Members of the Whanganui team.
The Whanganui Swimming Club team was small but mighty at the Wellington Junior Champs. This year swimmers aged 12 and under travelled from all corners of the country to participate in the event, for which qualifying times are required, resulting in some exceptional racing at the Coastlands Aquatic Centre.
Among the 180 competitors representing 28 clubs, the Whanganui team of nine coached by former Olympian Richard Gheel not only gained invaluable experience but also placed fifth overall.
They achieved: 30 personal bests (PBs) a rainbow of coloured ribbons for top 10 placings,15 podium finishes, and four new Whanganui age-group records. The Whanganui team was especially strong in the 12-year-old girls’ age group, where both the 200m breaststroke and 400m Individual Medley (IM) featured a Whanganui 1-2 finish.
Ziva Bunker, 12, achieved nine medals and set three new Whanganui age group records in the process: 1 - 50m and 200m breaststroke, and both the 100m and 200m backstroke, 2 - 50m butterfly, 400m freestyle and 400m IM, and 3 - 50m breestyle and 100m butterfly.
In swimming, records are maintained separately for events swum in 25m pools (short course) and 50m pools (long course). Ziva’s time of 32.27 in the 50m butterfly inched 0.02 seconds off Georgia Abraham’s previous Whanganui short course age group record for a 12-year-old female set in 2018.
In both the 100m and 200m backstroke events, Ziva’s times of 1:10.71 and 2:31.43 respectively broke two additional Whanganui short course age group records for a 12-year-old female, both likewise previously held by Georgia.
Ryleigh Dorricott, also 12, achieved five podium finishes and improved her existing Whanganui short course age group record in the 400m IM by 2 more seconds, finishing in 5:39.49.
She placed: 1 - 100m breaststroke, 200m IM and 400m IM, 2 - 200m breaststroke, and 3 - 100m IM In the same age group, Harriet Aplin narrowly missed out on a podium finish in the 50m backstroke, touching just 0.01 second behind third place, and Lola Leport-Symonds competed strongly in three breaststroke events at her first Wellington regional meet.
In the 10-year-old age group, Sophia Kopu secured 3rd place in the 100m breaststroke and achieved seven additional top 10 finishes and Thaara Goh Ramesh, 10, sliced three seconds off her 50m breaststroke PB.
Ataahua Wilson-Winterburn, 9, swam with impressive determination in her first regional championship.
In the boys’ division, James Macpherson, 12, achieved eight PBs, and Zion Tiraha, 11, slashed 4.4 seconds off his 50m butterfly PB.
The club would like to express its gratitude to all their ongoing sponsors and supporters - especially NZCT, David Jones Motors, Hayman Industries, Loaders, the St Johns Club, Grumpy Old Men Enterprises (GOME) and the Four Regions Trust.
The support of sponsors is vital in keeping the sport affordable and is helping swimmers of all levels achieve their goals. Looking ahead, the club’s next major event is the Steelformers West Coast Champs, Whanganui’s premier annual swim meet, set to take place at the Splash Centre on Sunday, November 3.
Last year the event attracted 150 competitors from around the lower North Island and provided Whanganui swimmers with an exciting opportunity to race in their home pool.
The build-up is already well under way, and this year’s event promises to be just as exciting.