So Close For Sienna

At the Sydney Olympic Games, 15-year-old Leisel Jones broke the Australian age-group record in the 100m Breaststroke in a time of 1:07.49 to claim the silver medal. Leisel of course went on to be a World and Olympic Champion in the years to follow, becoming a legend of the sport.

Now, just shy of 24 years later, Leisel’s incredible record fell to Albury swimmer, Sienna Toohey when she clocked 1:07.01 at the 2024 Australian Olympic Trials. Sienna led the field in the final through the first 50m, right up to 15 metres from the wall, when Jenna Strauch and Ella Ramsey caught her. Sienna touched the wall in third missing selection by 0.07 seconds.

Sienna’s rapid rise through the ranks of Australian swimming has been extraordinary, with her times dropping throughout 2024. From her swim at Australian Age Championships in April, Sienna dropped a further 0.71 seconds off her PB at Olympic Trials, which was her main goal leading into the event.

The Year 9 student at Albury High will be 19-years-old when LA 2028 comes around and apart from her schooling, swimming is her main focus. As for her schooling there’s no problems there. According to her father, Sienna’s teachers make sure she gets her assignments done, even though she’s in the water 8 times per week with dryland sessions on top. He should know, as he is the Albury High school principal!

We can’t wait to see what the future holds for Sienna and continue to support her journey as a Funkita F-Team athlete.