Kinder-Ramsay rivalry lights up Australian Swimming Championships

Sport is nothing without rivalries.

When the thrill of a head-to-head race trumps all else, the surrounding competitors almost fading into little more than background noise.

At the Australian Open Swimming Championships this week, spectators have been treated to a fine, healthy rivalry between 21-year-old Tara Kinder and 20-year-old Ella Ramsay.

Over, and over, and over, and over again.

Ramsay and Kinder could have been auditioning for a synchronised spot, entwined as they were in a tremendous dance of finals swimming that took place on all four days at the Brisbane Aquatic Centre.

The 200m individual medley. The 400m individual medley. The 200m breaststroke. The 100m breaststroke. Even the B final of the 200m freestyle.

Tara Kinder won the 200m breaststroke at the Brisbane Aquatic Centre. (Getty Images: Chris Hyde)

Up on the blocks, if either one of these swimmers looked to their side, they'd lock eyes with the other.

Game on.

"We've somehow ended up in the lanes next to each other, every final," Kinder laughs when asked about it by ABC Sport.

"Even tonight in the 200 free, the B final, I was like, 'hey', but yeah, it's good.

"I've raced against her since I was like 14 and we've both really just been medley and she sort of stepped up over breaststroke the last few years.

"[At] trials last year, she gave everyone a run for their money in that breaststroke, making that Paris team and I was like, 'I'm gonna step up my game now'."

Ella Ramsay claimed the 100m breaststroke. (Getty Images: Chris Hyde)

Ipswich swimmer Ramsay had a stunning 2024 Olympic trials, earning a spot on the Olympic team in the 200m breaststroke and both 200 and 400 individual medleys, and went on to win a silver medal in the 4x100m medley relay.

But she acknowledged the benefit of having a close rival in Brisbane this past week.

"It's nice to have someone there pushing you," Ramsay tells ABC Sport.

"If you didn't have someone there pushing, you wouldn't get to the next step.

"So it's really nice having her there to compete with."

And it was terrifically evenly matched.

Kinder rediscovering her love for the water

Tara Kinder had a breakout championships, with two gold medal winning swims. (Getty Images: Chris Hyde)

Ramsay, an Olympic finalist from Paris, claimed gold in the 200m IM by 1.24 seconds.

Kinder returned the favour with gold in the 400m medley by 4.13 seconds.

Ramsay edged Kinder in the 100m breaststroke by 0.40 seconds.

Then Kinder took out the 200m breaststroke by 0.64 seconds.

"I've never been on a open national podium before this week," Kinder says.

"So I will take two gold and two silver any day of the week."

Kinder's breakout performance is a credit to her perseverance.

In 2021, the now-21-year-old took a break from the sport, burnt out by the relentless pressure of being an athlete at such a young age.

"2021 was just a hell of a ride for me," Kinder recalls.

Tara Kinder claimed her first four medals at Australian Open Championships this week. (Supplied: Swimming Australia/Delly Carr)

"I got glandular fever leading into Tokyo Olympic trials, that was also my year 12 year in high school, so off the back of a pretty average trials had to do my exams, ended up getting COVID as well.

"I took a bit of a break to do schoolies and everything off the back of the exams and never really felt committed enough to try and get my body back to the fitness that it was at eight months prior.

"So the new year rolled around and I wanted to see what life was like outside of school, but also outside of being an elite athlete. I didn't really have anything else."

Kinder threw herself into university fulltime — "hated it" she said — before the siren call of the pool landed her back in training.

"When Fukuoka [world championship 2023] trials rolled around, I saw that they were going to be in Melbourne," Kinder says.

"So I texted Craig [Jackson] and I was like, 'Hey, do you wanna take me back?'

"And I came back."

Kinder says the time away, during which she studied, moved out of home and moved back in again, helped focus her mind.

"I experienced it all and just realised that I didn't really feel like I had a drive towards something," Kinder says.

"I wasn't the biggest fan of uni so it wasn't like a career-focused passion, so I thought moving back into swimming could be something to look for.

"And then the first few months back swimming it was a lot more fun than it's ever been before. So I thought I'd stick with it."

Ramsay thrilled with new coach Marshall

Ella Ramsay swam in three individual events at the Paris 2024 Olympics. (Getty Images: Chris Hyde)

Ramsay too has had to refocus over the past year.

Following her excellent Olympic performance, Ramsay enjoyed a well-earned couple of months off before returning to the pool — and it appears to have paid off.

"Coming off the Olympics I had a really big physical and mental break," Ramsay explains.

"Not that I like to compare, but comparing to this time last year, I'm actually some of my events were fast. So it's so it's nice to see that and reflect on that."

Part of that may be down to new coach Mel Marshall, who has taken over at Griffith University after Michael Bohl stepped away.

Ella Ramsay credited Mel Marshall for helping her back up after the Olympics. (Getty Images: Chris Hyde)

"We have a good group down there, a good environment and she's [Marshall's] been really good. I can't thank her enough," Ramsay says.

"Coming off the Olympics, it's hard for anyone, but she's got me back into peak performance I'd say, both mental and physical, so I'm very thankful."

Even if that means doing two extra swims on what is supposed to be a day off, with Ramsay swimming the 200m freestyle and 200m backstroke on Thursday.

"Mel gave me heaps of events," Ramsay says with a huge grin.

"Today was supposed to be a day off, but she gave me the 200 free and 200 back instead, so very nice of her."

Now, both women will focus on qualifying for the world championships at the trials in Adelaide in June.

There, they will likely be competing for the same spot on the team, with Olympic medallist Kaylee McKeown a shoo-in for the lead spot.

McKeown pulled out of the 200m medley on Easter Monday and withdrew from the championships entirely on Thursday after announcing on Instagram that she would be leaving Griffith University to train back at the USC Spartans club on the Sunshine Coast.

Kaylee McKeown will be a favourite to swim the 200m medley in Singapore. (Getty Images: Chris Hyde)

The five-time Olympic gold medallist, who won bronze at the 2024 Paris Games in the 200m IM, will almost certainly race the event in Singapore.

But with this burgeoning rivalry? Who knows who will join her on the Australian team, with both Ramsay and Kinder achieving the qualifying time.

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"It's nice to have her [Kinder] there because I can be disappointed in myself and then come back to the drawing board and see what I can do better come next race," Ramsay explains.

"I do get really excited to race next to Ella because she paces a lot differently to me," Kinder says.

"Obviously in that 400m IM I had many seconds [to catch up] — backstroke's my weakest stroke, so I like the chase in the breaststroke, then just to try and hold it out and then hope my freestyle is good enough to hold her off.

"And then the [200 IM] is not at my strongest, but Kaylee's got that anyway," she adds with a laugh.

"But just being able to get on top of that podium there [in the 400] and that rivalry with Ella, and try to be as close to her best time from Paris that I could be, was just the drive, because obviously top two qualify for worlds.

"And just, yeah, focusing on that."

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