By Terin Frodyma on SwimSwam
No, this is not an April Fool’s joke. Nine-time Australian Olympic medalist Kaylee McKeown has announced that this upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow will be her final appearance at the Commonwealth Games for her career.
McKeown, age 24, has already built one of the strongest international resumes of any swimmer on the planet, one that includes five Olympic gold medals, nine world championship titles, and four Commonwealth golds. She is consistently atop the international rankings in the backstroke events, currently holding world records in both the long-course 50 back (26.86) and 200 back (2:03.14), and is the short-course 200 back world record holder in 1:57.33.
In a self-written report with the Courier Mail, McKewon described her journey of falling back in love with the sport, sharing how her “career had to come before happiness,” and that her move to living back home on the Sunshine Coast has played a big role in that rekindling of love between her and swimming.
“I am no longer on the blocks, holding back tears from leaking into my goggles,” McKeown wrote with the Courier Mail. “I have to admit, living back at home on the Sunshine Coast with my partner [Declan Watson] and naughty dashies certainly helps.”
She opened up about the work and commitment she put into the sport following her 100 and 200 backstroke wins at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, and how badly she wanted to repeat that feat in Paris in 2024.
“I worked relentlessly hard and off the back of the Paris Olympics I realised how much swimming was my entire life. I just so badly wanted to win the double-double in Paris.” McKeown said. “I had won gold in the 100m and 200m backstroke at the Tokyo Games and it became my obsession to repeat this in France and become the first Australian in history to do so.”
McKeown added that it “cae at a personal cost”, and is now at a point where she want to enjoy the process ahead of the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
She explained that part of her process involves working with a sports psychologist, who has helped her realize that “when I am happy, I actually swim faster.”
“Which is why happiness is going to be my superpower in 2026.” McKeown said. “It sounds like a cliche but this is going to help me enormously with the year that is ahead of us: we have the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this July/August and then the Pan Pacific Championships in the United States, also in August.”
She then made a major announcement: these Commonwealth Games would be her last.
“It is where my sister Taylor made her first senior Australian team and it will be my last Commonwealth Games and it’s at the same location – it’s surreal.’ McKeown wrote with the Courier Mail. “There are still milestones that I want to achieve – like I would like to reclaim the 100m back world record and be the first to go under 57 seconds – but this time around I am going to stop and acknowledge the milestone and the journey.”
As previously mentioned, McKeown is now racing with a new mindset, one of love and reconnection to the sport, and in a healthy state of mind.
“And this time, when I hopefully get on that plane to Glasgow, I’ll feel like the only baggage I am taking will be loaded on to the plane.”
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