Tokyo 2020, Oceania Day 6: Emma McKeon On Track For Record-Setting Medal Haul

2020 TOKYO SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES

• When: Pool swimming: Saturday, July 24 – Sunday, August 1, 2021
  • Open Water swimming: Wednesday, August 4 – Thursday, August 5, 2021
• Where: Olympic Aquatics Centre / Tokyo, Japan
• Heats: 7 PM / Semifinals & Finals: 10:30 AM (Local time)
• Full aquatics schedule
• SwimSwam Event Previews
• Entry Lists
• Live Results

Oceania continued to find success on day 6 at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games including a double-medal performance in the women’s 100 freestyle. Emma McKeon came out on top in the event with a 51.96 for the gold medal and a new Olympic record. Her swim was an improvement upon the 52.13 OR from earlier in the meet.

Teammate Cate Campbell joined McKeon on the podium with a 52.52 for bronze, marking her first-ever Olympic medal in the event. Finishing in between the Aussie duo was Hong Kong’s Siobhan Haughey with a 52.27 for silver.

Emma McKeon‘s swim is the latest in a number of impressive swims at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. She first picked up a gold medal in the women’s 4×100 freestyle on day 1 and followed that up with individual bronze in the 100 butterfly. She got a second bronze medal in the women’s 4×200 freestyle relay and her individual gold in the 100 free marks 4-for-4 podium finishes.

4 medals in Tokyo, combined with the 4 medals that she won in Rio 5 years ago give her a total of 8 career Olympic medals. Considering that McKeon is likely going to racing for gold in another 3 events (individual 50 free, mixed 4×100 medley, and women’s 4×100 medley), she could be on track to break a number of Olympic medal haul records.

Records That Emma McKeon Could Break At Tokyo 2020

• Most Career Olympic Medals Won By An Australian: 9 – Ian Thorpe, Leisel Jones
• Most Career Olympic Medals Won By An Australian Woman: 9 – Leisel Jones
• Most Career Olympic Gold Medals Won By An Australian: 5 – Ian Thorpe
• Most Career Olympic Gold Medals Won By An Australian Woman: 4 – Dawn Fraser, Libby Trickett, Betty Cuthbert*
• Most Olympic Medals Won By An Australian At A Single Games: 5 – Ian Thorpe (2000), Shane Gould (1972), Alicia Coutts (2012)

*Betty Cuthbert (athletics) is the only non-swimmer to currently hold any of these records

McKeon only needs to win 1 more medal at Tokyo 2020 in order to catch Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones as the most decorated Australian Olympic in history. If she wins her maximum of 3 more Olympic medals she would break the record by 2 medals with 11. Now that she has 3 Olympic gold medals (4×100 freestyle in 2016 and 2020, and 100 freestyle in 2020) she only needs 2 more to pass Dawn Fraser, Libby Trickett, and Betty Cuthbert‘s record of 4 career Olympic gold medals, and 3 more in order to catch Ian Thorpe who won 5 overall.

If she win 2 more medals in Tokyo, she will have broken the record for the most Olympic medals won by an Australian at a single Olympic Games which currently sits at 5. If McKeon wins another 3 medals and brings her Tokyo 2020 total up to 7, she will tie for second on the list of most Olympic medals won by any individual at a single Games. Michael Phelps (2004, 2008) and Gymnast Alexander Dityatin (1980) share that record at 8.

Athletes Tied For 2nd Most Olympic Medals Won At A Single Olympic Games (7)

• Mark Spitz (USA) – Swimming (1972)
• Matt Biondi (USA) – Swimming (1988)
• Willis A. Lee (USA) – Shooting (1920)
• Boris Shakhlin (Soviet Union) – Gymnastics (1960)
• Nikolay Andrianov (Soviet Union) – Gymnastics (1976)
• Lloyd Spooner (USA) – Shooting (1920)
• Maria Gorokhovskaya (Soviet Union) – Gymnastics (1952)
• Mikhail Voronin (Soviter Union) – Gymnastics (1968)

Oceania Day 5 Quick Hits

• Matthew Temple qualified for the 100 butterfly final with a 51.12 for 6th overall during semi-finals.
• Both Australian women in the 200 backstroke swam final-qualifying times in the semi-finals. Emily Seebohm led the way with a 2:07.09 semi-final swim while 100 backstroke champion Kaylee McKeown notched a 2:07.93 for 5th overall.

Continental & National Records Through Day 5

• Lewis Clareburt set a new Oceania and New Zealand record of 4:09.49 during heat 3 of the men’s 400 IM prelims.
• Right after Clareburt’s swim Australian, Brendon Smith took the Oceanic record from Clareburt with a 4:09.27 in heat 4. That left Clareburt with the New Zealand record and gave Smith the Australian and Oceanic marks.
• Emma McKeon swam her way to a 55.82 Australian, Oceanic, and Commonwealth record during the prelims of the event. She then lowered the Australian and Oceanian records to a 55.72 during the final which was good enough for bronze.
• During the final race of the night, the Australian women become the first-ever nation to get under 3:30 in the 4×100 free with their world record-breaking 3:29.69.
• Ariarne Titmus secured a new Australian, Oceanian, and Commonwealth record during the women’s 400 freestyle with her 3:56.69 for gold.
• Kaylee McKeown hit a 57.88 Olympic record during the women’s 100 backstroke prelims which was broken by Regan Smith 1 heat earlier (57.96) who took it from Kylie Masse 1 heat earlier (58.17). The record was previously held by Emily Seebohm at a 58.23 from 2012. Regan Smith took the record back with a 57.68 during semi-finals until McKeown brought it down to a 57.47 (just 0.02 off her own world record) in the final.
• Ariarne Titmus‘ 1:53.50 gold medal time in the women’s 200 freestyle was a new Olympic record, improving upon Allison Schmitt‘s 1:53.61 from 2012. She got within half a second of her own Australian record in the event of 1:53.09.
• McKeon clocked 52.11 for a new Olympic Record in the women’s 100 free prelims.
• Zac Stubblety-Cook lowered the Olympic Record in the men’s 200 breaststroke in 2:06.38.
• The team of Titmus, McKeon, Madi Wilson and Leah Neale set a new Commonwealth, Oceanian and Australian Record in the 800 free relay in 7:41.29.
• En route to Olympic gold Emma McKeon set a new Olympic, Commonwealth, and Oceanian, and Australian 100 freestyle record of 51.96.

Medals Table for Oceania Through Day 5