Kaylee McKeown breaks 200m backstroke world record as stunning week for Aussie swimmers continues
Updated . First published at
Kaylee McKeown has posted a new short-course world record in the women's 200m backstroke, with a time of 1:57.87 at the World Cup in the United States.
Her stunning performance comes just one day after teammate Mollie O'Callaghan broke the world record for the 200m freestyle.
Regan Smith held the previous world record of 1:58.04 and swam home just behind McKeown in the short-course race.
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The American also went under her own world record with a time of 1:57.91.
McKeown and Team Australia are currently competing in Illinois at the Westmont World Cup.
Earlier in the meet, Smith took the 100m distance victory but could not prevail over the Australian to take the 200m gold medal, finishing just four one-hundredths of a second behind McKeown.
The 24-year-old has five Olympic gold medals and nine medals in total from Tokyo and Paris.
McKeown is also the second female swimmer in Olympic history to successfully defend her Tokyo titles in the 100m and 200m backstroke, completing the 'double-double'.
McKeown and O'Callaghan's world record-breaking swims come post-Ariarne Titmus retirement, the two ushering in a new era in Australian swimming.