Article by Julian Linden, courtesy of the Daily Telegraph.
Kaylee McKeown could get the chance of a lifetime to win an extra gold medal in one of her pet events at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics as part of a radical proposal to overhaul the swimming program.
If it goes ahead, the changes would provide a massive boost to Australia’s swimmers and the country’s overflowing medal tally, with World Aquatics pushing hard to add 50m stroke events to the Olympic program from 2028 onward.
Currently, the only 50m swimming event at the Olympics is in freestyle but if the sport’s ambitious leaders get their wish, 50m backstroke, 50m butterfly and 50m breaststroke will all become Olympic gold medal races.
It makes complete sense because they are already on the program at the world championships and Commonwealth Games so many top swimmers already specialise in the sprint races.
But the final decision rests with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which is well aware of the enormous popularity of swimming so has already approved major changes for LA.
Sources said it is expected the IOC will rubber stamp the proposal as long as there is no increase to the total quota of swimmers at the Olympics, which currently stands at 854.
The inclusion of 50m stroke events would be a huge bonus for McKeown, who has won the 100m-200m backstroke double at the past two Olympics.
The only Australian to have won four solo gold medals at the Olympics, the 23-year-old also holds the world record for 50m backstroke and won all three backstroke events at the 2023 world championships in Japan so would be a major contender in LA.
Plenty of other Aussie swimmers could also benefit from the schedule change.
Mollie O’Callaghan is a world-class backstroker but didn’t enter the 100m in Paris because it clashed with her other events. She may be tempted to have a crack at the 50m.
Australia’s men could also cash in.
Sprint specialist Isaac Cooper is the reigning world champion in 50m backstroke while fellow Aussie Sam Williamson won the 50m breaststroke world title this year. Neither made the semis in their 100m stroke events in Paris.
Even Kyle Chalmers might be persuaded to throw his hat in the ring for the 50m butterfly, an event he’s always wanted to race at the highest level.
The proposed rule changes are all part of an ambitious plan to make swimming the number one sport at the Olympics.
The crowd figures and television ratings from Paris have smashed all records but LA promises to be even bigger and better after the IOC agreed to hold the swimming events in SoFi Stadium, the same sprawling suburban venue that has been used to stage the Super Bowl and Taylor Swift’s Era Tour concerts.
While SoFi Stadium typically seats 70,000 spectators for NFL games and up to 100,000 for pop concerts, the state of the art facility will be reconfigured to hold about 38,000 fans for Olympic swimming.
To accommodate the venue change because SoFi Stadium is also hosting the Opening Ceremony on July 14, 2028, the swimming competition, which normally starts the day after, will be pushed back to the second week, with track and field flipping to week one.
This will mean Australia’s swimmers will finally get the chance to march at the Opening Ceremony, when they are normally tucked up in bed because they have to race the next day.
