Wanganui's Jazmin Phillips (centre) won gold in the 200m Breaststroke in Hamilton by 3.5 secs from her nearest rival. Photo/Supplied
Wanganui's Jazmin Phillips (centre) won gold in the 200m Breaststroke in Hamilton by 3.5 secs from her nearest rival. Photo/Supplied
Three Subway Wanganui Swim Club mates made waves at the New Zealand Division 2 championships in Hamilton last week after posting some outstanding results against strong company.
The competition that ended on Saturday featured eyecatching swims by Zoe Groves (17), Clarissa Nowak (15) and Jazmin Phillips (15), all coached byrelative newcomer Andy McLay.
The girls won a total of 11 medals with Phillips claiming two gold (100m and 200m breaststroke) and a silver (200m freestyle regional relay), while Groves picked up six silver medals ( 200m backstroke, 200m freestyle, 200m freestyle regional relay, 800m freestyle, 50m backstroke, 50m freestyle) and two bronze (400m freestyle, 100m backstroke).
Nowak only made one final from her 11 races. In the 200m breaststroke final Phillips cleared out by more than 3.5s on her nearest rival.
All three recorded personal best times in the water attracting the eye of regional selectors.
All three swimmers were selected to swim for the Wellington regional relay teams. Phillips and Groves both made the Wellington 15 and over A team and Nowak the 15 and over B team. It was a busy week for the teenagers, especially for Phillips who swam 20 races over the four days making eight finals. Groves swam 19 races to reach nine finals, while Nowak stretched out in 11 races.
Subway Wanganui Swim Club's Clarissa Nowak shows her backstroke style at the national division 2 championships in Hamilton. Photo/Supplied
Wanganui finished 10th out of the 55 woman's teams.
McLay said the experience gave the girls confidence and augured well for upcoming events, in particular the New Zealand Age Group Championship in Wellington at the end of April. "The girls did fantastically well and it was a good championship to be involved in (division 2) with all the very best swimmers not racing. The age groups is our next focus. I'm only in my sixth week coaching here in Wanganui and have just carried on the good work done by Jane Lowe (previous coach)," Mclay said.
The upcoming New Zealand Open Championships, which double as the Commonwealth Games trials, will feature Wanganui swimmers Sophie Couper and Laura O'Keeffe.
