See all of our 2023 Swammy Awards here.
The 2023 Female Swimmer of the Year Swammy is awarded to Kaylee McKeown of Australia. McKeown, 22, returned to her top form after her first full year under new coach Michael Bohl. She not only returned to her top form, but continued to build from there to ultimately shatter all three backstroke world records in 2023.
McKeown’s most notable swim, prior to the World Championships, was her 200 backstroke from the NSW Championships in March. There, she recorded a time of 2:03.14 to break Regan Smith’s world record by 0.21 seconds.
The backstroke superstar swept the backstrokes at the Fukuoka World Championships in July, winning the 50 (27.08), 100 (57.53), and 200 (2:03.85) backstrokes over American rival Smith.
McKeown didn’t stop in Fukuoka, as she also attended the World Cup tour in October. She swept all three backstroke distances at each stop, with world records in the 50 (26.86) and 100 (57.33) at the final leg in Budapest. With her efforts, she earned the title of overall World Cup Champion for the women, further cementing herself as the greatest female swimmer of the calendar year.
While her world record in March (in conjunction with her performances in Fukuoka) could have already been enough to secure this Swammy Award, her performances at the World Cup really sealed the deal. Before the World Cup, however, a strong argument could be made for Mollie O’Callaghan to take this award. O’Callaghan took home two individual titles in Fukuoka (100/200 free) and added 3 additional golds and a silver in record breaking relays. McKeown’s three individual wins and 2 relay duties was fairly comparable in terms of success to O’Callaghan’s two individual wins and 4 relay showings. You could honestly pick either if this award was solely based on the World Championships, but when you add in what McKeown did the rest of the year, she clearly edges ahead of O’Callaghan.
McKeown posted so many fast times and world leads throughout the year, so here is a highlights timeline of how her historic year unfolded:
McKeown in 2023, highlights by the month:
February
McKeown opened up her 2023 campaign at the Victorian Open in Melbourne. Held at the Melbourne Sports Centre, McKeown clocked back-to-back 100 breaststroke/100 freestyle wins on the first day of the competition. She stopped the clock in 1:06.86 in the 100 breast, which obliterated her best time of 1:07.85 from 2020.
She was back in the water just minutes later, with only the men’s 50 breaststroke occurring between the two events. She hit the wall in 54.66, with a near even split race of 27.03/27.63. The swim represented the third fastest of her young career, only sitting behind the 54.29 and 54.33 swims she posted in 2021 and 2020, respectively.
On the second day of the meet, McKeown won the 100 back in a final time of 57.93, marking the first time she had cracked the 58-second barrier since the Tokyo Olympics.
This meet was significant to McKeown’s year, as it was the first sign of her ability to challenge her best times from 2021. While her 2022 was still beyond impressive as she walked away as World & Commonwealth champion, she was still quite a bit off her best times in her primary events.
It’s not uncommon for McKeown to swim fast at this February meet, as she did the same in the 2022 season. Her times from this meet in 2022, in the 100 and 200 back, held up for her fastest times of that calendar year.
March
McKeown made a statement at the NSW State Open Championships in March, where she kicked off the competition with a world record in the 200 backstroke. McKeown stopped the clock in 2:03.14, taking down the previous world record of 2:03.35 – which Regan Smith put on the books in 2019. The swim from McKeown was over a full second drop from her previous best time (2:04.28), and represented her first time dipping under the 2:04-barrier.
Later in the meet, McKeown improved her 100 back season best to 57.84, posted a near best time in the 200 IM (2:08.27), and swam 27.31 to win the 50 back.
April
McKeown opened the 2023 Australian Swimming Championships with a new best time in the 200 IM, stopping the clock in 2:08.16.
She also hit a massive best time (1:56.88) in the 200 free, showcasing her versatility beyond the backstroke and IM races. On top of that, her 2:24.18 200 breaststroke performance earned her the National title and a new best time, even further showcasing the sheer versatility she possesses.
Her breaststroke swim here, in conjunction with her 100 breaststroke from Victoria, began to raise questions about whether she would be better suited as the breaststroke leg of the medley relay in Fukuoka – given the injuries of Chelsea Hodges and Jenna Strauch.
She posted strong times in her other events, hitting 54.54 in the 100 free and 57.90 in the 100 backstroke. While those performances weren’t season bests, it continued to showcase her consistency heading into World Championship Trials.
