Her brother David was also selected meaning the pair were the first brother and sister to swim at an Olympic Games for Australia since John and Ilsa Konrads in 1960.
McKeon led off the 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay in a 53.41 split, and with an overall world record time of 3:30.65, won a gold medal.
In the 100 metre butterfly, McKeon swam a 57.33 to advance ninth into the semifinal where she placed second in a time of 56.81.
In the final, McKeon finished in sixth place in a time of 57.05.
McKeon swam a 1:55.80 in the 200 metre freestyle preliminary heats to continue into the semifinals where she qualified sixth with a time of 1:56.29.
In the final, McKeon collected the silver medal in a time of 1:54.92.
As part of the 4 × 200 metre freestyle, McKeon swam the second leg of the race and with a split of 1:54.64, helped Australia earn a silver medal with an overall time of 7:44.87.
McKeon swam a 56.95 in the butterfly leg of the 4 × 100 metre medley relay, collecting a silver medal as Australia finished with an overall time of 3:55.00.
1994
Emma Jennifer McKeon, (born 24 May 1994) is an Australian competitive swimmer.
She is an eight-time world record holder, three current and five former, in relays.
McKeon was born on 24 May 1994 in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
She is the sister of Kaitlin, Olympian David McKeon, and the daughter of four-time Commonwealth gold medalist and two-time Olympian Ron McKeon, both of whom are also swimmers.
Her mother, Susie, was also a swimmer who competed in the Commonwealth Games and her uncle, Rob Woodhouse, was a two-time Olympian.
2010
McKeon competed at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics held in Singapore.
She won a gold medal in the girls' 4 × 100 metre medley relay; silver medals in the 100 metre freestyle and the mixed 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay; and bronze medals in the 50 metre freestyle, 200 metre freestyle, and mixed 4 × 100 metre medley relay.
2012
She completed her secondary education in 2012 from The Illawarra Grammar School and following graduation, at the age of 18, relocated to Brisbane to train under Vince Raleigh at the Chandler Aquatic Centre in 2014.
McKeon missed out on being selected for the London 2012 Summer Olympics after failing to place in her freestyle and butterfly events at the 2012 Olympic Trials.
The then 17-year-old agonisingly finished seventh in the 100 metres freestyle, one spot away from qualifying for her first Olympics in the 400 metres freestyle relay.
As a result, she took a break from swimming to help rejuvenate her drive and love of the sport.
2013
In 2013, McKeon won a silver medal in the 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay at the 15th FINA World Championships held in Barcelona, Spain.
2015
In 2015, McKeon switched coaches again and began training under Michael Bohl, initially at Brisbane's St Peters Western Swimming Club before the pair relocated to Griffith University on the Gold Coast in 2017 where McKeon studied a bachelor's degree in public health and health promotion with a major in nutrition.
2016
McKeon was selected as part of the Australian team for the 2016 Summer Olympics, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
2020
Her total career haul of 11 Olympic medals following the 2020 Olympic Games made her Australia's most decorated Olympian and included one gold medal from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and four gold medals from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
With four gold and three bronze medals she was the most decorated athlete across all sports at the 2020 Summer Olympics, and tied for the most medals won by a woman in a single Olympic Games.
She has also won 20 medals, including five gold medals, at the World Aquatics Championships; and a record 20 medals, including 14 gold, at the Commonwealth Games.
In 2021, McKeon tied Ian Thorpe for the most number of Olympic gold medals won over the course of an Australian athlete's career with five total gold medals earned at her first two Olympic Games.
She was also the highest scoring competitor, male or female, for the 2021 FINA Swimming World Cup where she earned a total of fourteen medals, including ten gold medals and four silver medals at the Swimming World Cup in 2021.
At the 2020 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, Japan, McKeon won seven medals, the most by a female swimmer at a single Olympic Games.
Her feat equalled the most medals won by a female athlete in any sport at a single Olympic Games, tying Soviet gymnast Maria Gorokhovskaya.
McKeon broke the record for the most Olympic medals ever received by an Australian, a title previously held by Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones, after winning four gold and three bronze medals, and bringing her total medal count to 11.
In the 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay, McKeon swam a 51.35 split as the third relay leg, helping Australia to secure the gold medal and set a new world record with an overall time of 3:29.69.
In the preliminary heats of the 100 metre butterfly, McKeon set a new Oceanian record with a time of 55.82 to advance into the semifinals, where she placed third with a time of 56.33.
In the final, McKeon broke her Oceanian record with a time of 55.72, earning herself the bronze medal.
McKeon swam the second leg of the 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay in a 1:55.31 split, helping Australia to win the bronze medal and set a new Oceanian record in an overall time of 7:41.29.
In the 100 metre freestyle, McKeon advanced through to the semifinals after qualifying first in the preliminary heats with a time of 52.13.
In the semifinal, she swam a 52.32 to make it through in first to the final, where she won the gold medal and set a new Olympic record with a time of 51.96, the second fastest time in history.
McKeon anchored the mixed 4 × 100 metre medley relay final, and with a 51.73 freestyle split helped to win the bronze medal with an overall time of 3:38.95.
In the 50 metre freestyle, McKeon swam a 24.02 in the preliminary heats to advance first into the semifinals, where she qualified first for the final in a time of 24.00.
In the final, McKeon won gold and set a new Olympic record after swimming a time of 23.81.
On the last day of competition, McKeon swam the butterfly leg of the 4 × 100 metre medley relay in a 55.91 split, her efforts helping Australia collect the gold medal and set a new Olympic record in an overall time of 3:51.60.
