Emma McKeon is determined to “have an impact” on people striving for success in the next phase of her life after Australia’s most successful Olympian confirmed her retirement from all swimming.

With an unsurpassed haul of 14 Olympic medals, McKeon’s record outstrips every other Olympian in Australian history – more than 4300 athletes across 120 years.

The 30-year-old was also an eight-time record holder and declared herself satisfied with her achievements and now ready to pass on everything she has learnt about overcoming hardships and working hard to achieve success.

“If I look back at that young person – I think I was 17 when I missed London – you couldn’t have told her that I was going to go on to do this,” she said.

“It’s just persisting, you have ups and you have downs. You just keep going along and you keep ticking the boxes. I can’t believe where I’m at right now and how I got here.

“Leading in to Paris was definitely the hardest preparation I have had. I lost a lot of confidence in my swimming and felt a lot of pressure to back up what I had done in Tokyo. But I’m proud of how I handled it and proud I could still step up for my team while feeling the self-doubt.

“Great things take time, and the long road there is where all the necessary things are learnt to take us to the next level. I will definitely miss it ... It’s brought me a lot of great relationships and shaped me into the person I am.

“But I’m definitely ready for the next part of my life, which I’m excited for. I don’t think I’ve had the time to reflect on everything yet.

“I want young kids to know that I was once in the same position they are – dreaming of one day doing something big.

“And I want to have an impact on people’s lives by encouraging them to push hard and go after their dreams and what they are passionate about. Don’t be afraid to take on hard things and set aspirational goals that may at time be scary. This is how we push ourselves to achieve our dreams.”

Swimming Australia head coach Rohan Taylor said there couldn’t be a better role model for younger athletes.

“She always carried herself with dignity, and while we all saw her grace, the public cannot truly appreciate how tough she is,” he said.

“Emma is a fierce competitor and she pushed herself through so many challenges during her career – the 100m freestyle gold in Tokyo was one of her best performances, but for me what stands out is her commitment to the team.

“In Tokyo, she swam 50m free semi and then eight minutes later lined up for the 4x100m mixed medley relay.

“Emma chose to do that … she said ‘I’ve got this’, she wanted to help the relay team and they won bronze. It was a clutch performance and there was no question of her wanting to save herself for the 50m free final the next day … which of course she won.

“She always put her hand up to do the difficult things. And in Paris, to see her jump in the pool with her good mates and training partners was a special moment … Emma has a high level of care towards her teammates that will be missed.”

McKeon finished her Olympic career with three medals in Paris – gold in the women’s 4x100m relay, silver in the women’s 4x100m medley relay and a bronze as a heat swimmer in the mixed 4x100m medley.

He longtime coach Michael Bohl said she was a “quiet achiever” despite her stunning success.

“Hated any fuss, didn’t want any notoriety but she took great pride in representing her country and supporting her teammates,” he said.

“Winning that 100m free in Tokyo was a standout for me … her first gold medal in Rio, how do I pick one outstanding moment?

“What Emma has done is unsurpassed, she set the standard for the world for so long and along the way never turned anyone away from an autograph or thought she was bigger than the team.

“And while I coached her for 9-10 years, I must acknowledge the superb work her father did in crafting her technique early in her career … he didn’t work her too hard or too long and this meant she could keep swimming until she was 30 years of age.

“What she has achieved is our sport is unsurpassed.”