Swimmers determined

Press, 24 July 1987, Page 34

Swimmers determined

By

KEVIN TUTTY

Five Christchurch swimmers will pay their own way to Australia in September in their chase to achieve 1988 Olympic qualifying times. Linda Robinson and Phillippa Langrell (Wharenui), Brett McGuigan and Anna Simcic (Avon Aquatics) and Grant Forbes (Christchurch) will compete as a South Island team at the Australian winter championships in Melbourne from September 25 to 27.

The squad has met qualifying times set by the former Wharenui coach, Clive Power, and Mr Noel Smith, a member of the New Zealand Amateur Swimming Association. It will be coached by Brett Naylor. The Australian meeting will give the squad members their second taste of international competition in a month.

On August 8, Forbes, McGuigan, Langrell and Simcic will compete against a squad of Australians in Wellington, and

Robinson will compete in the Pan Pacific championships in Brisbane from August 13 to 16.

• In early January a New Zealand team has been invited to swim in a Grand Prix series in Australia involving a team of 25 Europeans, and squads from Canada and Great Britain. The series, from January 2 to 10, will be in Perth, Adelaide and Canberra, and a team of six New Zealanders is likely to attend, said the executive director of the

N.Z.A.S.A., Mr David Sargeant, yesterday. In Mairch an Australian Institute of Sport squad of up to 25 swimmers will compete in the New Zealand championships in Dunedin on its return from a meeting in Hawaii.

Mr Sargeant said the N.Z.A.S.A. would endeavour to get its swimmers resident overseas home for the championships, but would probably need sponsorship to do so because its funds were limited.