Emerged from the Tokyo Olympics with two gold medals and the expectation was for even more in Paris. However, in September 2023 she was diagnosed with a tumour on an ovary. Surgery was successful and she recovered in time to swim in the French capital where she became the first woman in nearly a century to defend the 400m freestyle title, finishing ahead of Summer McIntosh and her great rival Katie Ledecky. The Tasmanian athlete collected a further three medals in the summer Games, including gold in the 4x200m freestyle relay. On her journey to Paris, in the Australian Swimming Trials in June, she set a new world record in the 200m freestyle with a time of 1:52.23.
