Tokyo Olympics: McKeon stunned but so 'proud' of her magnificent seven

By Sports Desk August 01, 2021

Australian pool queen Emma McKeon said it felt "very surreal" as she clinched a place in the Olympic history books by becoming just the second woman to win seven medals in a single Games.

The 27-year-old finished her Tokyo 2020 campaign with a flourish by winning the 50 metres freestyle in an Olympic record of 23.81 seconds, then playing a key role in Australia's 4x100m medley squad also topping the podium.

She will head home with four golds and three bronzes, and now has the most medals by an Australian in the history of the Olympic Games.

Maria Gorokhovskaya won seven medals for the Soviet Union at the 1952 Olympics in Helsinki, claiming two gold medals and five silver, and now McKeon belongs in such company in the record books.

"I never thought I'd win two gold medals in one session. I’m very happy. It is very surreal," McKeon said.

"I'm very happy with how the meet went. I've been at these kind of meets before where I've been up and down, so I knew what to expect.

"I feel like it has been a bit of a roller coaster getting a gold medal and trying to keep the emotions at bay. It will take a while to sink in because I've been focusing on myself to keep my cool. I'm very proud of myself. I wouldn't be able to do it without all the support around me."

McKeon's parents Ronald and Susie were both international swimmers, as was brother David until his recent retirement.

Setting new Australian medal records was the icing on the cake for the Wollongong native. In a single Olympics, no Australian had previously won as many as seven medals or four golds.

McKeon now has 11 Olympic medals in her career, having won a gold, two silvers and a bronze in Rio five years ago.

The Tokyo haul moves McKeon past Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones, fellow swimming greats who each won nine medals and were previously top of Australia's all-time list.

"That's also very surreal," McKeon said of the record.

"I look at the athletes who have come before me and been so impressed with what they have done and been inspired by what they have done, but I've never really looked at the stats of medal counts. It is an honour because I know I've worked so hard for it."

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    Raising an elite athlete is a financial challenge. That is something Jamaica’s swim parents know more than most, as they are stuck with the age-old burden of footing the cost to have their children represent the country.

    Aside from occasional assistance from the ministry of sport and the Aquatic Sports Association of Jamaica’s (ASAJ), which covers a percentage of funding to some regional meets, or even when reimbursements are to come from World Aquatics, formerly FINA, for participation at some international meets, the task of covering travel expenses often leaves parents on edge to the point where they have to choose and refuse invitations to certain events.

    The idea of not competing at certain events also takes a toll on the athletes, who at different levels of their respective careers, would be eager to rub shoulders with others from across the region or elsewhere around the world as part of their development.

    In fact, while all swimmers at their respective levels are talented and focused, the hard truth is that it is those with the superior training and resources –hefty financial resources –who pull away from the pack.

    It is with this in mind that Annelies Denny has reiterated the call for corporate Jamaica to partner with the ASAJ and parents to ensure that the country’s next Olympian doesn’t get left behind.

    Denny, who will serve as Jamaica’s team manager to the Carifta Aquatics Championships, made the appeal as parents stare down a $400,000 budget to have their child participate at this year’s 37th edition of the event in The Bahamas from March 28 to April 7.

    “We know swimming is not track and field as yet. We don't have that breakout star. Alia Atkinson has now retired and so I understand that corporate Jamaica may feel where is your Olympic medal or where is your world championship medal. I do understand that, but we would really welcome the opportunity to partner with you,” Denny said in a heartfelt plea.

    “Some of these kids really have the potential to not just go to the Olympics or World Championship, but to actually do really well at the (age-group) level. But it's going to take a corporation to partner with us to make that happen. What you find is because they start competing at this young age group level, what happens is by the time the swimmers are physically matured and are ready to take it to that next level, the parents are kind of all tapped out because we bear the bulk of the cost,” she told SportsMax.TV.

    While declaring that parents are happy to make the financial sacrifices in certain regards, it is during the build up to, and for participation at regional and international competitions that they require assistance to offset expenses.

    Denny explained that partnering with the ASAJ also presents the opportunity for exposure to the company’s brand.

    “Obviously, there's a lot of nutrition to think about, there's healthcare as well as your coaching fees. A technical suit which they have to race in, it can run up to US$500 or US$600, including the goggles, equipment, all of those things. So we bear those costs on a daily and ongoing basis. It is when it comes down to competitions where you're representing your country, you're looking for that partnership because these are age group swimmers,” Denny noted.

    She continued: “So after a while it becomes a great burden, and you just can't do it anymore. And so, this is where we really need some partnerships because I think there's a lot of opportunity not just for the swimmers to do well, but also to, there's opportunity for branding and publicity that is unrivaled.

    “When I think of the swimmers' deck T-shirts, those that they wear on the deck or the track suits, every time they're on the podium, you see the brand. It's a source of pride for them to wear the team T-shirt and bag and if a company’s brand is on those, it means their brand is being seen several times a week by hundreds of people all the time. So that’s one avenue and we're really ramping up our social media presence so there's a lot of opportunity there and I would just love for somebody to call and say they are on board.”

