On the second night of the 2016 Georgina Hope Foundation Australian Age Championships at the SA Aquatic & Leisure Centre in Adelaide 14 year old Kaylee McKeown destroyed the field on her way to setting a new Australian age group mark in the women’s 200 backstroke. McKeown, who is the younger sister of national team member Taylor McKeown, won the event in a time of 2:10.07, 11 seconds ahead of the field and over two seconds under the Amy Forrester‘s age group record of 2:12.20.
Her time is also two seconds faster than the result Minna Atherton, who went on to win the event at the Junior World Championships, posted at the championships last year.
McKeown won the same event last year as a 13 year old posting a 2:13.41 and went on to set the age group mark later in the year putting up a 2:12.04, which was faster than the 14 year old mark she broke this evening. Her time would places her 18th in the world rankings behind fellow Aussies Emily Seebohm, Madi Wilson, Atherton and Belinda Hocking who are all currently ranked in the top 10.
This was the second gold of the competition for McKeown who took the 200 IM on Monday evening.
17 year old Acacia Wilden-Snedden also picked up her second gold of the championships taking the women’s 17-18 year old 400 IM in a time of 4:50.80, nearly five seconds ahead of the field. Wilden-Snedden won the 400 freestyle on the first night of the competition.
On the men’s side both 13 year old Thomas Hauk and 15 year old Elijah Winnington won multiple gold on Tuesday evening. Hauk took both the 12-13 year old 100 butterfly in a time of 59.69 and 200 IM in a time of 2:14.52. Winnington won the 15 year old 100 freestyle in a time of 50.81 and finished over three seconds ahead of the field in the 200 butterfly posting a time of 2:03.62.
Medalists from Tuesday night’s events include:
MEN
12/13 years
100m butterfly Thomas Hauck (All Saints QLD) 59.69, Bailey Coleman (Southside Aquatics QLD) 1:00.51, Nathan Tran (Nunawading VIC) 1:00.91
200m individual medley Thomas Hauck (All Saints QLD) 2:14.52, Thomas Neill (Rackley QLD) 2:17.15, Andy Zhu (Sunnybank QLD) 2:17.24
14 years
1500m freestyle Jack Wilson (Breakers WA) 16:22.71, Nick Jennens (Carlile NSW) 16:27.25, James Otley-Doe (TSS Aquatics QLD) 16:34.12
200m backstroke Nick Jennens (Carlile NSW) 2:07.17, Se-Bom Lee (Cherrybrook Carlile NSW) 2:08.31, Oliver Nash (MVC VIC) 2:08.32
15 years
200m butterfly Elijah Winnington (Bond QLD) 2:03.62, Oskar Robinson (Cotton Tree QLD) 2:06.96, Joshua Knight (Kawana Waters QLD) 2:07.04
100m freestyle Elijah Winnington (BOND QLD) 50.81, Leon McAlister (Carlile NSW) 51.90, Aaron Mansfield (Kawana Waters QLD) 52.50
16 years
100m breaststroke David Schlicht (MLC VIC) 1:03.53, Heath Macleod (MLC VIC) 1:03.68, Nathan Zhu (TigerSharks VIC) 1:04.25
50m freestyle Jordan Brunt (Southport QLD) 23.44, Joseph Jackson (Brisbane Grammar QLD) 23.45, Jacob Whale (Flyers Swim Club VIC) 23.92
400m freestyle Nathan Robinson (St Peters Western QLD) 3:56.52, Zachary Attard (Cherrybrook Carlile NSW) 3:56.58, Ethan McAleese (Rockingham QLD) 3:59.48
17/18 years
400m individual medley Jacob Vincent (Miami QLD) 4:22.94, Theodoros Benehoutsos (Greece) 4:23.83, Callum Sherrington (Carlile NSW) 4:24.07
100m backstroke Clyde Lewis (St Peters Western QLD) 55.19, Tristan Ludlow (St Peters Western QLD) 55.93, Jack Cartwright (St Peters Western QLD) 55.99
WOMEN
12/13 years
100m butterfly Lydia Murray (St Peters Western QLD) 1:02.52, Brooke Napper (All Saints QLD) 1:04.03, Sophie Botterill-James (Hobart Aquatic Centre TAS) 1:04.54
