Hodge was the outstanding home performer at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre claiming golds in the 100 metres backstroke, 400m freestyle and 200m medley events in the S9 category.

Chinese swimmer Jincheng also took home three golds in the sprint events, winning in the 50m freestyle, 50m butterfly and 50m backstroke in the S5 category.

Hodge took home six medals in total, as alongside his three golds he won silvers in the men’s 50m backstroke and 100m butterfly, and bronze medals in the 100m breaststroke and 50m freestyle.

There was also double gold in the women’s events for Singapore’s Yip Pin Xiu, who won the women’s 50m and 100m backstroke titles in the S2 category.

Hosts Australia topped the overall medals table, with their haul including 11 golds.

Reflecting on the opening round Hodge said: "It’s always a lot better having a home crowd behind you cheering you on all the way.

"I got a few little technical things to work on returning home but I’m very happy with where I’m at in my schedule going into the Para Swimming World Championships and then eventually the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games."

The second round of the Para Swimming World Series is scheduled to be held in Lignano Sabbiadoro, Italy, from March 9 to 12.

The full calendar for this year’s World Series is still to be finalised, although points from each round will be calculated using a standardised World Para Swimming points system.

The best male and female swimmers are decided based on the rankings at the end of the season.

Carlos Serrano of Colombia and Tanja Scholz of Germany were the respective overall male and female winners during the 2022 season.