PARIS -- With 25 metres left to swim in the women's 100m backstroke final, the bulk of the La Defense Arena crowd rose to its feet, eyes wide and entranced. The high pitch cheers reverberating around the stadium grew louder with each stroke as Kaylee McKeown and Regan Smith battled in adjacent lanes for Olympic supremacy.
This was the latest instalment of Australia vs. the United States in the pool, a rivalry that's been full of verbal jousting and not-so-subtle barbs as of late. Canada was also in the mix for gold, Olympic stalwart Kylie Masse thundering along with them in lane six. To the naked eye, there was nothing splitting the trio. This was magical synchronicity. You could almost draw a VAR-esque straight line down the pool grazing each swimmer's fingertips.
But just as Dolphins teammates Ariarne Titmus and Mollie O'Callaghan did in their respective gold medal-winning swims earlier in the Paris meet, McKeown found a gear the others simply did not have. With three or four long, steady, punishing strokes, she pulled a head in front with 15m to swim. From there, she held Smith at bay, before touching the wall in 57:33s to secure her fourth Olympic gold medal, turning rambunctious American cheers into bitter disappointment.
"The nerves were definitely there but I just reminded myself it's a pool in a different venue and I train every single day of my life," said an emotional McKeown post race. "I knew it would come down to that last 25 metres; it's something that I've been practising for and it's something that the Americans and myself are really good at, finishing our races strong."
It had been easy to forget about McKeown at these Games. With the Australian media's spotlight shining brightly on Titmus and O'Callaghan, the equally acclaimed McKeown flew blissfully under the radar, quietly prepping for her own jam-packed program.
McKeown had been setting the benchmark in the 100m backstroke ever since her famous Tokyo triumph three years ago. Earlier this year, she held seven of the eight fastest times ever recorded and was looming as a strong favourite to defend her title in Paris. But the narrative shifted when Smith shattered her world record at last month's American trials. Suddenly, things appeared much tighter, and Tuesday evening's final felt nothing more than a true coin flip likely to be decided by a razor thin margin. And it was, until it wasn't.
In under a minute, McKeown reminded Australia, and the world, of her prolific talent in the pool. From a relatively tardy getaway and fourth at the turn, to a new Olympic record; it only highlighted her unrivaled power and determination.
"You know, the Aussies have had a great meet so far following Arnie and Molly," said McKeown. "It's been an awesome few days watching all the Aussies get up and race, so I just had to put my best foot forward tonight. To have all of this atmosphere, all that adrenaline and be able to perform like that it's really special to me."
McKeown's triumph makes her just the second woman in history to go back-to-back at the Games in the 100m backstroke. On Friday evening, she will look to do the unthinkable double-double by repeating against many of the same competitors in the 200m distance. That's never been done before. But would you really consider betting against her?
Such unprecedented achievement would have her in the conversation for the most dominant swimmer alive, but McKeown isn't just settling on the backstroke discipline. She will also contest and start as co-favourite in the 200m individual medley later in the meet, as well as swim the backstroke leg in both the women's and mixed medley relays. She won't be so easy to forget now.
And in a week where legacy and Australian Olympic G.O.A.T talk has been rampant on the pool deck, it might yet be McKeown making the greatest case of all by the time the cauldron burns out in Paris.