Kaylee McKeown and Lani Pallister led the honorees at the 2025 Swimming Australia Awards on the Gold Coast this week.
McKeown was presented with the Olympic Program Swimmer of the Year award for a second straight year. The program recognition came on the back of an astounding year in which she defended her women’s 100 and 200 backstroke world titles in Singapore. McKeown then went on to continue her world-record-setting form on the World Cup circuit by twice breaking the women’s 200 back world record in short-course meters.
Pallister was awarded the Short Course Program Swimmer of the Year award following a sensational 2025 that saw her win the 800 freestyle gold in Budapest, along with a 400 free silver, a silver as a member of the 4×100 freestyle relay, and a bronze in the 4×200 free relay. Pallister also notched six gold medals on the World Cup Circuit, highlighted by her 800 free world record performance in 7:54.00 in Toronto.
Moesha Johnson was presented with the Open Water Program Swimmer of the Year award for the second straight year as well. In Budapest, Johnson won the 10km and 5km at the World Championships, then added a bronze in the 3km knockout sprint, all in a 36-hour window.
Callum Simpson was awarded the Paralympic Program Swimmer of the Year award. Simpson won three golds, one silver, and one bronze at the World Para Championships, and was a member of the mixed 4×100 freestyle 34-point relay that set a world record.
“We are incredibly proud of Kaylee, Moesha, Callum, and Lani – they’re all incredible athletes, fierce competitors, and fabulous ambassadors for Australia and for our sport,” said Swimming Australia CEO Rob Woodhouse. “Our Dolphins continue to set a high standard, and it’s been an incredible year of success with 16 world records, 11 Commonwealth records, and 25 Oceania records across the able-bodied and para programs.
The AIS Discovery of the Year was awarded to Harrison Turner, who broke a 16-year-old Australian Record in the men’s 200 butterfly from lane eight before winning the bronze medal in his first world-championship final.
Michael Sage (Olympic Program), Chris Wright (Paralympic Program), and Ian Mills (Open Water) each won Coach of the Year awards.
Guildford & Kalamunda Districts Swimming Club won Club of the Year.
Four Dolphin alumni were inducted into the Swimming Australia Hall of Fame: Sir Frank Beaurepaire (six-time Olympic medalist, 1908, 1920, 1924) Matthew Cowdrey (23-time Paralympic medalist, 21-time World Championship medlaist), David Theile (became the first swimmer other than a freestyler to win gold medals in two successive Olympics since World War II- 1956,1960), and Michelle Ford-Eriksson (qualified for the 1976 Olympics at 13 -years-old, 1980 Olmpic gold medalist). The four distinguished Australians span Olympic medals, world records, and decades of leadership in the sport.
Very deserving recipients. Kaylee probably put up a case to take out both Olympic Program Swimmer of the Year as well as Short Course Program Swimmer of the Year but I’m glad Lani was recognised for her terrific short course swims.
I imagine medals from SC Worlds would’ve been heavily weighted when deciding the SC award.