May
McKeown opened the 2023 Sydney Open with a time in the 200 IM that everyone had been waiting for. She finally put a strong backstroke split to demolish her previous best time by a second, posting 2:07.19 for the win.
She posted 4:31.68 to eclipse her best time by 0.06 in the 400 IM, and also took the 100 back in 58.33 less than an hour later. She won the 200 backstroke on the final day of the competition, stopping the clock in 2:04.18 to come just over a second shy of her world record from two months prior.
June
McKeown put on a show at the 2023 World Championship Trials, winning three individual events. She opened the meet with her second fastest 200 IM ever (at this point in time), hitting 2:07.60 to earn a spot on Australia’s World Championship team. She later won the 100 backstroke in the third fastest time in history, posting 57.50 for the win. She concluded her meet with a 2:03.70 win in the 200 back, her second fastest ever and a time that would hold up as faster than anyone would post in all of 2023 (besides herself).
The performances from McKeown in 2023, up until this point, made her the clear favorite to sweep the 100/200 backstrokes in Fukuoka.
July
McKeown entered the meet as the favorite in the 100/200 back, and simply delivered. While she didn’t swim best times or even season bests, she got the job done with times of 57.53 & 2:03.85. Her swims showcased the model of consistency of which she has displayed all year, and solidified herself as the best backstroker of 2023.
McKeown later won the 50 back in a personal best time (27.08), to complete her sweep of all three backstroke events in Fukuoka.
McKeown contested the 200 IM, but was disqualified in the semifinals for an illegal backstroke-to-breaststroke turn.
October
After taking a short break following the World Championships, McKeown returned to the pool with renewed energy at the 2023 World Cup Circuit. McKeown swept all the backstroke distances at each of the stops (and got faster at each stop), culminating with world records in the 50 (26.86) and 100 (57.33) backstrokes at the final leg in Budapest.
McKeown ultimately won the overall women’s World Cup title as well, capping off her historic year in style.
December
Just when you thought her year couldn’t possibly get any better, she ended the year with another best time at the Queensland Championships. McKeown stopped the clock in 1:56.14 in the final of the 200 free, eclipsing her previous marker of 1:56.88 from April. She also posted a time of 2:07.54 in the 200 IM, her second fastest performance ever.
She added solid swims of 1:07.47 in the 100 breast, 54.72 in the 100 free, and 57.79 in the 100 back to cap off her year.
Not to be forgotten, she opened the meet with a time of 26.98 in the 50 back while leading off the Griffith 4×50 medley relay. The swim represented the second fastest swim in the history of the event, tying the previous world record.
McKeown in 2023, by the numbers:
- 50 Backstroke – 26.86 *World Record*
- 100 Backstroke – 57.33 *World Record*
- 200 Backstroke – 2:03.14 *World Record*
- 200 IM – 2:07.19 *Personal Best – 3rd in World for 2023*
- 400 IM – 4:31.68 *Personal Best – 3rd in World for 2023*
- 100 Breaststroke – 1:06.86 *Personal Best – 29th in World for 2023*
- 200 Breaststroke – 2:24.18 *Personal Best – 20th in World for 2023 *
- 200 Freestyle – 1:56.14 *Personal Best – 17th in World for 2023*
McKeown is expected to kick off her 2024 campaign at the Victorian Open in February, which will be held in Melbourne (Outdoor Pool). Her coach, Michael Bohl, confirmed to SwimSwam on this podcast episode that they will follow a near identical meet line-up as they did in 2023.
Honorable Mentions (in no particular order):
- Mollie O’Callaghan (AUS) – Mollie O’Callaghan swept the 100 and 200 freestyles at the Fukuoka World Championships, claiming a world record in the latter. She won the 100 in 52.16, just off the 52.08 she recorded on the lead-off of the world record breaking 4×100 freestyle relay on the first night of the competition. She took the 200 in a world record time of 1:52.85 for her second individual gold. O’Callaghan walked away from Fukuoka with six medals (five gold & one silver). In addition to her freestyle success, her 58.42 in the 100 backstroke slots her in as the 5th fastest of 2023 – sitting behind only McKeown, Smith, Katharine Berkoff, and Claire Curzan.
