"You guys deserve that" - Kaylee McKeown reveals what Team USA told Team Australia after winning top team award at World Aquatics Championships 2023

Kaylee McKeown performed exceptionally well in the recently concluded 2023 World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan. The best team award was given to Team USA, who won a total of 44 medals. Australia finished in second place in the medal tally, but they claimed the most gold medals in the pool competitions. Team Australia won 13 gold medals in pool competitions at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships.

In a recent interview, Kaylee McKeown revealed that Team USA came over to the Australian swim team and told them that they deserved the top team award at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships. Kaylee McKeown revealed this news while speaking to three-time Olympic medalist Mel Stewart in a short clipping of an interview posted on SwimSwam's Instagram account.

Recently, Swimmer Cate Campbell referred to Team USA as sore losers in her interview with Australia's Channel 9. But Kaylee McKeown distanced herself and her Australian teammates from Campbell's comments in another interview.

While discussing Campbell's comments with Mel Stewart, Kaylee McKeown revealed,

"You know we actually had the US come up to us after they got presented their award for the top (team) and they basically said you guys deserve that. I think Cate (Campbell) wasn't there to see that and see how nice it was for them to do."

McKeown also admitted that she would have felt hurt if someone from USA had spoken about Australia like Cate Campbell did. The Australian swimmer further added,

"I think like I didn't see the interview that Cate had given, I know it was light hearted. It was like you a bit of sight of that kind of stuff but at the end of the day like, for me, I've always been taught to respect one another, respect you know different cultures. I know how parts of the US is and I know that if somebody had said that about Australia and you know, it was coming from one of my competitors, I would have been just like destroyed."

"Like how hurtful is that to say, especially you know about to start better that kind of thing, I was just like that's not okay in my eyes. And yeah, there were a few other athletes and we had spoken about it and I knew I had, you know, them behind my back. They didn't agree with what was said either."

The whole incident occurred when American television streaming service Peacock listed USA over Australia in the medal table based on the total number of medals won. But in International competitions, the teams with the most number of gold medals are listed at the top of the table.

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How many World Championships (LC) medals has Kaylee McKeown won?

While she completed sweep of all the backstroke titles at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships, Kaylee McKeown has won an incredible number of medals at World Aquatics Championships (LC).

She has won a total of 12 medals at long course World Aquatics Championships. The Australian swimmer's first world championships title was when she won the silver medal in the 4x100m mixed medley relay. McKeown then claimed two silver medals in 200m backstroke and 4x100m medley at the 2019 World Championships.

At the 2022 World Aquatics Championships, Kaylee McKeown claimed a gold medal in the 200m backstroke and silver medals in 200m medley, 4x100m medley and 4x100m mixed medley relay events.

The 2023 World Aquatics Championships was her most successful World Championships campaign as McKeown won three gold medals in the 50m backstroke, 100m backstroke and 200m backstroke. She also claimed two silver medals in 4x100m medley relay and 4x100m mixed medley relay events.