Alex Perkins emerges as Emma McKeon’s butterfly successor after cruising to World Championships

Australia may have found its next Madame Butterfly - with a rising star emerging from the gigantic shadow of Emma McKeon with a stunning display at the national trials in Adelaide.

Alexandria Perkins has announced herself as Australia’s newest Butterfly Queen. Picture: Getty

Australia might have found its next queen of the 100m women’s butterfly after the departure of Olympic champion Emma McKeon, with rising star Alex Perkins cruising through the Australian Swimming Trials final to book a spot in this year’s World Championships.

The 24-year-old out of Queensland smashed her previous personal best for the event, which she set during the heats in Adelaide earlier on Monday, finishing first with a 56.42 time - the third fastest ever by an Australian after McKeon and Jessicah Schipper.

Perkins was thrilled with the result and believed she could fill the hole left by six-time Olympic gold medallist McKeon.

“I’m really happy with the PB in the morning and PB at night, I think it’s been a long time coming, I’ve been working really hard for those times so it’s nice when it all comes together when it matters,” she said.

“I think my form is down to a lot of things - coming off of the (Paris) Olympics and having self belief, and just figuring out how to just race my own race a bit more and not worry about other people.

“She (Emma McKeon) has been at the forefront of this event for so long and she’s just so talented and an amazing role model to look to.

“It sucks that she’s not here to race anymore but hopefully we can win the 100 fly for Australia at the next Olympics.”

Perkins booked a spot at this year’s World Championships. Picture: Getty

A surprise member of the Australian swim team at the Paris Olympics, Perkins said she had built significant momentum from the experience.

She believed she could carry that momentum through to the World Championships in Singapore.

“For me I was really lucky to make the Olympics. I scraped through and it was a great experience but I didn’t experience the big lull some athletes do.

“I had some time off but I was just really determined to continue working and carry that momentum through.”

Fellow Queenslander Lily Price also qualified for Singapore with a 57.78 second place finish.

OLYMPIC HERO PROTESTS AUSTRALIAN SWIM TRIALS DISQUALIFICATION

Olympic golden girl Kaylee McKeown has successfully protested her 50m backstroke disqualification at the national selection trials in Adelaide and has been reinstated to the final.

McKeown, the two-times Olympic champion over both the 100m and 200m backstroke, won her heat but no time was displayed on the scoreboard and was instead replaced with a DQ notification.

Officials ruled McKeown initiated a start before the signal and she was immediately disqualified.

Kaylee McKeown has protested her disqualification. Picture: Getty

But the 23-year-old launched a protest and almost two hours after the race her protest was upheld after officials ruled in her favour that she was distracted by a movement immediately prior to the signal.

McKeown’s heat time of 27.27 seconds was awarded and she was reinstated for the Monday evening final.

McKeown won the 50-100-200m backstroke treble at the 2023 world titles and will be gunning for a similar golden return at this year’s world titles in Singapore as the 50m backstroke looks set to join the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic schedule.

In the lead-up to the trials, McKeown made a major change to her preparations for the Los Angeles Olympics by ending her shortstint with famed British coach Mel Marshall to return to the Sunshine Coast.

McKeown dropped the news on the last day of the Australian championships in Brisbane in April after withdrawing from the heatsof the 200m backstroke after winning the 100m and 50m events.

‘ABSOLUTELY FLOGGED US’

Elijah Winnington and Sam Short believe they are better positioned to attack the 2025 world titles after conquering different mental health battles that stemmed from their varied Paris Olympic experiences.

Winnington left the Paris Games in disbelief after achieving his lifelong ambition of an Olympic medal, taking silver in the 400m freestyle final after going in as favourite in Tokyo only to walk away empty handed.

Elijah Winnington (C) left the Paris Games in disbelief after achieving his lifelong ambition of an Olympic medal. Picture: Getty

Short, on the other hand, experienced the same emptiness that hit Winnington at his first Olympics when he entered the Paris 400m final as reigning world champion only to finish just outside the medals in fourth place.

