From Jessica & Noémie Fox to Cate & Bronte Campbell, here are Aussie’s best Olympic siblings

Jessica and Noemie Fox are both successful Olympic canoeists. 

While the elder of the two is perhaps more well known for her paddling prowess, having medalled in multiple Olympic games, Noemie made headlines in Paris 2024 when she won gold in the canoe slalom women’s kayak cross final.

Shouting herself hoarse on the sidelines was Jess, who jumped in the pool after the win to celebrate with her little sister.

“I’m just so proud of her,” the athlete told Nine. “I’m drenched because I jumped into the water. There’s so much emotion in this moment. It’s amazing.”

After her gold-medal performance, Noemie spoke about living in Jess’ “shadow”.

“She’s the greatest of all time in our sport and that’s something, when I was starting out, that was really hard to deal with,” the athlete said, as per The Guardian. “Because I always thought that I didn’t get the ingredients to do well in this sport.”

“You’d have extended family that would be like, ‘oh, you do it too’. But watching her, it’s just such a privilege and inspiration, and it really fuelled me. And when someone like that really believes in you and tells you you’ve got to go and get it, that’s what you do.”

The McKeown sisters know their way around a pool.

Now retired, Taylor once specialised in breaststroke. During her swimming career, she won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games, and a silver with the Aussie team at Rio 2016.

Meanwhile, her sister Kaylee has won an impressive nine medals in total over just two games, Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024.

The sisters have been mutually supportive of their respective careers.

During the Paris 2024 Olympics, Taylor joined her mother and two brothers Lachlan and Bailey to cheer on Kaylee.

Taylor told reporters that she was “so nervous, so excited” watching her little sister compete.

“We saw in the last 10 metres she just started to pull ahead. And we were like, ‘she’s done it’. Over the moon,” Taylor enthused.

Just 16 at the time of her Olympic debut (Beijing 2008), Cate Campbell won two bronze medals. She would go on to earn one more bronze, four gold, and one silver. Her last Olympics was Tokyo 2020. 

Her younger sister Bronte, meanwhile, has two golds and one bronze to her name, competing from London 2012 to Paris 2024 so far. 

The duo became the first Australian sisters to compete in the same event in London 2012, though neither medalled. 

Cate previously revealed that she and Bronte dreamed of attending the Olympics together when they were nine and seven respectively. While their dream became a reality, it wasn’t always easy. 

“The question I am asked most often is: ‘Can you tell us about your sibling rivalry?’ When asked this, I used to plaster a smile on my face, and wave my hand airily; seemingly unconcerned,” Cate wrote for Mamamia.

“But really, I’m trying to swat the tiresome question away like I would a pesky fly. ‘If I can’t win, the next best thing is watching your sister win’, I’d happily trill, my voice going up an octave.

“This care-free response hides the truth. It hides the tears we have both shed. It hides the heartbreak we have both felt. But it also hides the true depth of our relationship, which, like any relationship is complex and layered.”

Emma McKeon is the most successful Australian Olympian of all time. Over three games, she has six golds, three silvers, and four bronze medals to her name.

Her older brother David is also an accomplished swimmer, competing at the London 2012 and Rio 2016 games. The closest he got to the podium was when he and the Aussie men’s team placed fourth in the 4x200m freestyle relay in Rio.

No jealousy to be seen, David is Emma’s constant cheerleader – cheering and screaming from the sidelines (or his family’s lounge room during COVID lockdown in 2021).

Watching Emma dominate at the Tokyo Olympics, David described his sister as “incredible” while appearing on the Jade Straney and Damien Leith radio show, revealing that he and his family were “speechless” following the race. 

The siblings even jointly ran a swim clinic in 2022 at the Yass Swim Club in NSW. Both Emma and David were interactive with the kids, sharing swimming stories and tips. 

Three-time Olympian Molly Goodman is a national and world champion in rowing. As part of the Australian Women’s Rowing Team, she is yet to podium at the games.

Her brother, Thomas Goodman, is also an accomplished athlete – making the Paris Paralympics for the triathlon event. He was born with hemiplegia, resulting in severe muscle weakness down one side of his body. 

Speaking about the sporty siblings, their dad Andrew credited their success to years of hard work.

“We’re not quite sure where the genetics come from actually … we weren’t sporty and we weren’t pushy parents,” he said, as per ABC.

“So these guys have done this on their own, really.”

The proud father added that his children are competitive and inspirational towards one another. 

With nine Olympic medals to his name, Ian Thorpe is one of Australia’s most famous swimmers. Indeed, it was a big moment when McKeown won her fifth gold in Paris 2024 – meaning she had tied with Thorpey’s impressive Olympic record.

Lesser known is the swimmer’s big sister Christina Thorpe. 

Technically – we cheated here – because she didn’t quite make it to the Olympics. However, Christina did swim for the Australian National Team. And, if it wasn’t for her, Ian never would have taken to the pool in the first place!

Yep, it was Christina who inspired her little brother to start swimming. Originally a netballer, the athlete began swimming as rehab for a broken arm. A then-eight-year-old Ian would observe from the sidelines.

“I remember watching on, being really bored and my mum said to me, ‘if you train properly once a week, you could probably swim at one of these things too’,” Thorpe said, as per the Australian Olympic Committee.

“I thought to myself, that sounds really good.”