200m individual medley Jenna Forrester (St Peters Western QLD) 2:20.98, Shikira-Lee Matheson (St Peters Western QLD) 2:21.86, Georgina McCarthy (NZL) 2:22.85
14 years
200m backstroke Kaylee McKeown (Pelican Waters QLD) 2:10.07, Savannah Van Nieuwburg (TSS Aquatics QLD) 2:21.53, Antonia Hurd (Helensvale QLD) 2:22.14
800m freestyle Phoebe Walker (St Peters Western QLD) 8:57.59, Laticia-Leigh Transom (Brisbane Grammar QLD) 9:00.39, Jacinta Essam (Tuggeranong Vikings ACT) 9:01.31
15 years
200m butterfly Kara Svenson (Plane Creek QLD) 2:14.47, Charlotte Mitcell (TSS Aquatics QLD) 2:16.09, Madisyn Armstrong (Miami QLD) 2:17.00
100m freestyle Emily Liu (Marion SA) 55.71, Eliza King (Rackley QLD) 56.93, Natasha Ramsden (Abbotsleigh NSW) 57.02
16 years
100m breaststroke Bec Cross (Gininderra ACT) 1:11.62, Madison Thompson (Pelican Waters Calouondra QLD) 1:11.73,Ashleigh Glover (UWA West Coast WA) 1:11.96
50m freestyle Elli Mackay (St Peters Western QLD) 25.63, Julia Hawkins (Nunawading VIC) 25.83, Tanya Stovgaard (Southport QLD) 26.36
400m freestyle Laura Taylor (TSS Aquatics, QLD) 4:16.62, Madeleine Gough (TSS Aquatics, QLD) 4:17.62, Connie McClelland (MLC Aquatic VIC) 4:17.84
17/18 years
400m individual medley Acacia Wilden-Snedden (St Peters Western QLD) 4:50.80, Xanique Taylor Rolls (St Peters Western QLD) 4:55.99, Rachel Wood (The Hills NSW) 4:56.84
100m backstroke Elyse Woods (MVC VIC) 1:02.46, Ryleigh Lammert (Marlin Coast QLD) 1:02.47, Micaela Habib (Marion SA) 1:03.53
Full results can be found here.
Good 49.59 lead-off by Jack Cartwright and good second.leg (49.01) by Clyde Lewis for St. Peters Western.
Always in the 100 free, solid 50.81 to win the individual race from 15 year-old Elija Winnington.
Watched Kaylee McKeown 200 back today and her huge backstroke leg in the 200 im yesterday, I would be very surprised if she won’t become also a great senior swimmer.
What’s going on with Australian women’s backstroke?
Really a backstroke industry.
Looks like they have found a secret of training.
They produce a new talent each year. Especially on the women’s side.
That’s impressive.
Promising omens although we can never know whether stellar age grouper will make the full step to top line senior. Atherton appears to have already done so, McKeown Jr is a year behind.
Rio will be Seebohm’s 3rd Olympics and I’m sceptical that she will sign on for another full cycle; if she does continue post Rio it will most likely end with 2018 CG on the Gold Coast. Injury has cruelled Hocking over the last 18 months and she may call it quits after Trials should she miss the team (which looks likely). Wilson is 21, I’m not willing to surmise what her future may be. Should she have a successful Rio, she may indeed decide to get out… Read more »
I think Seebohm and Wilson will indeed stick around for 4 more years, but Seebohm will probably drop the 200 by then.
I’d disagree re Seebohm; especially if she won any individual gold in Rio. She’ll be 27 by then and it appears clear that she’s at or around her peak now; one just has to look at Jones & Hackett to see cases of swimmers going one cycle too many. She may go onto 2018 CommGames which will be “at home” but I’m sceptical of anything further. Wilson has been a more recent arrival so her future is anyone’s guess.
Rio will be C1s 3rd Olympics and again, I’m not sure she’ll back up for another full Olympic cycle. She’s another whom I could see “pulling the plug” after 2018 CG. C2 MAY go on for another cycle; health and injury… Read more »