Pallister and McKeown shine on Swim GP opening night in Melbourne

Lani Pallister delivered a fast 400-metre freestyle swim and Kaylee McKeown returned to winning form on the opening night of the inaugural Swim GP in Melbourne. The Friday, November 13 session at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre combined conventional swimming distances with a shorter, television-focused team format.

Pallister completed the 400m in 3 minutes 53.73 seconds, around two seconds outside her personal best. Her next major international assignment was set to be the world short-course championships in Beijing at the start of December. The Swim GP performance was a strong preparation signal, but the event does not record official times.

McKeown returns after illness

McKeown won the women's 50m backstroke elimination skins race, beating Iona Anderson in the final round. It marked her return after glandular fever had forced her to withdraw from the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

After the first night, Wahoo led the team standings with 105 points. Kraken followed on 94, Tsunami had 77 and King Tide had 63. These were the opening-session standings, not the final results of the two-session competition. The second session was scheduled for Saturday night, November 14.

Chalmers leads without racing

Kyle Chalmers attended as Kraken captain but did not compete. Following a further MRI assessment of his troublesome back, his doctor had instructed him to take six weeks away from swimming. He said an early return could extend the recovery to 10 weeks and disrupt preparation for next year's national trials and, further ahead, the Los Angeles Olympics.

Chalmers said he had previously tried to hurry back after surgery, relying on anti-inflammatory medication or cortisone as a short-term answer. He now wanted a lasting recovery rather than another quick fix. He had disclosed after qualifying for Paris in 2024 that he needed four epidural injections into his spine, an experience he did not want to repeat.

He also linked the decision to life beyond racing, including being able to play with his daughter and any future children. Chalmers described the break as a manageable setback, noting that he often spends time out of the water at this stage of the year, and said he still valued being in Melbourne to support his team.

Olympic gold medallist Mollie O'Callaghan also withdrew while managing a skin infection. Swim GP uses a 25m pool, awards points to teams and mixes individual races with relays and elimination formats. Its opening-night times and standings need to be read in that context rather than treated as an official championship record or a final competition table.

Illustrative empty outdoor swimming pool at Topsham, United Kingdom, in 2020, not the Melbourne competition venue.