Paris 2024 Olympics: Australian records and firsts - full list
Australia’s campaign at the Paris 2024 Olympics involved over 450 Australian athletes competing in 329 events across 42 sports.
The country had representation in 42 of the 45 sports on the Paris 2024 programme, with fencing, handball and volleyball being the only exceptions.
At Paris 2024 Olympics, Australia finished with 53 medals - 18 gold, 19 silver and 16 bronze. Besides the medals, a select few athletes also came home with some nifty records.
Here’s a complete list of all of Australia’s records at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Paris 2024 Olympics: Australia records
Laura Paeglis records highest score by an Australian woman in Olympic archery ranking round
With a score of 640 from her 72 arrows in the women’s individual archery ranking rounds at Paris 2024, Laura Paeglis came in 44th.
While it was well short of top seed Republic of Korea’s Lim Sihyeon world record score of 694, Laura’s score was the best-ever by an Aussie woman since the 72-arrow ranking round format began at Atlanta 1996.
Grace Brown becomes first Australian to win a gold medal in women’s time trial road cycling
Road cyclist Grace Brown won Australia’s first medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics with a gold in the women’s individual time trial on July 27. It was also the first Aussie medal in the women’s individual time trial road cycling event.
Sara Carrigan, at Athens 2004, was the last Aussie to win gold in a road race at the Olympics. Brown’s medal in France also saw an Australian female cyclist stand on the top podium for the first time since Anna Meares won the women’s sprint track cycling event at Paris 2024.
Australian men’s rugby sevens team logs best-ever finish
After quarter-final exits from both Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, the Australian men’s rugby sevens team logged its best-ever finish at the Olympics by making it to the semi-finals at Paris 2024.
Victories over Samoa, Kenya and Tokyo 2020 bronze medallists Argentina saw the Nicholas Malouf-led side cruise to the quarters. In the top eight, the Aussie men blanked USA 18-0 to make the semis, where they lost to Tokyo 2020 champions Fiji.
A close 26-19 defeat to South Africa ended their charge for a maiden Olympic medal.
Women’s 4x100m freestyle relay swimming team resets Olympic record
The quartet of Mollie O'Callaghan, Shayna Jack, Emma McKeon and Meg Harris clocked 3:28.92 to win the gold medal in women’s 4x100m freestyle relay swimming at Paris 2024. The time also saw the Olympic record in the event tumble.
Bronte Campbell, Meg Harris, Emma McKeon and Cate Campbell’s 3:29.69 from the Tokyo 2020 final was the previous mark.
Jessica Fox becomes first Australian to win medals in same event at four successive Olympic editions
Canoe slalom ace Jessica Fox won the gold medal in the women’s kayak event at Paris 2024 and in the process, became the first Australian to medal in the same event at four successive Olympic Games. She won a silver in women’s K1 at London 2012 and returned with back-to-back bronze medals from Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. Fox also won the women’s canoe (C1) gold at Tokyo 2020.
The medal also saw Fox join Ian Thorpe, Leisel Jones, Shirley Strickland and Anna Meares as the only Australian Olympians to win five individual Olympic medals.
Jack Rossiter records best finish by an Australian in men's 10m air rifle
Shooter Jack Rossiter shot 628.5 in the men's 10m air rifle qualifiers to finish 16th. Though he didn't make the cut for the final, it was the best-ever result by an Australian in the event at the Olympics. Dane Sampson, with 626.9, finished 30th.
Mollie O'Callaghan sets new women's 200m freestyle swimming Olympic record
Australia's Mollie O'Callaghan won the gold medal in the women's 200m freestyle swimming event at Paris 2024, beating fellow Aussie Ariarne Titmus to the finish line. O'Callaghan clocked 1:53.27 to better Titmus' previous Olympic record of 1:53.50 set at Tokyo 2020.
Kaylee McKeown betters own Olympic record in women's 100m backstroke
Kaylee McKeown clocked 57.33 to defend her women's 100m backstroke crown at Paris 2024 and bettered her own Olympic record of 57.47 set at Tokyo 2020.
Maddison Levi breaks records for most tries in women's rugby sevens at a single Olympic Games
Australia's Maddison Levi set the new record for most tries scored at a single Olympic Games by a women's rugby sevens player with 14 at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The Aussie team, however, stopped short of a podium finish after losing to Canada in the semi-finals before going down to the USA in the bronze medal match.