- Summer McIntosh (CAN) – Summer McIntosh had the year of her career in 2023, highlighted by world records in the 400 free and 400 IM. She would defend her titles in the 200 fly and 400 IM at the Fukuoka World Championships, while also placing 4th (and losing her world record to Ariarne Titmus) in the 400 free. In addition to her success at Worlds, her time in the 200 IM from Canadian Trials (2:06.89) represented the first sub-2:07 swim since the 2016 Olympic Games. McIntosh also recorded a world junior record of 1:53.65 in the 200 free in Fukuoka, snagging bronze in that race. McIntosh walked away from Fukuoka with four medals: 2 gold and 2 bronze.
- Ariarne Titmus (AUS) – The third and final honorable mention could’ve went to a few different swimmers, but we went with Ariarne Titmus over other athletes who won more individual gold (due to the combination of her setting two world records in 2023, posting the fastest 200 free split in history, and having a large medal haul from Fukuoka). In the 400 freestyle final in Fukuoka, Titmus reclaimed her world record en route to a dominant win. Stopping the clock in 3:55.38, she won by over three seconds. She claimed an individual silver in the 200, with a best time of 1:53.01. She equaled her best time and national record to win bronze in the 800 free, hitting the wall in 8:13.59. She also helped Team Australia to a massive world record in the 4×200 free relay, anchoring in the fastest split in history (1:52.41).
Past Winners:
- 2022 – Katie Ledecky (USA)
- 2021 – Emma McKeon (AUS)
- 2020 – Kaylee McKeown (AUS)
- 2019 – Regan Smith (USA)
- 2018 – Katie Ledecky (USA)
- 2017 – Sarah Sjostrom (SWE)
- 2016 – Katie Ledecky (USA)
- 2015 – Katie Ledecky (USA)
- 2014 – Katie Ledecky (USA)
- 2013 – Katinka Hosszu (HUN)
I don’t believe any trans women competed in any international competitions this year so not sure how this is relevant. Also who is Ms Sammy?
how does this affect sun yang’s legacy?
posting here because its the only recent australian article. the entries for sa states have been released:
apart from chalmers who always goes, there are a few notable visitors:
cate and bronte
wunsch (swimming the 200 im instead of the 100 free, but she might be on the nsw w4x100 free)
robb
schoeman lol
temple is missing, and wilson still hasn’t swum since worlds
I’m beginning to get concerned that Wilson is done. We all knew she wouldn’t continue past Paris, but her events are so deep and she hasn’t been swimming so I’m not sure I see her making it even if she does swim.
Tough for her- she would qualify with ease in any other country….
If she still wants to swim, I’m sure Sweden would love a freestyler who could swim backstroke at her calibre.
Her times from this year would literally make every swimming team in the world. If she’s retired that’s fine just hope she’s doing well and happy with what she’s doing
Could this have been the trigger for Meg Harris moving?
That’s a good point
Looking forward to see Wunsch’s times. She’s shaping up to be our next freestyle mainstay.
Some other up and comers entered:
Jaimie de Lutiis – opting for 200 IM over 100 free like Wunsch
WIll Petric
Isabella Boyd
Bella Grant
Jessica Cole
Marcus Da Silva
Lillie McPherson
Schoeman???
🤔
She really has had a remarkable year. Pretty much the only misfire was the semi of the the 200IM at Worlds, and the way that she held it together to produce some brilliant backstroke results just confirmed how mentally tough she is.
I’m always nervous about being on top heading into an Olympic year, but I’m so keen to see how it all unfolds for Kaylee. She’s just so easy to barrack for!
We knew she’s mentally tough when she lost her father, and few months later broke WR and then swept backstroke in Tokyo
She headed into every race this year as favorite- and won…and was favorite in Tokyo…and won…she will be fine!
Yes it could go either way.
Kaylee has essentially achieved everything there is to achieve in the sport except repeating at the Olympics. There’s pressure on her to perform, but she knows that even if she retired now she would still go down as a great.
Is it better to be in that position or to be someone hunting for glory who knows this might be their last chance to become historically relevant?
Her mental toughness is so impressive. Amazing work.
I’m not going to gloat because an Aussie, and a very deserving one, got the award and an American didn’t.
Like hell I’m not!
The performances from McKeown in 2023, up until this point, made her the clear favorite to sweep the backstrokes in Fukuoka.
—
Not according to Gold Medal Mel.
He predicted Regan Smith to sweep backstroke and 200 fly.
I did not expect to see an actual instance of this happening on this exact post, but I am nothing if continually proven wrong by the comments.
