Swimming: Gaualofa leads charge as 23 medals go north

Auckland Age Group Championships will be held at the West Wave Aquatic Centre in Henderson from December 6-8. Photo/Thinkstock.

Northland swimmers took away a total of 23 medals at the Auckland Junior Swimming Invitational, nearly double what they picked up last year.

With only nine swimmers from Northland competing, it was 11-year-old Bay of Islands swimmer Logan Gaualofa who was the outstanding participant.

Gaualofa won a total of six medals at the event in West Auckland in taking gold in the 50m backstroke, silver in the 50m freestyle, 100m freestyle and 50m breaststroke and bronze in the 200m backstroke and 200m freestyle.

Fellow Bay of Islands swimmer Jeremy Elliott, 12, also struck gold in the 200m butterfly and brought home bronze in 100m butterfly and 200m freestyle.

Northwave swimmers Mia Gordon, 11, and Ciara Smith, 12, both picked up three medals each in three breaststroke events.

Gordon won gold in the 50m and silver in 100m and the 200m, while Smith struck gold in the 200m and bronze in the 50m and 100m.

The other gold medallist was 11-year-old Caitlin Ahlers from Manaia who won gold in the 50m butterfly.

Kaitaia 10-year-old Tai Murray from the Nga Papahu Swimming Club was also in the medals, winning silver in the 100m breaststroke and bronze in the 50m breaststroke and 100m freestyle.

The other medal winners were 12-year-old Samantha Bailey from Whangarei who won bronze in the 100m and 200m butterfly, Dargaville's Lathan Hutchinson-Walters, 12, who won bronze in the 50m backstroke and Whangarei's Ariel Kelman, 11, who won bronze in the 200m freestyle.

Meanwhile, the next major carnival for Northland swimmers is the Auckland Age Group Championships, which will be held at the West Wave Aquatic Centre in Henderson, from December 6-8.