VICTORIA TRIP SWIMMERS' AIM

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30930, 10 December 1965, Page 19

VICTORIA TRIP SWIMMERS' AIM

The presence of the convener of the National selection panel (Mr A. J. Don* aldson) and imminent announcement of the New Zealand team to compete in Victoria will give the premier events carnival at the Centennial Pool tomor* row night unusual interest.

Performances at this carnival and at a similar meeting in Palmerston North the same night are likely to weigh heavily with toe selectors in their deliberations next week. The chief Interest will lie in the women’s 110yds and 220yds freestyle. On present form there is very little between toe contestants over the shorter distance, and this suggests a splendid raee and a blanket finish.

The triple national freestyle champion, Miss A. McMillan, has carried out a thorough conditioning programme since coming to Christchurch, but December is possibly too early for her to produce a peak performance in competition. Within Her Compass

Understandably, her times in Christchurch carnivals in recent weeks have not been startling, but the time of her fastect rival, June Amies (Bay of Plenty), Imin 7.4aec, is well within her compass at this stage. The New Zealand junior representative, Suzanne Woonton (Auckland) will be Mim McMillan’s greatest threat over 220yds. But she has been sprinting well in Auckland and can be expected to produce two good efforts.

The other invited girls, Judith Reid (Auckland), Janice Durand (Hawke’s Bay) and Susan Bailey (Auckland), are remarkably even over 110yds but Mim Reid, the former Christchurch girl, could figure prominently in the longer race.

Miss J. P. Clark, holder of the Canterbury and South Island women’s freestyle titles, will contest the 110yds event, and the provincial junior champion, Linsey Falk, will take her place in the 220yds field. For both girls there to a challenge to heed off one or more of the invited swimmers. The other premier events

are in men’s breaststroke. H. W. Graham (Auckland), the national men’s champion, was one of the heroes of the last swimming season, but on current times he has little to spare from bis junior counterpart, I. Johnstone (Otago). The Canterbury champion, W. P. . Brown, will keep both Graham and Johnstone up to their work and there will bo a good opportunity to assess the relative merits of a quartet of four local juniors, John Edmonds, Peter Hay, Max King and Ron Wilson, who will make up the fields. The carnival will be important, too, for Jennifer Halsey, another Christchurch aspirant for a place in the team to Victoria. Premier events in her speciality, backstroke will come later in the season, but on Saturday she has the opportunity to swim a good time in a long course pooL

Three On List

Three Canterbury ewim> men have forced their way into the national ranking Mat for November.

Jennifer Halsey (Wherenui) to first equal in women’a 110 yard backstroke; Alteon McM&an (Wharenui) is fourth m women’s 220 yard freestyie; W. P. Brown (Sockbum Park) to second in men’s

220 yard breaststroke. AU the camivato held tn Christchurch ao far hove been held la short course pooto, so the leading ewimmen have raced mainly over 100 yards—a distance not catend for by the ranking Hit

Canterbury has gained a toehold on the ranking Nat, but Auckland is the dominant centre. Auckland eompetiton are lint or flat equal in 13 of the 18 events; of the 90 swimmen listed, 52 are Auckianden.