Qld’s Kaylee McKeown on her latest record and Games plan

Queenslander Kaylee McKeown is set to be the first female Australian swimmer to go back-to-back in Olympic gold since Dawn Fraser and her latest record makes her one step closer.

Queensland swimming superstar Kaylee McKeown is set to become the first female Australian swimmer to win back-to-back Olympic Gold since Dawn Fraser when she competes in Paris next year.

McKeown, who recently broke the 50m backstroke world record by 0.12 seconds, told Today on Tuesday morning how she plans to tackle next year’s Olympic Games in Paris.

“I do the best that I can to block out outside noise, at the end of the day I do what I have to do in the pool and the success is in the competition,” McKeown said.

Kaylee McKeown reacts after breaking the World Record during women's 50m backstroke final during the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup. Picture: David Balogh/Getty Images

“It’s just a matter of getting up and believing in myself, not taking it too seriously and not to get in my own way if you can really trust yourself and the program that you are in then that is more than enough.”

She is the only swimmer, male or female, to currently hold the world record in all three distances for the same stroke and at just 22 has become the second woman in history to dip under 27 seconds in a long-course 50m pool.

“When you are training it is like 90 per cent physical and when you come into racing it is 90 per cent mental,” she said.

If McKeown wins gold in the backstroke, she will become just the second Australian woman to win back-to-back in the same Olympic event.

“It is a dream that I have had and it being my second Olympics it doesn't matter if I miss a final, if I miss a semi-final it doesn't matter, as long as I am there representing my country, I’ll be happy.”

McKeown has also announced that she is training to swim in the medley at the Games, an event she pulled out of at the Tokyo Games in 2021.

“Trying to learn to swim medley and backstroke in an individual competition is not easy especially when you have the double-ups in a session, but for me I am looking at pursing that and yeah seeing what I can do.”