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Disclaimer: Swim of the Week is not meant to be a conclusive selection of the best overall swim of the week, but rather one Featured Swim to be explored in deeper detail. The Swim of the Week is an opportunity to take a closer look at the context of one of the many fast swims this week, perhaps a swim that slipped through the cracks as others grabbed the headlines, or a race we didn’t get to examine as closely in the flood of weekly meets.
Emma McKeon put on a show for the home crowd at the Short Course World Championships in Melbourne, winning both of her individual events while also contributing some of the fastest splits in history to help Australia claim five relay medals.
Among those were the quickest relay legs in history in the 50 free (22.62) and 100 free (49.96), but amidst a chaotic final day of action on Sunday, her 100 fly performance on the women’s 400 medley relay flew a little bit under the radar.
McKeon, who didn’t enter the women’s 100 fly individually, split a blistering 53.93 for the Australian women, which is the fastest in history by a wide margin and the first under 54 seconds.
The previous fastest split on record came from Dana Vollmer, who went 54.37 during the 2009 Duel In The Pool.
All-Time Relay Splits, Women’s 100 Fly (SCM)
- Emma McKeon (AUS), 53.93 – 2022
- Dana Vollmer (USA), 54.37 – 2009
- Kate Douglass (USA), 54.46 – 2022
- Torri Huske (USA), 54.53 – 2022
- Maggie MacNeil (CAN), 54.59 – 2022
- Sarah Sjostrom (SWE), 54.65 – 2021
McKeon handily out split Maggie MacNeil who, earlier in the session, broke the world record in the 100 fly in a time of 54.05. That performance causes McKeon’s split to lose a little bit of its luster, but taking out reaction times, their ‘through the water’ times are separated by less than two-tenths.
| MacNeil, WR | McKeon, Relay Split | |
| Reaction Time | 0.62 | 0.32 |
| Final Time | 54.05 | 53.93 |
| Difference | 53.43 | 53.61 |
MacNeil split 54.59 on the Canadian relay, which won bronze, while 100 fly silver medalist Torri Huske went 54.53 for the Americans, who won gold and set a new world record in 3:44.35.
While Huske and MacNeil were coming off swimming the individual race earlier, this was McKeon’s only race of the session.
The Aussies took silver in 3:44.92, with McKeon having dived in third and then handed off to anchor swimmer Meg Harris trailing the leading Americans by just 26 one-hundredths.
You can watch the fly leg of the relay below, courtesy of World Aquatics:
McKeon owns a personal best time of 55.39 in the SCM women’s 100 fly, set in 2019, and her fastest 100 fly relay split in short course was set during the 2021 ISL season in 55.13.
The 28-year-old finished the competition tied for the most medals of anyone with seven, including four gold.
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IMO macneils swim is still more impressive
Hansson was 54.57 in the same race.
It also important to note this was Emma’s only swim of the session as well
True.Do we really need that caveat though? Do we say that for other swimmers? It was still the fastest ever. And she also did two other fastest relay splits ever.
No, we need the caveat that she is getting faster as she is getting older (28-plus) and Hosszu was lambasted for same thing. And McKeon is even doing so in sprint events (50 Free and 100 Free) where she was low-level Top 10 for about a decade, in events in which she had never won a major international medal (and yes, I don’t count Comms, a regional meet, as major). And yes, I have heard Bohl’s explanation, but it doesn’t hold water (pun intended), nor does the Campbell’s shadow thing ring true.
I hope the usual American swimming fans don’t stamp their feet over this. I’d hate to see them getting all upset about it. No, really.
Have you ever heard of Anthony Ervin winning gold 16 years apart and he was quicker 16 years later.
What about Dana Torres, who was winning Olympic gold & swimming faster at 40.
Do you doubt them?
Actually…
No because they’re American lol. Of course everything they do is perfect
They’re chips of the ol’ Joe Biden, every last one of them.
If you don’t have suspicions about Torres, then I’ve got a bridge to sell you.
You really think McKeon is doing something shady? You have got to be kidding
Nic Fink had literally achieved nothing his entire career until last year and is now swimming faster than ever at 29. That’s infinitely more suspicious than McKeon who has been outstanding in multiple events for the last decade.
Maybe look into Fink if you’re so concerned?
I absolutely love the way Australia’s site monitors think every comment they don’t agree with (or can’t convincingly counter) on this site is made by Americans. Really love it, USA so rent-free in their heads. Most of the comments about AUS are right btw, but not all made by Americans. Smell the fear.
What comment on this article do you think I “can’t convincingly counter”? All I see is completely unfounded nonsense with zero evidence. There’s nothing to counter?
And yes, the vast majority of negative comments made about Australians are made by Americans: not because I think that, but because I’ve been on here long enough to know where most commenters are from.
I’m not sure what fear you’re smelling. USA has 13x the population and 1000x the resources and barely outperforms Australia. I think I know where the fear is coming from and it’s not me lol.
Americans: Attack any Australian who swims well and accuse them of cheating.
Also Americans: “wow we live rent free in Australia’s head”
Like really? LOL
What a shock. Downvotes but no defence. Americans just cannot accept ever feeling like they’re not the best at something so they have to attack anyone who is.
International individual medals won by McKeon prior to 2021:
2014: Gold in 200 free at CGs (don’t count CGs if you don’t like, whatever). Bronze in 100 free and 100 fly.
2016: Olympic bronze 200m free behind two of the most successful female swimmers of all time.
2017: Silver in 200m free and 100 fly at Long Course World Champs. But I guess that’s meaningless right? World Champs silver isn’t an “international medal” by your standards.
2018: Bronze in 50 free at 100 fly at Pan Pacs. Gold in 100 fly at CGs (ahead of Oleksiak who won silver in Rio). Bronze in 200 free and 200 fly.
2019: Bronze in 100 fly at Long Course World Champs.
Even excluding… Read more »
Analogizing Nic Fink to Emma is actually quite amusing.
But I really don’t think the Emma issues (or any issues with AUS swimmers) are being raised primarily by Americans, who for most part actually get quite excited about visiting AUS.
Our (perhaps) two best female Free sprinters have been sidelined recently anyway, for different reasons, so no reason really to care about Emma’s late day foray into sprint free.
There’s enough issues being raised about Swim AUS internally by Australians like Maddie Groves, Emily Seebohm, C. Campbell, Marie Kavanagh, Jana Pittman, Dr. Jenny McMahon, the recently concluded Independent Commission report, funding drying up, etc., that there is no need for Americans to pour gas on any fire.
Swimm Australia has its issues. I don’t think anyone is denying that. But criticising swimming Australia and accusing an individual of cheating are two very different concepts. This comment doesn’t really make any sense because it’s so irrelevant to what’s being discussed
Why such an overreaction? I actually don’t even see an accusation made by an American of “cheating” by Emma McKeon, just someone (who knows if writer is American?) saying there’s a lack of explanation (by swimmer and coach) of results and a different treatment vs Hosszu (Australian vs Hungarian). ASADA seems to do okay anyway, sanctioned Shayna Jack and others, just as USADA has sanctioned certain USA swimmers.
I don’t like comparing relay splits to flat start times by just adjusting for RTs. The momentum of a step and swing are worth a lot more than just the .3 difference here.
Kate Douglass’ 54.46 is missing from the list
Good call, thanks – updated.