Swimming with a purpose

Tauranga swimmer Jack Daines (middle) was named top swimmer at the recent Central North Island Tri-Series. Photo: Liz van Welie Aquatics Swim Club Facebook.

Liz van Welie Aquatics Swim Club is leading Tauranga-based Swim Club for Juniors after the recent Bay of Plenty Swimming Junior Championships in Rotorua.

From the club 14 boys and 10 girls, all aged 12 years and under, completed 142 races over two days where only five Liz van Welie Aquatics Swim Club disqualifications.

Coach Daniel Cooper says he is proud of the efforts put in by the new club's 24 young swimmers.

'The more swimmers you have, the greater the risk of multiple DQs” says Cooper.

'We've worked very hard in practice on getting the little things right for this young age group. How they train is how they race.”

On top of the clubs hard work, 15 swimmers also won personal bests.

'The parents and swimmers were certainly on a bit of a high” says Club Chairperson John Delaney.

'There was a great team spirit, the swimmers had put in the efforts in training and it's great to see the results” he says.

The club is bulging with talent with national swimmer Matt Hyde recently returning from a very challenging Queensland State Champs, competing against a number of Olympians and then 15 year old Jack Daines being named top swimmer at the recent Central North Island Tri-Series.

To top that off 15-year-old club swimmer Olivia Cummings has finished 3rd in the Future ChampioNZ Triathlon to world ranked athletes three years older than her.

John says he is very proud of the club, the committee, the parent volunteers and the work by staff at Liz van Welie Aquatics.

'To have our own facility is a godsend” says Delaney. 'The swimmers know that when they arrive, they are at a venue that is entirely for them.”

Owners Greg Cummings and Liz van Welie are very pleased with progress to date.

'When we opened in April we had goals and dreams but they were a year or more out. For the club to be achieving these results with 9 months of solid work is very pleasing” says van Welie.

'Liz and I are big on measures. Daniel is tasked with providing measurable data on the progress of swimmers so we know that we're all going in the right direction.

Our whole byline at Liz van Welie Aquatics is ‘Swim with Purpose' and the juniors are evidence we're doing just that.”

And the numbers don't lie as LVWASC finished a very admirable third in the Bay of Plenty behind established clubs.

Whakatane finished on 820.5 to win overall, Swim Rotorua were second on 723 and LVWASC third overall on 679 making LVWASC the leading club for juniors in Tauranga.

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