Sunshine Coast swim sensation Kaylee McKeown has claimed three Commonwealth records in three days, to send a warning to her rivals ahead of the Olympic Games.
The 19-year-old USC Spartans talent created new marks in the 200m, 100m and 50m backstroke during her highly-impressive campaign.
Her coach, Chris Mooney, said he’s never seen anyone compete like her.
“Kaylee punches through pain barriers like no one else I’ve ever seen in my life and she doesn’t mind doing it,” he said in a Swimming New South Wales release.
Mooney said she trains and races with purpose.
“We really do put a lot of focus and attention on our race processes and we find that if we get those processes done well then the result usually follows.”
“We never really focus on the result, just focus on what we can control.”
McKeown started her spree in Sydney by breaking her own Commonwealth record in the 200m backstroke, clocking 2min04.31sec on Friday.
She followed that effort with another record-breaker in the 100m, recording 57.63sec and just missing the world record by 0.06 on Saturday.
McKeown impressed in winning the 200m individual medley, notching 2:08.73, on Sunday, just before she claimed another Commonwealth record in the non-Olympic 50m backstroke (27.16). That effort was just 0.18sec outside the world record.
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The results have her primed for the national selection trials, to be held at Adelaide in June, with the Games to be held at Tokyo in July.
McKeown already has plenty of experience on the international stage.
She made her debut for the Australian team aged 15 and just missed out on a medal at the world championships in Hungary, while setting a junior world record.
The following year she finished fourth in the 100m and 200m backstroke finals at the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.
It was at the 2019 world championships in South Korea, where she broke through for medals, capturing silver in the 200m backstroke and the 4x100m medley relay.
In April, she won Australian titles at Sydney, including the 50m and 100m backstroke, and the 200m individual medley.