    That said, Denny pointed out that the parent body under the guidance of the ASAJ’s sponsorship committee used initiatives, such as a bake sale to raise funds, which is a mere drop in the bucket when the overall figure of the team is taken into account.

    Still, she remains cautiously optimistic that all members of the 28-strong team, will make the trip to assist the country in surpassing its fourth-place finish from last year’s event.

    This year’s event, which serves as an Olympic qualifier, will also feature an 18 and over category to assist those swimmers hunting the Olympic qualifying standards.

    “It is a strong team and so we're looking forward to some very strong performances from them. So, if there's anybody in corporate Jamaica who would like to get on board with this team and give them a hand, please don't hesitate to contact us,” Denny declared.

    “We earned some money from the bake sale, and we’ve asked all of our swimmers on the Carifta team to go out and beg their school friends, auntie and uncle or teacher to just give a donation pledge for the number of laps they're going to swim at the event. This is to again help us collectively reduce the cost and we're still waiting to hear back from the Sports Development Foundation, so hopefully we'll get a decent amount from them as well,” she ended.

    Teams: Girls -Kai Lawson, Kia Alert, Alexandria Cogle, Jessica Denniston, Skyelar Richards, Alyssa Jefferson, Imani-Leigh Hall, Leah Chin, Christanya Shirley, Carolyn Levy-Powell, Giani Francis, Leanna Wainwright, Sabrina Lyn, Aliyah Heaven, Lia Forrester

    Boys -Noah Parker, Arush Rochlani, Matthew Heaven, Matthew Kennedy, Kai Radcliffe, Noah Barrett, Noland Barrett, Adlai Nixon, Nelson Denny, Brady Lewison, Zack-Andre Johnson, Benjamin Davis, Malcolm McKenzie

    Officials: Annelies Denny (Manager), Kafia Rapley (Coach), Adolfo Morales Claro (Coach), Lemone Lowe (Assistant coach), Carleene Grant-Davis (Doctor), Anthony Miller (Physiotherapist), Michelle Parker (Chaperone)

  • All set for 26th staging of Mayberry All Island Swim Meet All set for 26th staging of Mayberry All Island Swim Meet

    Some of Jamaica’s finest young swimmers will gather at the National Aquatics Centre at the National Stadium in Kingston on March 15 and 16 to compete in the 26th staging of the Mayberry All Island Swim Meet.

    The meet will see 1080 athletes taking part in total representing 38 Preparatory Schools and 28 High Schools.

    “We are very excited about this partnership with Mayberry and we’re looking forward to some great competition. The athletes are very excited and we’re looking for some records as well as a great turnout,” said Aquatics Association of Jamaica (ASAJ) President Lance Rochester speaking to SportsMax.tv at the launch of the meet on Wednesday.

    This meet is also serving as a vehicle for some of the competing athletes to fine-tune their skills in preparation for the Carifta Swimming Championships set for March 28-April 7 in Nassau.

    “A number of the athletes who are on the Carifta Games team for Bahamas later this month are using this as a final tune-up event to get some competition sharpening prior to that event,” Rochester said.

    Title sponsors Mayberry Investments Limited have been partnering with the ASAJ since 1999. Other sponsors for the meet include Couples Resorts, Supreme Ventures Limited, Ultra Financier, FirstRock Real Estate Investments Limited, Matrix Group, Iron Rock and Stewarts.

    “Sponsors and partners are absolutely critical. We can’t do events like these without them. We can’t plan effectively or budget effectively without them so we’re very grateful for that support,” Rochester said.

    He also discussed plans for Jamaica to eventually expand to competing in other aquatic disciplines.

    “Swimming is now moving towards expanding. We want to provide more opportunities, first at the learning to swim level where we believe all children have a right to learn how to swim. We also want to expand to the other aquatic disciplines. Swimming is the core but we have seven other aquatic disciplines which still have so much untapped potential and, over time, we believe that we’ll be laying the foundation towards producing the elite-level results at the world stage that all Jamaicans want to see,” he said.

  • Laura Stephens wins Britain’s first women’s individual world title in 13 years Laura Stephens wins Britain’s first women’s individual world title in 13 years

    Laura Stephens claimed Britain’s first global title in a women’s individual event since Rebecca Adlington at the World Swimming Championships in Doha.

    Stephens led from start to finish in the 200 metres butterfly, holding off Denmark’s Helena Bach by less than a tenth of a second.

    The 24-year-old follows in the footsteps of double Olympic champion Adlington, who won 800m freestyle gold in 2011.

    She said: “I came into this meet hoping for three solid swims, to learn through the process and to come away on top of the podium is kind of crazy.

    “It’s a great way to start off the long-course season and hopefully I can just get faster and faster. This definitely gives me a lot of confidence towards Paris.”

    Britain claimed a second medal later in the evening with silver in the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay.

    The quartet of Freya Colbert, Abbie Wood, Lucy Hope and Medi Harris finished behind China to improve on their fourth place from a year ago.

    Lauren Cox and Matt Richards just missed out on medals in the women’s 50m backstroke and men’s 100m freestyle respectively, while Duncan Scott was sixth in the men’s 200m individual medley and Anna Hopkin qualified third fastest for the women’s 100m freestyle final.

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