Several Swimmers In Line For Perth Trip

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29798, 14 April 1962, Page 9

Several Swimmers In Line For Perth Trip

CAN the eve of the national swimming championships in February. Mr A. J. Donaldson, convener of the New Zealand selection panel foresaw the possibility of as many as 10 swimming nominations being made for the Dominion’s Empire Games team this year. Subsequent events proved his prediction as being on the conservative side, for 14 names have been forwarded to the Empire Games selectors for consideration in the choosing of New Zealand's team to Perth.

This can be interpreted as an expression of confidence by the selectors in the standard attained by the top competitors during the past summer. The times achieved by swimmers in this period have fully justified the holding of a 12-week training school for the Game’s nominees at the Tauranga and Newmarket pools.

The performances of the five New Zealand swimmers in the Australian championships at Melbourne placed the potential of our leading competitors clearly in perspective. Miss M Macrae < Auckland), the backstroke champion, proved herself the New Zealander closest to world times while Miss V. Haddon (Manatvatu). the breaststroke champion, conned the good impression

created at Naenae. Both swimmers wen Australian titles in their first experience of overseas competition and must be given priority in the rankings Although Miss L. Moore (Wellington) disappointed in the 440yds freestyle, she redeemed her reputation by finishing a close fourth in the 220yds and in so doing enhanced not only her own chances, but also those of the Canterbury champion, Miss S. Nicholson. The competition with which these two will be able to provide each other at the training school could make both possible 440yds freestyle finalists at Perth From the results obtained in Melbourne by A. H. Seagar (Auckland), backstroke, and K. Stevens (Manawatu), butterfly, it would be fair to assume that the national champions in the two strokes, A. B. Robertson (Auckland) and D. F. Gerrard (Auckland) respectively, are potential Perth finalists. Both would have gained fourth place over 220yds in the Australian finals and they are improving with almost every appearance.

It is to be hoped that efforts to include a 440yds medley in the Perth swimming ’programme bear fruit, for in Seagar New Zealand has a swimmer of the high-

est class in this exacting event. At Melbourne he reduced his previous best time by 18ssc and is now possibly sixth in world rankings. A gold medal swim at Perth would be well within his capabilities. Mrs H. Rogers (Waikato), who, as Miss H. McCleary, was nominated for the Olympic team to Rome, made a successful return to top class racing this season and won the national medley and butterfly titles. At Naenae she was not wholly convincing in winning the 110yds butterfly, but subsequently she improved greatly and returned times which were faster than all but Dawn Fraser of this year's Australian title finalists. Miss Fraser, incidentally, will not be swimming butterfly at Perth. Another Waikato swimmer, H. W. Graham, has made good progress in breaststroke in the last year and it is a safe assumption that this improvement will continue. He has developed later than his rivals, M. Hay (Canterbury) G. Wakeley (Auckland) and M. Webb (Bay of Plenty), and, unlike them, has not had the opportunity of a trip to Australia with a New Zealand team

Lagging The times of New Zealand’s leading male freestylers are still lagging behind those of Australia, Canada and Britain, but definite progress has been achieved. The sprint champion, P. Hatch (Wellington) has thrived on the close competition of G. Dann (Canterbury) and the national junior champion, R. Walker (Wellington) and the training school should afford the means of continued progress. In this respect it is unfortunate that Dann has not been included in the school, for he has thrice broken 60sec for 110 yards this season.

Walker, a youth of great possibilities, has thoroughly earned his nomination and his inclusion in the team would be worthwhile for experience in high class competition if nothing else. T. C Dalton (Auckland) has come on splendidly in recent weeks and B. C. Crowder (Wellington), over 440yds, and G. Monteith (Manawatu), over 1650yds, have both made worthwhile advances, although Empire Games finals may be a little beyond their reach at the present time. The main point, however, is that all these swimmers have 12 weeks of concentrated training ahead of them and times hitherto thought to be outside the capabilities of New Zealand competitors could well be attained at the end of the period. As an experiment in the preparation of New Zealand teams for overseas competition, the results of the training school will be watched with interest.