Cameron McEvoy and Kaylee McKeown make Olympic history after golden double for Aussies in pool

Cameron McEvoy and Kaylee McKeown have delivered more gold for Australia at the Olympic Games after a stunning 10 minutes at the pool in Paris on Saturday (AEST). McEvoy cliched Australia's ninth gold medal of the Games after powering to victory in the final of the men's 50m freestyle before Kaylee McKeown backed it up by defending her Olympic 200m backstroke title to swim her way into history.

No swimmer had ever successfully defended 100m and 200m backstroke titles in Olympic history but McKeown cemented her place in the record books after coming from behind to beat American Regan Smith and Canada's Kylie Masse to set a new Olympic Record (two minutes 03.73 seconds) and win gold. McKeown now has five golds in her Olympic career, with a women's 4x100m medley victory at the Tokyo Games three years ago also in her collection.

The victory also saw McKeown become the first Aussie to win four individual Olympic gold medals, with her winning time in the final just 0.59 seconds shy of her world record set last year in Sydney. The swim was all the more incredible considering McKeown was third at the midpoint and second at the final turn. But the 23-year-old showed her extraordinary speed over the home stretch to take her place among the nation's greatest in the pool.

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McKeown then backed up her gold medal triumph by swimming in a lightning fast semi-final for the the 200m individual medley, in which she placed fifth with a time of 2:09.97. That was just enough to sneak into the final in lane 7, with fellow Aussie Ella Ramsay claiming the eighth spot in Sunday's final with a 2:10.16.

After defending her 200m backstroke title in style, McKeown now joins teammate Mollie O'Callaghan with five Olympic gold medals alongside Aussie swimming legend Ian Thorpe, who calling McKeown's race poolside for Channel Nine. “She’s created Australian history. Let’s celebrate her, Australia,” Thorpe said. “I don’t think people realise how significant what she’s just achieved is. She’s done the double-double.”

Cameron McEvoy claims historic 50m freestyle gold

Just 10 minutes before McKeown's stunning feat in the Paris pool, Aussie teammate McEvoy also powered to victory to claim the first Olympic gold medal of his career and the nation's first ever in the 50m freestyle. McEvoy is also the first Australian male to win gold in Paris, joining his swim teammates, cyclist Grace Brown and canoe/kayak star Jessica Fox, who already has two gold to her name and the chance for a third in the kayak cross.

McEvoy - competing in his fourth Olympic Games - won in 21.25 seconds ahead of Great Britain's Ben Proud (21.30) and Frenchman Florent Manaudou (21.56). The victory helps the 30-year-old erase his lingering disappointment from the Rio Games eight years ago when he entered the 100m freestyle medal race as hot favourite but finished seventh in a final won by compatriot Kyle Chalmers.

The Aussie took an extended break from the sport after the Tokyo Olympics three years ago after become disillusioned with swimming. But he returned to the pool with a self-styled revolutionary training regime after basing his training around technical minutia in the water. McEvoy also pursues fitness regimes outside the pool such as rock climbing and calisthenics - rather than swimming endless laps - and described his long-awaited Olympic triumph as "pure joy".

"It’s amazing to win, but that entire 21.25 seconds was bliss,” McEvoy told Nine after his victory. “The way the stroke moved in the water – I never thought I’d be able to experience that, the joy of the movement I just did, let alone get a gold medal with it. It’s unreal. I don’t think I’ve ever celebrated that much after a race either. That’s a first for me too.”

with AAP