“Here’s my calculus. Kaylee’s World Records were swum in Australia. When Regan broke her World Records, she was at 2019 World Champs in South Korea. I think Regan returns to her 2019 magic, performing on the big stage. I’m calling a 57.4 100 back for Regan for the gold. I see a 2:03.3 200 back for Regan for gold. Kaylee swims eye-to-eye with Regan, but can’t quite get her hand on the wall, touching for sliver.”
https://staging.swimswam.com/regan-smith-vs-kaylee-mckeown-at-2023-world-championships/
I was wrong about 200 fly. He predicted Summer to win.
Also, even after the fact (after Kaylee won golds in Fukuoka) there were many comments in the peanut gallery that erroneously claimed “if Regan swam her domestic best times… Read more »
Especially in the 100mBK, Smith hasn’t PBed for 4 years, while McKeown has put the WR out of reach…
From the same Gold Medal Mel prediction:
“200 Fly? Regan’s 2:03 at the Tempe meet felt like a perfect swim. I think this is Summer McIntosh’s race, and Summer’s trajectory is dramatic right now. I see Regan pushing Summer to the gold. Regan toughs in 2:04.1, for the sliver.”
Mel was right in saying that Regan’s 2:03 was a perfect swim, and it’s extremely hard to replicate a perfect swim because everything has to be in sync.
But just like many others, he still overrated Regan’s chances in 200 fly.
People forgot that Regan did that 2:03 in a small meet Sun Devil where she benefited from:
1. Advantage of coming down straight from ASU high altitude training.
2. Direct… Read more »
Even disregarding him, she definitely wasn’t favoured to win the 50 going in to worlds. Her progress in the 50 this year is the most remarkable of the 3 events.
How many golds do you think McKeown will win in Paris?
I think that on the back at least it should be for her.
Mollie and McKeown are the most favourites for gold of Australia.
I’m hoping for 3, 2 would be fantastic, even just 1 would still be a huge achievement. The last Australian to defend an Olympic title was Ian Thorpe in 2004. We have 7 chances, but Kaylee defending at least one seems the most likely (with Titmus 400 in second).
In terms of Australia’s potential golds, my order from most to least likely is:
W100 free
W200 free
200 Back – McKeown
100 Back – McKeown
200 Free – MOC (Titmus as backup)
400 Free – Titmus
50 Free – McEvoy
100 Free – MOC (Jack as backup)
400 Free – Short (Winnington as backup??)
200 Breast – ZSC
200IM –… Read more »
I take it W100 & 200 free at the top of your list refer to the W4X100 & 4X200 which are, realistically, AUS strongest gold chances ?
14 gold, realistically, ain’t happening but I will grant that a defensible case could be made for each even if I think W4XMED might be a better fit amongst the “longshots”. Am also probably a little bearish on ZSC but we may need to see if Qin backs up his stellar 2023. At this point my “ball park” range sits between 4 (bottom line) and 8 (maybe 9).
Agree that McKeown should “bat” at least 1 of 2 in the backstrokes; any medal in 200IM will be a bonus.
And Smith??
Could she win 1 gold in backstroke and 200 fly?
Of course she could, although her chances in two backstroke events is higher than in 200 fly.
Certainly could …… if she can finish races better than she has.
Yes, all of the events without a specific swimmer named are relays.
I don’t see 14 happening either, was just listing the realistic chances.
You are eternally and severely pessimistic. That actually might be an understatement to be honest. 4 golds would be a complete disaster. We won 9 in Tokyo and our current team is stronger. No guarantees, but having 8 as your ceiling just seems insane based on current evidence.
I’m trying to work out in my head how we even end up with just 4. Both women’s relays, 1 for Kaylee and 1 for MOC, everyone else bombs? Seems extremely unlikely
Australia’s 14 gold in Fukuoka includes two non Olympics events.
Sure, Australia is arguably stronger today than in Tokyo, but the whole world is also stronger.
8 gold is pretty conservative/safe prediction
13. You may have included a diving gold to get 14.
You don’t have to bomb to miss out on gold. I think 4 is the minimum, but we could swim well and only get say 6, with a few near misses.
Important point- Fukuoka was good example, excellent swims didnt translate to Gold neccesarily….tough sport!
I suppose it all depends on the circumstances. However, I can’t see our entire team performing at their best and ending up with only 6. In my mind 6 would likely be an underperformance, unless some phenoms arise out of nowhere. We have world records in 6 Olympic events this year. Just matching those performances is 6 golds already.
