Mollie O'Callaghan has set aside a rollercoaster few days outside the pool to set a landmark freestyle world record.
It is an emphatic start to this new post-Ariarne Titmus stage of her outstanding swimming career.
The Australian swimming star became the first woman to go under one minute 50 seconds for 200m, clocking 1:49.77 at a short-course World Cup event near Chicago.
The record swim comes three days after teammate and great rival Titmus stunned the sport by announcing her retirement.
Also, Swimming Australia had released a statement a week ago, saying there were fake quotes attributed to O'Callaghan on social media about transgender athletes.
The 21-year-old, a five-time Olympic gold medallist, is the first Australian to hold the short-course 200m freestyle world record since Libby Lenton in 2005.
Hong Kong's Siobhan Haughey had set the previous mark of 1:50.31 four years ago at the world championships.
O'Callaghan had shown her form a week ago when she set a national record of 1:50.77 - also the third-fastest in history.
On Sunday (AEDT), she beat compatriot Lani Pallister by a whopping 2.29 seconds.
"I was so nervous all day," O'Callaghan told Swimming World magazine.
"I knew I was capable of doing that swim - it was just if.
"And a lot of times, it might not work out, but I knew I had two-tenths left to try and crack it.
"It's nice to do short course, it's such a big change from long course. It's a different beast at the end of the day.
"I have a great support team behind me to get me to this moment."
Titmus holds the long-course world record of 1:52.23, taking it from O'Callaghan in June last year at the Australian trials.
In one of the highlights of Australia's Paris Olympics, O'Callaghan set an Olympic record of 1:53.27 to beat Titmus in their much-hyped match race and claim the 200m gold medal.