Jemima Montag resets national and Oceania record to win bronze medal in women's 20km race walk
Jemima Montag won Australia's first medal in the women's 20km race walk event at the Olympics since Jane Saville's bronze at Athens 2004. She bagged a bronze with a time of 1:26.25, bettering her previous national and Oceania record of 1:27:09 achieved at the Oceania Race Walking Championships in Adelaide earlier this year.
Women’s 4x200m freestyle relay swimming team shatters Olympic record
The quartet of Mollie O'Callaghan, Emma McKeon, Lani Pallister and Briana Throssell clocked 7:38.08 to decimate the previous Olympic record in the event held by the People's Republic of China. The record time also saw the Dolphins win gold in the event for the first time since Beijing 2008.
Kaylee McKeown becomes first woman to successfully defend 100m and 200m backstroke titles at Olympics
Kaylee McKeown won the 200m backstroke gold at Paris 2024 with an Olympic record-breaking time of 2:03.73. Having also successfully defended her 100m backstroke title earlier, McKeown became the first woman in history to retain both backstroke event titles at the Olympics.
Two Australias win medals in same athletics field event for the first time in Olympic history
Nicola Olysagers won a silver medal in the women's high jump competition at Paris 2024 while Eleanor Patterson shared the bronze. It marked the first time ever that two Australian athletes medalled at the same field event at the Olympics.
Australian track cyclists shatter men's team pursuit world record
Australia's four-member men's pursuit team of Kelland O’Brien, Sam Welsford, Conor Leahy and Oliver Bleddyn clocked a world record time of 3:40.730 in the heats against defending champions Italy to storm into the final, where they would eventually go on to beat Great Britain to take gold.
Interestingly, the previous world record of 3:42.032 belonged to Italy, who clocked the mark to take the gold medal at Tokyo 2020.
Australia’s Matthew Richardson also briefly held the men's individual sprint world record after clocking 9.091 in qualifying to smash Nicholas Paul’s five-year-old world mark. However, Dutch cyclist Harrie Lavreysen, the Tokyo 2020 gold medal winner, lowered it to 9.088 minutes later.
Caitlin Parker becomes first Australian women's boxer to win a medal at the Olympics
Australian pugilist Caitlin Parker won the bronze medal in the women's 75 kg category at Paris 2024, thus becoming the first-ever female boxer from her country to win a medal at the Olympics.
Australia’s landmark medals in Paris
Nina Kennedy became the first Australian woman to win an Olympic gold medal in the pole vault. The gold was the 18th at Paris 2024 making it Australia’s most successful Olympics campaign to date. Previously, Australia’s best gold medal count at any single edition of the Olympics was 17 - won at Athens 2004 and Tokyo 2020.
In terms of total medals won, however, Sydney 2000 which yielded 58 medals - 16 gold, 25 silver and 17 bronze - still ranks top.
Jessica Hull became the first Australian to win a medal in the women's 1500m at an Olympics. Her achievement also marked Australia's 50th medal in Paris.
Matthew Richardson wins 50th track cycling Olympic medal for Australia
Matthew Richardson claimed a silver medal in the men’s sprint event, earning the 50th track cycling Olympic medal for Australia. It was also Australia’s first medal in the men’s team sprint since Shayne Perkins won bronze in London 2012.
Richardson had earlier won bronze in the men’s team sprint with Matthew Glaetzer and Leigh Hoffman. He had also broken the world record in 9.091s in men’s sprint qualifying before it was broken again by Olympic champion Harrie Lavreysen of the Netherlands who went even faster with 9.088s.
Sinead Diver becomes oldest Australian Olympian in athletics
At 47 years 5 months 25 days, Sinead Diver became the oldest Australian Olympian to take part in an athletics event. Diver, who finished 10th at Tokyo 2020, had initially set the record then when she was 44 before improving it in Paris. She, however, pulled out 1.2km into the marathon at Paris 2024 due to bilateral cramping in both quadriceps.
Lauren Jackson becomes first Australian to win medals in five Olympic Games
With the Opals clinching bronze at Paris 2024, Lauren Jackson made history by becoming the first Australian to win medals in five different editions of the Olympics.
The 43-year-old Lauren Jackson, widely considered the greatest Australian female basketball star, was part of the Opals’ squad that won its sixth medal at the Summer Games.
Apart from the Atlanta 1996 Games, Lauren has been a part of every single Opals side that has secured a podium finish at the Olympics.
Between Sydney 2000 and Beijing 2008, Jackson won three consecutive silver medals. She was then part of the bronze medal-winning Opals side at London 2012 and Paris 2024.