things too much,\u201d she said. \u201cI always hit a point in taper where I\u2019m feeling pretty crappy in the water, and now, I expect that and I know that\u2019s part of it, so I just kind of accept that, don\u2019t really think too much about it. I get nervous in the build-up, but I\u2019m more excited to get it started and just get the week going.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In 2018, she captured gold at the Commonwealth Games in the 100 fly<\/a> as part of a six-medal haul, matching for the second time the record for most medals at that meet. In 2019, McKeon had a down performance individually, settling for bronze in the 100 fly and scratching the 200 free, but she led Australia to a gold medal and world record in the 800 free relay<\/a>, the country\u2019s first win in that event on a global level since 2008. McKeon swam the anchor leg in 1:54.60 to pass American Katie McLaughlin<\/strong> and win gold by 33-hundredths.<\/p>\n

\n

Seeing the Big Picture<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\"Team

Brianna Throssell, left, Ariarne Titmus and Madison Wilson congratulate Emma McKeon after Australia won gold in the 800 free relay at the 2019 FINA World Championships — Photo Courtesy: Patrick B. Kraemer<\/p><\/div>\n

Along with her swimming career, McKeon has been working on a bachelor\u2019s in health promotion and public health nutrition since 2014, taking one or two courses each semester. \u201cIt\u2019s just been good to have something else away from the pool, even though it hasn\u2019t been much,\u201d McKeon said. \u201cIt hasn\u2019t been a huge workload or anything. It\u2019s been quite easy to manage alongside swimming, but it\u2019s just been good to have something else that I\u2019m striving to complete.\u201d<\/p>\n

She is nearing completion of that degree, but she doesn\u2019t know how she wants to put it to use in the working world. Just as well\u2014she intends to keep swimming for a while longer, particularly with the ISL offering an exciting new outlet for professional swimmers.<\/p>\n

In March 2020, the Tokyo Olympics were postponed one year due to fallout from the COVID-19 global pandemic, and most of the world\u2019s athletes viewed that decision as necessary. But in the leadup to that announcement, McKeon had never allowed herself to consider such a possibility. So focused was McKeon on her goals for the Olympics that when the news came, she found it hard to dial back and relax.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn the day that it was (postponed), it came as a big shock to me because I was very focused and I didn\u2019t want to think in my head that was going to be canceled and not be putting everything I had into training,\u201d McKeon said. \u201cIt also was hard because I couldn\u2019t just switch off randomly one day. I was still very motivated and everything, and I still wanted to keep training, so it was kind of hard to adjust to just taking a break. That took me a few weeks.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

McKeon ended up taking a hiatus of nearly three months, during which she returned to her family home in Wollongong, New South Wales. By July and August, she had returned to a relatively normal training routine, but she couldn\u2019t help but dwell on what might have been happening on those same days if she were in Tokyo at the Olympics.<\/p>\n

Once swimming picked up again, McKeon came out of the gates with a bang. While she and most Australians did not compete in the ISL bubble in Budapest, she did record a blistering 52.46 in the 100 free in December at the Queensland State Championships, just 5-hundredths off her personal best and the fastest time in the world for 2020. She also swam a quick 56.69 in the 100 fly and a 24.55 50 free.<\/p>\n

\n

Proud of the Past, Prepared for the Future<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\"emma-mckeon-australian-swimming-trials\"

Emma McKeon at the 2018 Australian Swimming Trials — Photo Courtesy: Australian Olympic Committee<\/p><\/div>\n

This June in Adelaide, McKeon will be competing at the Australian Olympic Swimming Trials<\/a> in an effort to represent her country at the postponed Tokyo Olympics. Currently, she should be a significant medal threat in all of her events. She ranks eighth all-time in the 200 free (1:54.55), seventh in the 100 fly (56.18) and sixth in the 100 free (52.41), although earning the chance to pursue an individual medal in that event will require beating out either Cate or Bronte Campbell at Trials. She should also continue to be a key to Australia\u2019s gold medal hopes in all three relays.<\/p>\n