Take Sam Short as an example. A few hundredths either way gave him 1 gold and 1 silver, but it could easily have been 2 silver. I’m hoping for 8 gold, maybe 10, which would eclipse Melbourne and Tokyo, but there are small margins at the top for most swimmers apart from Marchand in the 400 IM, Sjostrom in the 50 free and Katie in the 800/1500.
Oh absolutely there are no guarantees. But I still think it’s hard to say we could swim really well and get 6 gold. If the team swims “really well”, they are for sure winning both freestyle relays and 1 each for Kaylee and MOC. That means to end up on 6 they would have to convert almost none of the other 10 realistic gold chances.
Yea individual swims can go either way. But arguably being favourite in 9 events plus 5 other strong chances and another 5 outside chances coming to a total of 6 is very unlikely to happen to a team with strong performances across the board.
I’m just old enough to remember the lean years (late 70’s -early 90s). Also cognisant of the reality that AUS remains reliant on a handful of individuals to bring home any individual gold. London & Rio are the stark reminders of what happens when most/all have air-swings.
The range I set down was my range of REALISTIC outcomes rather than my actual best case/top-line. FWIW, your surmisal of my “bottom line” was largely correct (2 W free relays plus one each for Kaylee & MOC).
I certainly DO think the haul should be appreciably larger, however, I think the men’s path to any gold looks very stiff. Whilst I do see that each of the Fukuoka men’s golds are… Read more »
My view is that the final number of golds will be closer (slightly) to your base line of 4 than the very optimistic 14. But there is a big difference between the 2024 team (assuming no shocks at trials) and the 2012 team you mention. In Paris we will have at least 7 individuals who are genuine gold medal chances, plus 2 relays in which we are clear favourites. One or two underperformances may reduce the gold medal tally but there will still be at least 4-6. In 2012, Magnussen and the relay were favourites, and Coutts and Sprenger chances, but that was it. The only gold medal won was actually an upset. More margin for error in 2024.
The last Australian to defend an Olympic title was Ian Thorpe in 2004.
Not a big deal, but Hackett also successfully defended his 1500 gold in Athens.
And he could have three peat in Beijing had he not drowsed in stillnox
He wasn’t stillnox was he? I think he was unwell again – another infection.
Denis Cotterell, who coached Hackett up until 2007, told The Australian that he believed Stilnox was the reason why the 32-year-old failed to perform at his best in the 1500m freestlye final in 2008.
Cotterell also revealed that while in Beijing, working as a coach on the Chinese swimming team, Australia head coach Alan Thompson and Hackett’s room-mate Ashley Callus approached him to calm the swimming ace down.
It is believed Hackett had been sleepwalking in the Games Village after taking the drug and even fell down on a plane after been given Stilnox for a long flight.
https://www.foxsports.com.au/olympic-games/drugs-cost-grant-hackett-gold-in-beijing-says-coach-denis-cotterell/news-story/141aeb25260b8b9eb297e56c97e6c2d9
Denis Cotterell, who coached Hackett up until 2007, told The Australian that he believed Stilnox was the reason why the 32-year-old failed to perform at his best in the 1500m freestlye final in 2008.
Cotterell also revealed that while in Beijing, working as a coach on the Chinese swimming team, Australia head coach Alan Thompson and Hackett’s room-mate Ashley Callus approached him to calm the swimming ace down.
It is believed Hackett had been sleepwalking in the Games Village after taking the drug and even fell down on a plane after been given Stilnox for a long flight.
Oh yes true! Both of them in 2004
There is also the Mixed Medley Relay. With Matt Temple and Sam Williamson’s improvement this year Australia must be a chance to win that rather unusual event.
I think the breaststroke leg is still too slow to get AUS to gold contention. Williamson (or someone else) needs to drop another half a second
Kaylee has to swim through the wash from male backstrokers so there’s another half a second lost.
Interesting to note that Matt Temple’s split in the mixed medley at Fukuoka was 50.63. He split 50.10 in the men’s medley relay. If he had swam that 50.10 in the mixed medley Australia would have won gold with a margin of 0.07 over the Chinese.
So Australia was close in Fukuoka but with so many permutations for every team’s possible line ups the best we can say for Paris is the Australians have some chance of pulling it off.
200 IM right now is probably a tossups cause I don’t know who is going to win.