SWIMMING.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 301, 20 December 1929, Page 15

SWIMMING.

NOTES AND COMMENTS.

ATTEMPT ON COOK STRAIT.

VALUE .OF LIFE SAVING CLUBS.

FIXTURES,

December 25—Waitemata Club's Carnival. January o—Auckland0 —Auckland Championships. January IC—Mount Eden Club's Carnival. January 23—Start ot New Zealand Championships at Grcymoutli.

Club secretaries and others interested in swimming are invited to contribute notes and information for publication in this column. Correspondence should be addressed to the Sports Editor and posted so as to reach the office not later than Wednesday of each week.

Keen competition characterised the 50 yards club race held by the Ponsonby Club at Shelly Beach last Saturday, 20 entries being received. A similar race is set down for decision to-morrow and if the entries are sufficiently heavy the race will be decided in two divisions, senior/ and junior.

It is the intention of the Fonsonby Club to hold water polo matches in the open water off the Shelly Beach baths. For this purpose floating goals have been made. An impromptu match was played last week-end when it was found that some minor adjustments would be necessary before the new goals were entirely serviceable.

Favoured by smiling weather the North Shore Swimming Club opened its season with a carnival at Narrow Neck last Saturday afternoon. Although the programme did not attract the "big guns" of the sport, there was some keen racing. Edna Rainey scored another success by winning the school girls handicap while Noel Crump had a clay out, winning the schoolboys' race, the 50 yards open handicap and the dual relay race in partnership with Miss M. Ellworth, who was first to touch in the ladies' handicap.

PERSONALS. Parnell's loss is Hamilton's gain. Aub. Baird lias taken a position with the New Zealand Herdtesting Company, and is likely to do most of his swimming this year in the fresh water of the Waikato. Miss Peggy Robertson, regarded ~as Auckland's best lady swimmer at the present time, is holidaying at Russell, and will probably not be seen in action again until the local championships. Sprint champion J. P. Farrell underwent a minor operation to his nose this week. Although it will keep him out of the water far a few days he has no doubts about being able to compete at the Auckland championship meeting on January 9. Farrell has shown good form this season and his supporters are expecting big things of him when the Dominion > championships come off at Greymouth. At one time a member of the New South Wales diving troupe, Barry Young is training again and has hopes of representing Auckland at the championships at Greymouth. W. Hassan, the Auckland board title holder, has been prevented from getting into his best form owing to a finger injury. Hassan is having rather more than his share of bad luck for last year he was kept out of the water for a time as the result of an injury to his head.

WHAT'S THE TROUBLE? Two carnivals were set down for decision this week, but neither eventuated. The Mount Eden Club's meeting, advertised for Monday, fell through because of poor entries, and the gala arranged by the Waitemata Club for Tuesday was abandonded owing to rain. No one could be blamed for the rain, but for the washing out of the Mount Eden carnival the fault seems to lie with the swimmers themselves. It was the second time this season that a club had been compelled to abandon a meeting owing to lack of support. An improvement in the spirit among the Auckland clubs would be a big advantage to the sport generally. It is clear that something will have to be clone to get it booming again.

WEBSTER IN TRAINING. From Nelson comes word that R. J. Webster is in hard training with the idea of making another attempt to swim Cook Straits. A determined young swimmer is Webster, and if spirit alone could take him from one island to another he would have accomplished the feat long ago. At jis attempt last year he was forced to leave the' water owing to intense cold, and this will be his chief hurdle again this year. Webster has accomlished several long swims at Auckland, but nothing like as formidable as the Straits crossing. It will be remembered that towards the end of last season he collapsed while attempting to swim Wellington Harbour and was taken to hospital suffering from appendicitis. For his endurance swims this year Webster will have the best wishes of Auckland enthusiasts, for he ie a trier all the time.

DESERVING OF SUPPORT. Through the stark tragedy of the flying boat disaster off Milford Beach on Thursday evening last there glimmers one bright ray —every effort was made to save the unfortunate 5 men after the machine had made its dive of death. In this connectioon some praise is due to the Milford Surf and Life-saving Club, for it was one of its members, Mr. S. Bacon, who dived beneath the flying boat a number of times and attempted to release its unfortunate occupants. Several other members of. the club assisted in the attempts at rescue, and their efforts, together with those of the other persons who assisted in the work, should not be allowed to pass without notice. The accident serves to illustrate the desirability of having life-saving clubs established at all the main beaches. If a similar tragedy was to occur to-morrow off one of the other beaches the chances are that there would be no fully-qualified life-savers to attempt to bring the unconI scious men ashore. At Milford and Taka■puna life-saving clubs are in existence, but with these exceptions this branch of swimming has been sadly neglected in Auckland. The need of such organisations at all the beaches has been illustrated only too often, and the call will come again. What is most needed for the formation of such clubs, or sections of clubs, is money —the reel, line and other apparatus cannot be got for the singing of a sons. With the hurdle of finance cleared, the swimmers themselves would do their bit. It is known that certain .members-of the Ponsonby.Club are v«ry

keen to follow in the footsteps of Milford and Takapuna, and there are swimmers at some of the other beaches who are of the same mind. The object is a worthy one, and any club that sets out on the same lines as did Milford and Takapuna is deserving of every support. A lifesaving outfit costs £15.

WATER POLO CONTROL,

At a meeting of the Auckland Water Polo Control Board lust evenin?, it was decided to postpone the match between Waitemata A and Parnell, which was to have been played at the Waitemata Swimming Club's carnival on Christmas Day. The following new draw for Monday evening was approved: Ponsonby A v. Grammar; Ponsonby B v. Mount Eden; Waitemata A v. Parnell, Monday, January (5; North Shore v. Grammar; Waitemata A v. Ponsonby A. After the games on Monday next a number of players will be chosen to practise for the Auckland representative team. At the Auckland championship carnival on January 9, a game will be played between Possibles and Probables.

THE OTAGO CENTRE,

CALDER FOR AUSTRALIA?

(By Telegraph.—Press Association.)

DUXEDIX, Thursday,

The Otago Swimming Centre has decided that the X«w Zealand Council be written to and asked to get in touch with the Australian Swimming Association with & view to sending It. C. CaWer, Xew Zealand champion diver, to Australia. It was decided to apply to the Xew Zealand Council for the recognition as Dominion fresh-water records of the following times registered at the Otago championships:—Geddes, 75yds breaststroke, junior boys, 50 4-ss; Geddes, 100 yds, junior boys, 05 4-ss; Miss M. Mathieson. 75yds breaststroke, intermediate girls, 655.

BEACH PATROLS,

LOSS OP AMATEUR STATUS,

(By Telegraph.—Press Association.)

Thursday,

The council of the Xew Zealand Amateur Swimming Association this evening continued the previous ruling that men employed as beach patrols shall lose their amateur status. It was decided to defer giving effect to the ruling until the matter had been referred to the international federation for mandatory direction. The performance of G. Brldson, of Auckland, in swimming 440 yds in 5.16 3-5, was passed as a Xew Zealand salt-water record.