It wasn’t too long ago that Australian superstar Kaylee McKeown could break all six backstroke world records in long and short courses.

American backstroke star Regan Smith is now two down after breaking the 200-meter short course record at the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup in Singapore.

Smith, with whom McKeown won gold medals in the 100 meters and 200 meters at the Paris Olympics, completed the race in 1 minute 58.83 seconds, 0.11 seconds behind the Australian athlete’s previous record.

Australian Iona Anderson came third with a time of 2:01.98.

The day before, Smith lowered his 100-meter backstroke score even further with 54.27, and this was a very successful meet.

“We had a lot of fun during these three stops,” Smith told the media during the World Cup series.

“It was great. It’s a World Cup, it’s a lot of fun and I want to keep doing it for years to come.”

McKeown competed on the first day of the first leg of the three-legged World Cup in Shanghai.

There he beat Smith in the 50m backstroke with a new World Cup lead of 25.36, but withdrew from further competition to prioritize his mental health.

“I want to thank World Aquatics for the opportunity to attend and compete in the World Cups, it was so much fun here in Shanghai,” McKeown wrote on Instagram in October.

“I decided to cut my experience short, keeping my mental health first.

“As an athlete, it is very important to listen to your heart and know when enough is enough.

“Time for a long overdue break.”

Last year, McKeown broke multiple world records and won the overall women’s title in the World Cup series.

However, despite his stunning performance in Paris, McKeown was soon back in action and competed at the Australian short course National Championships in September.

“I was a little distraught sitting at home,” McKeown said in Adelaide.

“So I decided to go back to two and a half weeks ago and just increase the sessions.”

She proved to be a good choice, breaking the almost five-year-old 100m short course backstroke world record by 0.33 points from compatriot Minna Atherton’s score.

He later said that he was not determined to compete at the World Short Course Championship in December and that he would not put any pressure on himself.

McKeown has been named to the 24-man squad for the Championships in Budapest, which includes 10 Paris Olympians and eight first-time athletes.

Short course swimming takes place in a 25-meter pool; This allows for more spins and faster times than a 50-meter long course pool, the size of the pool where the Olympics take place.

McKeown currently holds the non-Olympic world record for the 50m backstroke and the long course 200m backstroke, but she is unlikely to lose her records after claiming the year’s two top honors in Paris.

On the other hand, Smith, who broke McKeown’s 100-meter long track target before the Olympics, was on the rise.

“I want to go to short-term worlds and have as much fun as I do here.

“I think life is too short to take things like this so seriously. I had a lot of fun and that’s what swimming is supposed to be about. So I think my goal at the sprint worlds is to swim fast and enjoy it.”

In Singapore, Australian Isaac Cooper won the men’s 50 meters at 22.61, Mo Johnson came third in the 800 meters, and Brittany Castelluzzo won the 200 meters butterfly and took third place in the 200 meters freestyle.

Many Paris Olympians were also in the race, including French hero Léon Marchand, who swept the medley events and broke the world record in the 200 meters IM.

Meanwhile, American Kate Douglass edged Smith for the overall World Cup title, winning four events, including setting the world record in the 200-meter breaststroke and a check of US$100,000 ($152,000).