"Absolute legend" - Alex de Minaur delighted as compatriot Kaylee McKeown wins 100m backstroke gold at Paris Olympics 2024
Alex de Minaur has gushed over compatriot and swimmer Kaylee McKeown clinching the gold medal for Australia in the 100-meter backstroke category at the ongoing 2024 Paris Olympics. McKeown carried on where she left off at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021), where she won three gold medals across the 100m and 200m backstroke categories and the 4x100 meter medley relay category.
McKeown's latest feat marked Australia's sixth gold medal at the Paris Olympics. The 100-meter backstroke category saw McKeown edge USA's Regan Smith, the world record holder in long course 100-meter backstroke. In doing so, the Australian became only the second woman in Olympic history to secure gold medals in the 100-meter backstroke in back-to-back editions of the Games, with USA's Natalie Coughlin being the first (2004, 2008).
The achievement drew the attention of Australian ATP star Alex de Minaur, who is currently ranked World No. 6 in men's singles. De Minaur took to his Instagram Story and drafted a post to congratulate McKeown. The post featured a photo of McKeown celebrating with the gold medal, and was captioned:
"Absolute legend"
Alex de Minaur's own Paris Olympics campaign has come to an end
De Minaur withdrew from men's singles at the Paris Olympics after he was unable to recover in time from a hip injury that cut short his campaign at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships. The Australian was set to face eventual finalist Novak Djokovic at the prestigious grasscourt Major in the quarterfinals but pulled out intending to be at his best for Australia at the Games.
Unfortunately, in the buildup to the Paris Games' tennis tournament, De Minaur said that his condition still wasn't good enough for the singles event.
"Tried my best to be ready for the singles but body needs a bit more time," De Minaur said via Instagram.
However, the World No. 6 in singles did manage to make it out onto the court to play men's doubles alongside Alexei Popyrin. Ultimately though, the Australian duo failed to find their feet in their first-round clash against the USA's Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram, losing 2-6, 3-6.
Later, De Minaur penned a heartfelt Instagram post in which he reflected on his doubles experience with Popyrin, concluding with his commitment to returning to the Olympics.
"Amazing experience with Pop going through basically every stage of our journey to becoming Olympians together! Wish I could’ve been healthier out there but happy I was able to step out on court and at least compete! Appreciate all the support I’ve gotten and I will be back," De Minaur wrote.
De Minaur has so far established a 36-12 win-loss record this season on the ATP Tour in singles. The Australian has also added his eighth and ninth ATP Tour-level titles to his haul, having won the 2024 Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco and the 2024 Libema Open.