2025 NSW STATE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Friday, March 21st – Sunday, March 23rd
- Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre
- LCM (50m)
- Meet Central
- SwimSwam Preview #1
- SwimSwam Preview #2
- Final Entries
- Day 1 Recap
- Live Results
The 2025 New South Wales State Open Championships continued from the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre with 23-year-old Olympian Kaylee McKeown putting on another show in the women’s backstroke.
McKeown raced in the 100m back, firing off a monster outing of 57.73 in her first meet back since withdrawing from last year’s World Aquatics Swimming World Cup.
McKeown casually cruised to the top seed this morning with a smooth swim of 1:00.76 before unleashing splits of 28.16/29.57 to check in with the 57.73, the sole sub-minute swim of the final.
Bella Grant wrangled up silver in 1:00.66 while visiting swimmer Louise Hansson of Sweden rounded out the podium in 1:02.07.
As for McKeown, the superstar’s result was within reach of her best-ever time of 57.33 put up for gold at last year’s Olympic Games. That established a new Oceanian, Australian and Olympic Record.
She ranks #1 in the world with tonight’s performance, following up on the head-turning 2:04.57 in the 200m back which ranks her #1 in that event as well.
2024-2025 LCM Women 100 Back
MCKEOWN
57.73
| 2 | Regan Smith | USA | 58.64 | 03/08 |
| 3 | Roos VANOTTERDIJK | BEL | 58.97 | 02/08 |
| 4 | Wan Letian | CHN | 59.06 | 03/22 |
| 5 | Peng Xuwei | CHN | 59.31 | 03/22 |
Olympic teammate Matt Temple was also in the pool this evening, taking on the men’s 50m fly.
25-year-old Temple of Marion produced a gold medal-worthy time of 23.92 to clear the field.
SOSC’s Alex Quach clinched silver in 24.13 ahead of 21-year-old Joseph Hamson who bagged bronze in 24.43.
Although that’s a season-best for Temple, it’s well off the top 10 performers in the world, with Swiss Olympic medalist Noe Ponti leading the globe with his outing of 22.83 from last month in Dubai.
24-year-old Alexandria Perkins of the USC Spartans was too quick to catch in the women’s 100m fly, nearing her personal best with a podium-topping 57.32.
Perkins opened in 26.44 and closed in 30.88 to get the job done, turning in the 2nd-best performance of her career.
Perkins, who won last night’s 50m fly in a new PB of 25.66, owns a lifetime best of 57.10 in this longer sprint, so she fell just .22 outside that mark this evening.
Hansson doubled up on the 100m back and reached the wall for silver in 57.56, a season-best for the Swede.
Bella Grant hit a time of 58.30 in the morning heats and added slightly to win bronze in 58.37.
Perkins now ranks 3rd in the world while Hansson checks in as the 5th-swiftest performer on the season.
2024-2025 LCM Women 100 Fly
Smith
56.85
| 2 | MIZUKI HIRAI | JPN | 56.99 | 01/26 |
| 3 | Alexandra PERKINS | AUS | 57.32 | 03/22 |
| 4 | Rikako Ikee | JPN | 57.53 | 03/20 |
| 5 | Louise HANSSON | SWE | 57.56 | 03/22 |
We saw an Australian Age Record go down, courtesy of 16-year-old Sienna Toohey in the women’s 50m breast.
Toohey touched in a rapid 31.06 to grab the gold, overtaking the previous Aussie age standard of 31.28 Olympian Chelsea Hodges put on the books in 2018.
Toohey’s earlier 31.14 prelims performance also dipped under the former record.
Entering this competition, Toohey’s best-ever result checked in at the 31.19 she posted this past January as a 15-year-old at the South Australian STate Open Championships.
Tonight, 22-year-old Mia O’Leary touched in 31.32 for the silver and another 16-year-old, Isabelle Rae, finished 3rd in 31.83.
The women’s 200m breast was also on the agenda tonight and 21-year-old Tara Kinder of Melbourne Vicentre took full advantage of the tuneup opportunity ahead of June’s World Championship Trials.
Entering this competition, Kinder’s lifetime best rested at the 2:26.26 registered at last year’s Australian Championships.
Flash forward to tonight and Kinder blew that to bits, turning in a time of 2:23.84 to beat the field by nearly 6 seconds.
Kinder split 33.18/36.93/37.07/36.66 to become Australia’s 8th-best performer in history.
Toohey was in this race as well, registering 2:29.48 as the silver medalist and 17-year-old Hayley Mackinder hit 2:31.88 for bronze.
Kinder now becomes the #3 swimmer in the world at the moment.
2024-2025 LCM Women 200 Breast
Douglass
2:22.60
| 2 | Angharad Evans | GBR | 2:22.64 | 02/16 |
| 3 | Tara Kinder | AUS | 2:23.84 | 03/22 |
| 4 | Moon Su-a | KOR | 2:23.87 | 10/15 |
| 5 | Satomi Suzuki | JPN | 2:23.98 | 03/22 |
Additional Notes
- 18-year-old Marcus Da Silva put up a time of 1:49.62 as one of two sub-1:50 swimmers in the men’s 200m free. Manly’s Gabriel Gorgas joined him in 1:49.76.
- No man dipped under the minute threshold in tonight’s 100m breast. Germany’s Lucas Matzerath produced a mark of 1:00.07 for the gold. 50m breast champion here, Olympian Sam Williamson, was next in 1:00.89.
- Joshua Edwards-Smith turned in a solid in-season effort of 1:58.86 to win the men’s 200m back.
Kaylee’s performances this weekend of 27.06/57.73/2.04.57 (all world leading times) prove two things – she is the backstroke goat and no matter how good Regan smith is (she’s incredible) Kaylee will also be above everyone.
It’s unfortunate for Regan that she happens to compete with the backstroke GOAT in backstroke events and the best overall female swimmer of the past 5 years and generational talent in 200 fly.
54.2 for Henry Allan puts him in reach of senior qualification.
Tall kid, not super developed. Big upside.
54.23 for Allan on 100m Back 👌
Only 0.3 off the Worlds QT.
Kaylee has scratched the final. She doesn’t appear on the finals start list.
Would have been pretty shocking if she had more to give in the final lol
I’ll take a 27.06 any day of the week. ranked first in three events is good going for first meet of the year. She’ll probably sweep all three distances at worlds this year if she decides too go.
What a legend!! She’s so incredible to watch in person too – barely looks like she’s trying lol
Kaylee McKeown casually released a statement:
“The news about my demise was greatly exaggerated”
a 27.06 in the heats of 50 back. makes you wonder if she’ll swim finals tonight.
I assume she’s scratching finals. Faster than the American record in heats 😳
Am I seeing things or did Kaylee McKeown just swim a 27.06 50 m back heat swim. Equal 5th fastest swim in history. wtf
She swam very fast now, will she swim the final?
Maybe…that’s what I was thinking as well. hopefully she does. she’s got nothing to lose I guess
Kaylee not swimming 200im today in heats. Predicting a 27 flat for 50 back tonight.
You were certainly spot on with your 100 Back prediction 57.7-57.8.
Haha I was hoping for a 57.9 and thought a 57.7 prediction was crazy. But Mahmoud was right!
she’s the queen. crazy consistency and fast all year round
You were right again with 27.0! You’re a psychic