Emma Elizabeth Carney (born 29 July 1971) is an Australian former professional triathlete and two time World Triathlon Champion.

Carney was born in England, but moved to Australia with her family, including sister Clare who also became an athlete, at an early age.

[5] Carney began her sporting life as a runner: when she was in grade four, she was the only girl to win a medal in the school (Wesley College) cross-country mixed race.

Emma progressed as a runner and represented Australia in 2 World Cross Country Championships (Budapest, Hungary 1994 and Durham, UK 1995) and two road relay teams (Seoul, South Korea Women's Ekiden 1993 and Chiba, Japan Ekiden 1994 the latter running the fastest time of her 5km leg and the team winning a bronze medal for Australia).

"[6] In November 1994, she fulfilled her father's prediction, winning the ITU World title – her first international triathlon – by a record margin of 2 minutes 12 seconds.

[5][6] From June 1995 to April 1997, Carney recorded an unbroken string of 12 straight ITU World Cup wins.

[7] She was later diagnosed with ventricular tachycardia, a life-threatening condition that causes the heart to beat too fast and out of control, usually during high-intensity anaerobic exercise.

[6][8] The doctors found it difficult to diagnose her condition, partly because Carney's resting heart rate when asleep was only 21 bpm.

[6] It also happened in 2008 when she was taking part in the 299 km Melbourne-to-Warrnambool bike race, when she forgot about her condition and attempted to chase down the leading pack.

[9] Carney has had a strained relationship with her sport's governing body, Triathlon Australia (TA), partly because of their reluctance to allow her to compete, with her well-known heart condition, in their races.

In her Autobiography, Emma also describes the loss of her sister Jane to cancer and her brief marriage which she claims the only highlight was the birth of her son Jack.