Lynette Velma McClements (born 11 May 1951), also known by her married name Lyn McKenzie, is an Australian butterfly swimmer of the 1960s and 1970s who won a gold medal in the 100-metre butterfly at the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1968), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XIX Olimpiada) and commonly known as Mexico 1968 ( es, México 1968), were an international multi-sport eve ...

in Mexico City. Coming from Perth, Western Australia, McClements was an asthmatic, who took up swimming to relieve her ailment. Originally concentrating on the freestyle and backstroke, she switched to butterfly in the mid-1960s. Only a year before the Olympics, McClements was almost ready to retire from competitive swimming, when her uncle

Les McClements Samuel Leslie McClements (12 May 1922 – 27 October 1973) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Claremont in the West Australian National Football League (WANFL) and in Tasmania with Clarence. Although not the tallest going aroun ...

, a professional

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

player convinced her otherwise. In 1968, she claimed her first Australian title in the 100-metre butterfly, earning selection for the Mexico City Olympics, where she was considered an outsider for the event. In the 4×100-metre medley relay, she combined with Lynne Watson,

Judy Playfair Judith White Playfair (born 14 September 1953) is an Australian breaststroke swimmer of the 1960s, who won a silver medal in the 4×100-metre medley relay at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. Swimming career Playfair was born in Rose Ba ...

and

Janet Steinbeck Janet May Steinbeck (born 27 February 1951), also known by her married name Janet Murray, was an Australian competitive swimmer of the 1960s who raced internationally in the Olympics and Commonwealth Games, winning two silver medals as a member ...

to claim silver behind the United States team. McClements had put Australia in the lead during the butterfly leg, but Steinbeck was overhauled by Susan Pedersen in the anchor freestyle leg. McClements was said to be lacking confidence prior to the 100-metre butterfly, until the men's captain Michael Wenden pulled her aside in an attempt to coax her into believing that she could win. She relegated the American pair of Ellie Daniel and

Susan Shields Susan Marie Shields (born February 3, 1952), also known by her married name Susan White, is an American former competition swimmer and Olympic medalist. She represented the United States as a 16-year-old at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico Cit ...

into the minor medals and world record-holder Ada Kok to fourth, posting a time of 1 minute 5.5 seconds. She later missed the final of the 200-metre butterfly. In 1969, McClements won both the 100-metre and 200-metre butterfly titles at the Australian Championships. However, the following year, she was disqualified after being deemed to be using an illegal stroke. After being overlooked for selection for the

1970 Commonwealth Games The 1970 British Commonwealth Games (Scottish Gaelic: Geamannan a 'Cho-fhlaitheis Bhreatainn 1970) were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, from 16 to 25 July 1970. This was the first time the name British Commonwealth Games was adopted, the first time ...

, she retired. Her daughter, Jacqueline McKenzie, represented Australia at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

in the 200-metre and 400-metre individual medley.

Honours

In 1991 McClements was inducted into Sport of Australia's Hall of Fame, and in 2008 to the Swimming WA's Hall of Fame. In 2018 she was the second inductee into Swimming WA's Hall of Legends, recognising "outstanding swimming performances at an international level... deemed to have inspired the nation and to have established the name of the athlete, their State and their country on the world stage."

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:McClements, Lyn 1951 births Living people Australian female butterfly swimmers Swimmers from Perth, Western Australia Swimmers at the 1968 Summer Olympics Olympic swimmers for Australia Olympic gold medalists for Australia Olympic silver medalists for Australia Medalists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Sportswomen from Western Australia Olympic gold medalists in swimming Olympic silver medalists in swimming Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees 20th-century Australian women 21st-century Australian women

Honours

See also

References