The SwimSwam Podcast

Kaylee McKeown Details A Bumpy Road From Paris To World Championship Glory

Today on the GMM Podcast we sit down with Kaylee McKeown, the undisputed queen of backstroke. In Singapore, Kaylee swept the 100 and 200 back, blasting a personal best 57.16 in the 100 and nearly matching her world-record pace in the 200.

What makes this story interesting is what came before it. Post-Paris, Kaylee struggled in training, so much so that she made the bold decision to return to her home club and reboot. That reset worked. By the time Worlds rolled around, she was back in control.

But it wasn’t all smooth water. While Kaylee avoided the stomach virus that cut through the meet, she did face a shoulder dislocation scare and, in her own words, a bout of “constipation at Worlds” — her funny, unfiltered way of pointing out the irony compared to her competitors' health woes.

In this episode, Kaylee breaks down:

• The reset that carried her from post Olympic training struggles to World Championship dominance.
• What it’s like facing Regan Smith again and again on the world stage.
• That she is confirmed for the World Aquatics World Cup this fall.
• Context behind the Australia Swimmers Association, an independent org supporting Aussie elites swimmers.
• And a candid look ahead as she weighs where to focus her energy next summer, Commonwealth Games vs Pan Pacs.

Jack Alexy Breaks Down Paris Struggles And His World Champs Redemption

Today on the GMM podcast, we have Jack Alexy, a sprint star shouldering the hopes of Team USA fans in the run-up to LA2028.

If you followed Paris, you know the story: Alexy’s first Olympic Games were mixed. He led the world out of prelims in the 100 free, then faded to seventh in the final. It was a tough pill to swallow for a swimmer sitting on that much raw speed.

Fast forward to the 2025 World Championships in Singapore, and Alexy delivered one of the great redemption arcs, dropping a blistering 46.81 in the 100 freestyle, an American Record. Perhaps more importantly, when Team USA needed a hammer on the medley relay anchor, he uncorked a 45.95 split, the fastest anchor in American history. That bodes well for LA2028.

Today, we dig into how he processed Paris, his training over the past year, his sickness on the cusp of Worlds, and what it felt like to deliver swims that rewrote the record books.

This conversation runs about an hour. If I missed any topics or questions, drop them in the comments, and we’ll pick them up in our next Alexy podcast.

Audrey Derivaux on Hardest Mid-Distance Sets, Winning 4 Golds at World Jrs

Rising Multi-talented star Audrey Derivaux shone brightly this summer, competing at the World Junior Championships in Romania and coming away with 3 individual golds, a silver, and a relay gold. SwimSwam sat down with Derivaux to discuss what her training has looked like this summer and what her experience was like in Otopeni with Team USA.

How Rising Breaststroke Star Campbell McKean Made it Through World Champs After Illness

18-Year-Old Campbell McKean shocked the country when he won national titles in the 50 and 100 breast in early June. McKean went on to compete in both events at the 2025 World Championships in Singapore, making the semi-final in the 100 breast while falling just .12 short of a 2nd swim in the 50 breast. He also swam the prelims of the 400 medley relay, which went on to win a bronze medal.

Olympic 50s Qualifier in October, USAS CEO, & Ben proud to Enhanced Games | SWIMSWAM BREAKDOWN

This week on the SwimSwam Breakdown, we discuss World Aquatics' announcement regarding qualification for the 2028 Olympics in the 50s of stroke, the new USA Swimming CEO, and Ben Proud going to the Enhanced Games.

Rutgers Women's Swim Team Will Bring in Male "Practice Swimmers"

Jon Maccoll, the head coach of the Rutgers Women's Swimming and Diving team, is taking an idea from many other sports and bringing it to the pool. Maccoll has brought in a number of male swimmers as "practice swimmers" to train with the Rutgers women's team. While they are not technically a part of the NCAA team (Rutgers does not have a men's swimming program), they will train with the team and receive team gear. The men will compete in USA Swimming competitions, but they will have the same expectations as the women's team in terms of practice attendance and effort. Maccoll says this is commonplace in sports like women's basketball and is tired of losing recruits to programs that have men and women on the team.

Has Olympic And World Champion Cameron McEvoy Found The Bleeding Edge Of Sprint Training?

Today on the GMM podcast we have 50 freestyle Olympic and World Champion Cameron McEvoy. This sprint star, known as The Professor, has done more than win medals, he has revolutionised training in a way I don’t think we can turn back from. Cameron, a graduate from Griffith University with a bachelor’s in physics and mathematics, trusts the data and it has rewarded him. This isn’t just another training conversation, Cameron shares the far edge of human performance and what it takes to move water at top speed. The results are undeniable, and the ripple effects are going to change how the sport thinks about sprinting.

Ben Proud is Joining the Enhanced Games

Ben Proud sent shockwaves through the swimming community on Wednesday morning with his announcement that he’s joining the Enhanced Games, essentially ending his competitive career on the international stage representing Great Britain. Although it’s not yet confirmed if Proud plans to be put on the Enhanced Games doping protocol, or race in the Games clean, World Aquatics has enacted a new bylaw barring anyone who participates in the Games from competing in one of their events (this could change with the $800 million lawsuit the Games filed last month).

Following the bombshell news drop on Wednesday, SwimSwam’s Braden Keith and James Sutherland reacted to the news, outlining what they believed Proud is capable of doing at the Enhanced Games, what his motivation to join the Games might have been, and if this move will lead to more swimmers joining the Games.

Shaine Casas Turns The Corner Toward LA2028 With His World Championships 1:54.30 200 IM

If you’ve been following Shaine Casas since his NCAA glory days when he swept the DI championships with a triple-win, this is the world stage moment we've all been waiting for.  Shaine has shown flashes of brilliance, moments that hinted at greatness, but 2025 feels different. This summer feels like a corner was turned and the promise of potential bent into the hard reality.

16-Year-Old Rylee Erisman Recalls Lessons Learned at US Trials, World Jr Championships

This summer, 16-year-old Rylee Erisman became the fastest 18-and-under in US history in the 100m free, swimming a 52.79 to earn gold at the 2025 World Junior Championships. That was just 1 of 8 medals in Romania for Erisman, who walked away with 5 gold and 3 silver and helped USA top the medal table. In this episode of the SwimSwam Podcast, Erisman discusses her experience at the US Trials in Indianapolis, World Junior Champs, her Florida state high school season, and the college recruiting process that she's in right now.