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Did You Know? Australian Swimmer Emma McKeon’s Family History in the Pool

You might be familiar with Emma McKeon, the most decorated Australian in Olympic history,  but did you know she is not the only swimming superstar in her family?

Having won 11 Olympic medals in total, four in Rio and seven in Japan, McKeon holds both the Australian record for most Olympic medals over the course of a career in any sport and the most medals won by any female swimmer in a single Games. McKeon also holds the record for most all-time Commonwealth Games medals; her count jumped to 20 at the 2022 competition, surpassing the previous record of 18.

On top of her stack of medals, McKeon currently holds three world records (200 SCM medley relay, 400 SCM freestyle relay, 400 LCM freestyle relay) and four Olympic records (50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 400 freestyle relay, 400 medley relay).

Emma has undoubtedly made a name for herself in the pool, but what you might not have realized is that the McKeon family name had already established itself in swimming history long before she built her collection of medals.

Born in New South Wales, Emma and her siblings, David McKeon and Kaitlin McKeon, entered into a family of Australian swimming royalty.

The family patriarch Ron McKeon was himself an Olympic swimmer for Australia in the 1980s. He competed in both the 1980 Games in Moscow and the 1984 Games in Los Angeles; he placed as high as 4th as a part of the 800 freestyle relay team. His individual events included the 200 and 400 free in Moscow, and he only raced the 400 in LA.

While he never secured an Olympic medal, Ron made six trips to the podium at the Commonwealth Games over the course of his career. Appearing at the 1978 and 1982 competitions, he won four golds, one silver and one bronze thanks to his mid-distance freestyle performances.

The swimming genes come from both sides of the family, as Susie McKeon also represented Australia on the international stage. She placed 5th in the 200 fly at the 1982 Commonwealth Games, while her brother, Rob Woodhouse, made two Olympic showings in 1984 and 1988. He won bronze in the 400 IM at the Los Angeles Games, becoming Australia’s first medalist in a men’s individual medley event.

Continuing the McKeon legacy alongside Emma is her older brother David, who made his Olympic debut at the London Games and was later joined by his sister in Rio. His first Olympic appearance came only three years after joining the sport and saw him finish 5th in both of his races; like father like son, he competed in the 400 freestyle and swam on the 800 freestyle relay. David repeated these events in 2016 with the addition of the individual 200 freestyle; the highest place he achieved was in the relay, where the Australian team narrowly missed out on a medal to take 4th.

The McKeon family legacy in swimming continues beyond racing in the pool, as Ron and Susie direct McKeon’s Swim School in Illawarra, a center designed to offer swim instruction to individuals of all ages. They opened the school over 30 years ago, and their daughter Kaitlin has coached with them there for several years.

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quack
3 months ago

QUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKETTY QUACK QUACK QUACK

Greg P
6 months ago

No wonder she’s a fast swimmer, she has the genes.

JoeSwimmer
6 months ago

Emma’s dad Ron attended the University of Iowa in the late 70’s/early 80’s

SwimCoachDad
Reply to  JoeSwimmer
6 months ago

1980-1981. Ron came to Iowa with fellow 1980 Olympian and bronze medalist, Graeme Brewer. Ron was 1981 Big Ten Champion in the 1650 for Iowa and helped them win their first Big Ten Men’s Team Championship since 1936. He also made NCAAs. Great person and outstanding teammate.

Swammer
6 months ago

Märtens 3:40.33

Tencor
Reply to  Swammer
6 months ago

Fastest time since 2012!

Josh
6 months ago

Very nice lady

Kurt Baca
6 months ago

Rob Woodhouse may have been the first Australian man to medal in an individual medley event at the Olympics, but I am sure Shane Gould won the 200 IM in 1972.

PanPacs99
6 months ago

Rob Woodhouse was the first Australian man to win an Olympic medal in individual medley, Shane Gould was the first Australian, male or female in the 200im in 1972.

Aragon Son of Arathorne
6 months ago

is she nice? I cant tell because I never really watch interviews of her.

Joel
Reply to  Aragon Son of Arathorne
6 months ago

She is lovely. Just not an extrovert.Very humble too.

Last edited 6 months ago by Joel
Aragon Son of Arathorne
Reply to  Joel
6 months ago

thats good to hear. I feel like she always has a look of indifference on her but thats me judging her on the surface

Oceanian
Reply to  Aragon Son of Arathorne
6 months ago

She’s shy but very sweet.

PanPacs99
Reply to  Aragon Son of Arathorne
6 months ago

Quiet girl next door, but tough as nails.

Aragon Son of Arathorne
Reply to  PanPacs99
6 months ago

They all are at this level. Regan Smith is all sweet and smily but i’ve seen her behind the blocks looking to tear that field apart.

Southerly Buster
Reply to  Aragon Son of Arathorne
6 months ago

What is Emma McKeon like?

Kasia Wasick was interviewed by Coleman after 2022 Short Course Worlds and said that she got to know Emma during that meet. The words Kasia used to describe Emma in that interview were “impressive”, “classy” and “kind”.

SwimCoachDad
Reply to  Aragon Son of Arathorne
6 months ago

She’s Ron and Susie’s daughter so of course she’s very nice and kind. She’s the kind of athlete you always are cheering for because she’s such a good person.

About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, …

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