He would later miss the finals in both the 800m and 1500m freestyle, performances which can be attributed to a nagging shoulder injury he carried for several months leading into the Games and a viral illness that struck just prior to the selection trials where he lost 5kg.

Despite the legitimate excuses, Short said he had done a lot of soul-searching in preparation for 2025.

“I underwent a lot of rehab after the Olympics just to recover and I’ve really tried to strengthen my mental strength as well,” Short said.

“I’ve realised I’m physically pretty tough but when the pressure has been on I’ve shown some cracks. This year I’m trying to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Sam Short had nagging injuries that affected his Paris nightmare. Picture: Adam Head

Winnington’s mental battle has been less about performance and more about motivation.

He said a major reset, including an overseas trip under coach Dean Boxall, was needed after a gruelling Olympic campaign to be ready for this year’s World Championships.

“I’ll be honest, I’ve had a few setbacks with injury and mental health this year and with not being motivated but I think I’ve come good these past few months and I’ve put in a good block of work to set myself up for now,” Winnington said.

“I hadn’t been training consistently off the back of nationals and as a group Dean took us away overseas for about a month.

“He just absolutely flogged us and it was both the reset I needed and the block of work I really needed.”

INJURY DRAMAS

Paris Olympic silver medallist Zac Stubblety-Cook has credited new coach Mel Marshall for keeping him in the pool as the breaststroke star continues to battle a serious neck injury.

After winning 200m breaststroke silver in Paris, the 26-year-old former world record holder revealed he had suffered a neck fracture in the lead up to the Olympics and he has continued to recover from a number of setbacks since.

Now training under coach Marshall, who tutored renowned British breaststroke gold medallist Adam Peaty, Stubblety-Cook said her impact had already been significant in and out of the pool.

“She’s been really good at managing the injury I’ve had ... I wouldn’t be here without her,” he said.

Zac Stublety Cook (C) has credited his new coach for keeping him in the pool amid recent injury battles. Picture: NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

“We were hoping it was kind of settled but it probably hasn’t settled as much as we originally wanted.

“She’s been really good with that and we’ve been focusing a lot on ‘communicating before crisis’, that’s been the theme of this year so far.”

Stubblety-Cook is not the only Australian breaststroker having a tough run with injury, world 50m champion Sam Williamson has withdrawn from the national selection trials after undergoing knee surgery last month for a ruptured patella tendon.

Williamson’s best time in 2024 would have won him the gold medal at the Paris Olympics in the 100m, but the Victorian failed to make the final in a disappointing meet and his quest for an immediate bounce back in 2025 has been ruined by an injury with a very long road to recovery.

“There are moments in life when everything you’ve built will feel like it’s slipping through your fingers,” he wrote on Instagram last month.

“You will get knocked down - hard. But when that happens, there’s only one thing to do. You stand up, dust yourself off and find your next step.

“A ruptured patella tendon wasn’t part of the game plan. Neither was spending months in a brace, walking like C-3PO. But adversity doesn’t ask for permission - it shows up unannounced, and it tests everything you’ve got.”

Summer McIntosh has backed up her record-breaking feats. Picture: Getty

SUMMER’S SCORCHER

Canadian 18-year-old superstar Summer McIntosh has backed up from smashing Ariarne Titmus’s 400m freestyle world record on Saturday by almost breaking the 800m world mark held by the legendary Katie Ledecky on Sunday at her national trials.

McIntosh was under world record pace until the final 100m, touching the wall in 8:05.07 to be less than one second off Ledecky’s mark (8:04.12) and the third fastest swim in history.

“Going in I really wanted to see how close I could get to that world record,” said McIntosh.

“But overall I think I am pretty happy with my race. I have to look over my splits, I think it was in a bit of no man’s land a little bit so I think moving forward I’m excited to see how I can be pushed when I’ve got some close quarter racing.

“This is my starting point now and just keep pushing forward. I’m still happy because it is a PB but I am always trying to be better and better.”

Originally published as Alex Perkins emerges as Emma McKeon’s butterfly successor after cruising to World Championships