Treffers surfs for fun

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 34031, 20 December 1975, Page 46

Treffers surfs for fun

(By

KEVIN TUTTY)

Mark Treffers will be unavailable for the i Canterbury surf lifesaving team to compete against Victoria on January 22 and 29. Treffers was named in a 20-man squad on Thursday from which the final team to meet the Victorians will be named. But Treffers, who made his surf debut last Sunday, said he would not compete because the surf carnivals clashed with swimming events.

“I’m entering surf races for a bit of fun this season, but I won’t be competing in them unless I feel they won’t interfere with my swimming training.” “There were surf trials for the Canterbury team last Tuesday, but I was training in the pool. I have to draw the line somewhere, and trying to make Montreal is more important at the moment.” LAST SEASON Treffers said this would probably be his last season in swimming, and he wanted to put everything into it. He passed six units this month to finish his law degree and is now concentrating on his build-up for the New Zealand championships. The championships in Dunedin from March 17 to 20 are the final chance for New Zealand swimmers to qualify for the Olympic team. Treffers will swim in the Canterbury championships, the finals of which start on January 23 — the day after the first carnival against Victoria. Two days later the second carnival the South Island swimming championships will be held at Timaru. Treffers said he wants to swim in these events “to get an idea of how I am going.” The surf races were out because he did not want to risk getting a cold or other illness, and the national surf championships late in February would be out for the same reason, said Treffers. They are three weeks before the swimming titles. “I may swim in some of the Sunday morning surf carnivals if they are not too

near any major swim meet-! ings.” At the New Zealand championships Treffers will concentrate on three events — -the 1500 m freestyle and the 200 m and 400 m individual medleys. He will swim the two longer events at the Olympics — if he makes the team — and he will swim the 200 m medley at the nationals to help his sprinting. Treffers may also swimj

the 400 m freestyle, but that depends on whether John McConnochie of Otago returns from the United States to attempt to qualify for the Olympics.

Treffers said McConnochie would probably enter both the 400 m medley and freestyle, and if that was the case he did not think it would be wise to swim the 400 m freestyle, with the 200 m medley two events Hater.