Earlier in her career, McKeon would follow up a successful performance by looking toward what came next. That go-go-go attitude prevented McKeon, now 26, from stepping back to enjoy her accomplishments and be proud of herself, but more recently, she has achieved some perspective on the magnitude of her accomplishments. \u201cI think as I\u2019ve gotten older, I\u2019ve realized that it\u2019s good to be able to look back on what you\u2019ve done and be proud of it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Certainly, McKeon has been overshadowed to some degree, with the likes of the Campbell sisters, Seebohm, Ariarne Titmus<\/strong> and rising backstroker Kaylee McKeown<\/strong> stealing the limelight among Australian women. But every single year, McKeon shows up and performs. Given her talent, her versatility and her clutch abilities on relays, she could very well be carrying the torch for Australia at the 2021 Olympic Games.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia’s Most Underrated Star (From February’s\u00a0Swimming World Magazine) After not qualifying for Australia\u2019s Olympic team in 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit, but<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":461382,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,17,16,10],"tags":[34385,65138,27257,26550,25315,27550,27538,25031,32196],"class_list":["post-462055","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-commentary","category-swimming-world-magazine","category-world","tag-2020-tokyo-olympic-games","tag-ariarne-titmus","tag-bronte-campbell","tag-cate-campbell","tag-david-mckeon","tag-emily-seebohm","tag-emma-mckeon","tag-katie-ledecky","tag-sarah-sjostrom"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nEmma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia's Most Underrated Star<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit swimming, but since then, she has become become a significant international force and a relay star.\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia's Most Underrated Star\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit swimming, but since then, she has become become a significant international force and a relay star.\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Swimming World\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SwimmingWorld\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\r\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Rieder - Senior Writer\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@David_Rieder\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@swimmingworld\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Rieder - Senior Writer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"11 minutes\" \/>\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"David Rieder - Senior Writer\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/610dd0484edf5c4dba59e62a7e5b89af\"},\"headline\":\"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia’s Most Underrated Star\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/\"},\"wordCount\":2286,\"commentCount\":2,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"2020 Tokyo Olympic Games\",\"Ariarne Titmus\",\"Bronte Campbell\",\"Cate Campbell\",\"David McKeon\",\"Emily Seebohm\",\"Emma McKeon\",\"Katie Ledecky\",\"Sarah Sjostrom\"],\"articleSection\":[\"-Home Slider\",\"Commentary\",\"Swimming World Magazine\",\"World\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/\",\"name\":\"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia's Most Underrated Star\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00\",\"description\":\"In 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit swimming, but since then, she has become become a significant international force and a relay star.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":720,\"caption\":\"Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr\/Swimming Australia\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia’s Most Underrated Star\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/\",\"name\":\"Swimming World\",\"description\":\"The Global Leader in Aquatic News\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Swimming World\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/SWorld_BLKBKG-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/SWorld_BLKBKG-1.jpg\",\"width\":1799,\"height\":900,\"caption\":\"Swimming World\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SwimmingWorld\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/swimmingworld\",\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/swimmingworldmag\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/SwimmingWorldSPI\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/610dd0484edf5c4dba59e62a7e5b89af\",\"name\":\"David Rieder - Senior Writer\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/771e0586ce6532b0e16f68a06c9bd273?s=96&d=blank&r=pg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/771e0586ce6532b0e16f68a06c9bd273?s=96&d=blank&r=pg\",\"caption\":\"David Rieder - Senior Writer\"},\"description\":\"David Rieder is a staff writer for Swimming World. He has contributed to the magazine and website since 2009, and he has covered the NCAA Championships, U.S. Nationals, Olympic Trials as well as the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio and the 2017 World Championships in Budapest. He is a native of Charleston, S.C., and a 2016 graduate of Duke University.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/x.com\/David_Rieder\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/author\/davidr\/\"}]}<\/script>\r\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia's Most Underrated Star","description":"In 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit swimming, but since then, she has become become a significant international force and a relay star.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia's Most Underrated Star","og_description":"In 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit swimming, but since then, she has become become a significant international force and a relay star.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/","og_site_name":"Swimming World","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SwimmingWorld","article_published_time":"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":720,"url":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"David Rieder - Senior Writer","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@David_Rieder","twitter_site":"@swimmingworld","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"David Rieder - Senior Writer","Est. reading time":"11 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/"},"author":{"name":"David Rieder - Senior Writer","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/610dd0484edf5c4dba59e62a7e5b89af"},"headline":"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia’s Most Underrated Star","datePublished":"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00","dateModified":"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/"},"wordCount":2286,"commentCount":2,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg","keywords":["2020 Tokyo Olympic Games","Ariarne Titmus","Bronte Campbell","Cate Campbell","David McKeon","Emily Seebohm","Emma McKeon","Katie Ledecky","Sarah Sjostrom"],"articleSection":["-Home Slider","Commentary","Swimming World Magazine","World"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/","url":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/","name":"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia's Most Underrated Star","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg","datePublished":"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00","dateModified":"2021-02-13T23:39:47+00:00","description":"In 2012, Emma McKeon was ready to quit swimming, but since then, she has become become a significant international force and a relay star.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg","width":1000,"height":720,"caption":"Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr\/Swimming Australia"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/emma-mckeon-and-the-story-behind-australias-most-underrated-star\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Emma McKeon and the Story Behind Australia’s Most Underrated Star"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/","name":"Swimming World","description":"The Global Leader in Aquatic News","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#organization","name":"Swimming World","url":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/SWorld_BLKBKG-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/SWorld_BLKBKG-1.jpg","width":1799,"height":900,"caption":"Swimming World"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SwimmingWorld","https:\/\/x.com\/swimmingworld","https:\/\/instagram.com\/swimmingworldmag\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/SwimmingWorldSPI"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/610dd0484edf5c4dba59e62a7e5b89af","name":"David Rieder - Senior Writer","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/771e0586ce6532b0e16f68a06c9bd273?s=96&d=blank&r=pg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/771e0586ce6532b0e16f68a06c9bd273?s=96&d=blank&r=pg","caption":"David Rieder - Senior Writer"},"description":"David Rieder is a staff writer for Swimming World. He has contributed to the magazine and website since 2009, and he has covered the NCAA Championships, U.S. Nationals, Olympic Trials as well as the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio and the 2017 World Championships in Budapest. He is a native of Charleston, S.C., and a 2016 graduate of Duke University.","sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/David_Rieder"],"url":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/author\/davidr\/"}]}},"cc_featured_image_caption":{"caption_text":"Emma McKeon -- Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr\/Swimming Australia","source_text":"","source_url":""},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/vmrw8k5h.tinifycdn.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/SW-February-2012-Emma-McKeon-Hard-Work-and-Perseverance-Pay-Off.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p56Jja-1Wcv","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462055","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=462055"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462055\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/461382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=462055"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=462055"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=462055"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}