Ideal fitness test

Press, 17 January 1986, Page 26

Ideal fitness test

The performances of three Commonwealth Games aspirants, Grant Forbes and Paul Tozer (both Christchurch) and Linda Robinson (Wharenui), will provide much of the interest in the Canterbury swimming championships which start at Queen Elizabeth II Park this evening. The championships have been in decline — in both standard and entries — since the days 12 years ago when the province was at its peak in the sport. Four clubs in the Christchurch area — Avon Aouatics, Christchurch, New Brighton Hertz and Wharenui — dominate the entries. Four other Christ-

church clubs between them supply eight competitors. None of the three seeking Commonwealth Games places is likely to better the qualifying times at the championships, but they will be using the races to gauge their fitness, and how hard they will have to swim in the next couple of months to achieve their targets. Forbes has already achieved the Games qualifying time in the 100 m breaststroke, and he is concentrating his energy on that event at present. He has entered eight events at the championships. Tozer, who came within 0.6 s of the 200 m individual medley qualifying time at the Pacific Games in Tokyo

last year will be using the championships to sharpen up his speed after several weeks of heavy training. Robinson has a heavy programme in the girls 14 years age group and her main bid for a Games qualifying time will probably come at the B.N.Z. New Zealand championships in Hamilton in March. There should be some spirited competition in the lower age-groups at the championships as competitors chase times that will qualify them for the New Zealand age-group championships at Feilding and the division B age-group championships at Hastings, both to be held in February.