2024 AUSTRALIAN OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Wednesday, April 17th – Saturday, April 20th
- Prelims at 10am local (8pm previous night ET), Finals at 6pm local (4am ET)
- Gold Coast Aquatic Centre, Queensland, Australia
- LCM (50m)
- Non-Olympic Qualifying Event
- Women’s Races to Watch/Men’s Races to Watch
- Meet Central
- Final Start List
- Day 1 Prelims Live Recap | Day 1 Finals Live Recap
- Day 2 Prelims Recap
- Live Results (also available via Meet Mobile: “2024 Australian Open Championships”)
- Australian Channel 9 Livestream / YouTube Livestream
With reigning world record holder Kaylee McKeown dropping the women’s 100m back on day 2 of the 2024 Australian Open Championships, the spotlight shined entirely on Mollie O’Callaghan.
20-year-old O’Callaghan of St. Peters Western took full advantage, firing off a time of 58.09 to establish a monster new personal best.
O’Callaghan opened 28.60 and closed in 29.49 to crush her previous career-quickest 58.42. That prior PB was logged at last year’s Australian Open Championships.
Comparing splits between the two performances, MOC had more in the tank on the back half which powered her to the wall in tonight’s head-turning result.
| O’Callaghan’s 58.09 – 2024 | O’Callaghan’s 58.42 -2023 |
| 28.60 | 28.42 |
| 29.49 | 30.00 |
MOC is now the #2 Australian performer in history, froghopping 34-year-old new mom Emily Seebohm. Seebohm was in tonight’s race and punched 1:01.21 for 5th just months after giving birth to her first child.
All-Time Aussie Women’s LCM 100 Back Performers
- Kaylee McKeown – 57.33, 2023
- Mollie O’Callaghan – 58.09, 2024
- Emily Seebohm – 58.23, 2012
- Minna Atherton – 58.60, 2019
- Madi Wilson – 58.75, 20.16
MOC also bumps herself up the season’s world rankings by beating her previous time of 58.71 from last month’s NSW Championships. She ranks #3 on the season through this point.
2023-2024 LCM Women 100 Back
SMITH
57.13 WR
| 2 | Kaylee McKEOWN | AUS | 57.33 | 07/30 |
| 3 | Katharine BERKOFF | USA | 57.83 | 06/17 |
| 4 | Mollie O'CALLAGHAN | AUS | 57.88 | 06/11 |
| 5 | Kylie MASSE | CAN | 57.94 | 05/15 |
2024 World Championships silver medalist Iona Anderson settled for silver this evening in 59.53 while Hannah Fredericks rounded out the podium in 59.69.
Fredericks, 21, had never before dipped under a minute yet here the SPW athlete is with a shiny new PB of 59.69 as the bronze medalist.
MOC’s 100m back gold tonight pairs with the 100m free gold she took on night 1 (52.27). The Dean Boxall-trained star also raced the 50m free nearly immediately after this 1back where she nabbed a time of 24.81 to place 5th overall.
obscene- she’s right there with the best of the best. I didn’t even know she could swim backstroke
Remember about 5 years ago the world record was 58.0?? Now we have people going 58.0 and being like “hehe that was just for fun” WHAT WORLD ARE WE LIVING IN
Swimflation
god I wish we could see MOC take on the backstrokes and McKeown take on the 4IM this summer
I would like to see this too, however, there is a risk that both could end up with minor medals.
Yall are getting spoiled with these phenomenal women. Any medal at the Olympics is one of the best accomplishments any human can achieve. I hate the term “minor” medals.
I hate this term, as far as I know MOC still does not have a minor individual medal in the Olympics.
so stop despising him
Neither does Macintosh though. They were both very young in 2021. 17 and 14.
Would she do it at trials just to see how fast she can go with a bit of a taper and how that might affect their medley relay choices?
Strong liklihood she will swim it at Trials. The medley relay scenario may be a factor but she has swam the event at Trials the past few years despite not swimming it at the international meet.
I feel that she will swim in trials to prove she has the speed to be considered to lead off MR.
Shayna Jack as anchor is at least as fast as MOC.
Kaylee never swam close to her PB as MR lead off and Australia current breaststrokers is…not good.
McKeown is usually running on fumes at the end of the meet due to her schedule. MOC will have swam a similar number number of races. Not sure its a clear “slam dunk” to pull the switch as you’re still asking a tired McKeown to swim …. and a stroke where she is good but some way off being elite. Worth considering but would wait until Trials are over before reaching for one’s abacus.
NOT sold on Jack as anchor. Was unimpressive in that role in Doha and merely “on par” in MMR at Fukuoka.
Wasn’t Jack training through Doha?
And had the heaviest programme of any Aussie in Doha. All those relay swims.
Not sold on multiple 51 mid splits in Fukuoka??
Jack was 51.53 anchoring MMR at Fukuoka.
Not appreciably faster than Douglass(USA).
Her other sub52s were swum as middle legs NOT anchor.
She misjudged her pace badly in 4X100 in Doha which allowed Steenbergen to finish over the top of her.
You’re not satisfied with a 51.53 split? Wasn’t that the fastest split of the entire championships?
Douglass pulled out by far her fastest split that day and put tremendous pressure on Jack but Shayna swam away from Douglass in the last 25 metres and almost reeled in the Chinese from an impossible position. It was a superb performance by Jack.
That was one of the fastest ever splits in history fram Jack, Douglass just overperformed.
Imagine if she actually trained for this event!
Honest question here. How do we know she doesn’t train for the event? What I am asking is can’t someone train for the 100/200 free and also the 100 back? I mean Natalie Coughlin trained all those plus 100 fly. In 2004 she led off the 800 free relay in a time that would have won the 200 free, she won the 100 back, bronze in 100 free, and was a solid 100 flyer.
She said post-race she doesn’t train ‘much’ for it and it’s just her ‘fun event’.
She would’ve gone faster tonight in an indoor pool too – the bright overhead lights caused her to mis-judge things and hug the lane rope for much of the race.
Thanks! That answers my question 🙂
The difference is Natalie Coughlin continues to swim 100 free in all meets, MOC never swam 100 back in international meets post-junior.
Does this time place her in the all time top 10?
Is she #6 performer now?
7th fastest all time. Dawson swam a 58.08 in 2021
Ah right, I did miscount. Thanks.
With the results of the 100 Back and 100 Breast at this meet the ‘Kaylee swimming breaststroke in the medley relay’ scenario just edged even closer to being a real possibility.
Especially if Mollie can stop hitting the lane rope.
Outdoor pool makes it hard for backstrokers
They should just do it.
MOC usually swim fast as relay lead-off, Kaylee usually swim fast when she has rabbit to chase, and Jack splits in last year’s relays was consistently super fast.
Yes, I really want to see it happen.
Same.
This would be the best
Fast as it was she looked rather disappointed with the time at the finish
The only time I’ve seen her look really pleased was when she broke the 2free WR. I think she just has insane goals.