SWIMMING

Evening Star, Issue 19410, 19 November 1926, Page 12

SWIMMING

[By Hooker.]

FIXTURES. December 9 and 11.—Otago Amateur Championships.

Applications from tho various swimming clubs and organisations for the use of tho baths on specified evenings for club practice have been granted by the City Council for the hour 8.45 to 9.45 p.m., and subject to the condition that not less than twelve members shall be present and make use of the baths on each club night. Permission has also been granted the Otago Centre to hold its meetings at the baths on the first Monday in each month between the hours of 7.15 and 9.45 p.m., tho meetings to b,e held in tlio large dressing room. The success that attended the Dunedin Amateur Swimming Club’s carnival last Tuesday seems a good augury for the season, and if the large attendance is maintained at future meets there will he every reason for the hope that before the end of the season swimming will be found occupying the place in public favor that it deserves. There was not a hitch of any kind in the programme, and the organisers of this carnival have set a standard in this respect that other clubs will do well to emulate. Though no particularly fast times were put up some good swimming was witnessed for so early in the season, and the prospects for the Otago championships appear quite bright. , Miss D. Magee, who won the 66 2-Byds ladies’ handicap off 3scc, is a big acquisition to the Dunedin Club. She is an ex-Aucklander, and won the 100yds junior girls’ championship title of Now Zealand in 1923. She swam a useful race on Tuesday, and is a nice little swimmer with an easy crawl, though by her style she appears to be best suited for the shorter distances.

The 66 2-3yds ladies’ handicap marked the first apearance as seniors of the intermediate girls’ champions of New Zealand—Miss K. Miller and Miss M. Jepson—the pair swimming from tho same mark. Miss Jepson got away more quickly than Miss Miller, but the latter made up the leeway over the first lap, and was ahead at the turn. She missed her turn, however, and the pair headed for home together. With 20yda to _go Miss Miller made a sustained finishing effort, and beat Miss Jepson by half a length. Considering the fact that she has not yet reached top form, Miss Miller put up a good performance, though she has registered faster time in training. Her form is only a matter of application, and if she gets down to her swimming in earnest she should bo fit this year to measure strokes with the best in New Zealand and Australia.

Miss Jepson also swam very well, getting away better than her opponent and making ground on the turn. There was not much between them, and at the Otago championships there should be soma further great tussles between the Dunedin and Kiwi representatives. Otago will have a worthy pair to meet the outside cracks.

Miss Nancy Olds put up a remarkable performance at the D.A.S.C. carnival during the week in winning the 33 l-3yds junior girls’ handicap .(under fourteen) from tho 6sec mark. She is only eight years of age, and carved out the distance in 26 3-ssec, which, the writer ventures to assert, has never been equalled by a girl ox her age in New Zealand or Australia. _ She has an almost perfect rhythm with an easy stroke, and her swimming is not confined to the short distance. It was her first race, and, though she will be seen again this season, the writer understands that it is doubtful if she will be a competitor in the junior girls’ events at the Otago championships. Considering the short time he has been in training, C. B. Lewis, the exNew Zealand 220yds _ breast-stroke champion, swam exceptionally well iix tho 100yds breast-stroke handicap to fill second place from scratch to D. Olds, to whom ho was conceding Sosec. The St. Clair captain swam a great last length, finishing very strmgly to ho beaten very narrowly. Lewis’s time was 85sec, and, though he would need to reduce this by about lOsec to win in the best of company, it should come off easily enough with his stroke altered somewhat.

D. Olds, who won the lOOyds breaststroke handicap off 13sec in Train 37sec, held a comfortable lead until the last lap, when the scratch man challenged him so strongly. Olds had sufficient in reserve, however, to win by half a length. The Kiwi hoy is essentially a crawl swimmer, hut if ho devotes some time to the breast stroke he should be a serious contender for the New Zealand intermediate breast-stroke title at Auckland.

The third member of the Olds family to achieve success at the Dunedin Club’s carnival was tho New Zealand junior boys’ 220yds champion, L. Olds, who ewam a good race from the 9sec mark to win the 100yds men’s handicap. His actual time was 71sec, and as Y. M'Tigue’s New Zealand junior record stands at 67 4-ssec, Olds should stand a good chance of lowering it this year. Ho is not a particularly pretty swimmer, hut he has a good stylo, and gets through tho water all right. C. J. E. M'Lcan, holder of all tho Otago men’s free style titles, swam a fair hundred, in which he must have done round about 63sec. He tired badly over the final stages, however, and is apparently not yet in top gear. Present indications point to his having his own way in the senior events at the Otago championships, though there is some likelihood, the writer believes, of N. H. Bailey, an ex-Otago champion, being a contender. Bailey would provide M'Lean with stern opposition were he to get into form, and competition in the men’s championship class would be welcomed by all followers of the sport. The New Zealand men’s diving champion, R. C. Calder, gave a finished exhibition in the neat dive, in which there were some good displays. His flight was easily the best, and later in the evening he gave a fine exhibition of fancy diving, the ex-New _ Zealand champion, H. Walker, also taking part. It will take a real champion to deprive Calder of his title this season. Miss M. Morrison, the Otago ladies’ diving champion, competed in the neat dive, and, though she has given better displays, she was rather unlucky not to find a place. She appeared nervous, and hit the board rather feebly in the running dives, in which she lacked animation. By tho date of the Otago championships another story should be told, and competition with the ladies is a different matter to the open’ event. In A. S. Douglas the Dunedin Club has secured a useful member. He made his first appearance locally last Tuesday in tho 33 l-3yds handicap, in which he had three seconds, and in a groat finish he just shaded T. R. Harland (4sec), of the Kiwi Club, who should he seen, to advantage in the intermediate events at the Otago cham-

It is pleasing to see water polo taking on in Dunedin, and the game between Dunedin and St. Clair at last Tuesday’s ’carnival created greater enthusiasm than has been seen for a long time past. Neither team showed a great knowledge of the finer points of the game, and with the exception of one or two players none of them knew how to handle the ball. Still, practice and coaching will work wonders, and it is to be hoped that water polo matches will be staged at other carnivals to be held this season. St. Clair won by 3 goals to 0, as the result of their superior combination. The 133 l-3yds relay handicap, as usual, provided a keen race, but Kiwi No. 1 team, to whom St. Clair was conceding Isec, did not leave the issue in doubt, D. Watson, Kiwi’s best man, finishing strongly to win easily by several lengths. There was an exciting finish for second place, C. J. E. M'Lean (St. Clair) just heading L. Olds, of the Kiwi No. 2 team. Miss Edith Mayne, of Torquay, England’s newly-developed water queen, who broke the world’s swimming record for I,oooyds a short while ago, accomplished recently the t striking feat of shattering three more universal standards in a single race. Over a 65yds course at Exmouth she put up new marks of 15min 49 3-ssec for 1,000 metres, 24min 0 l-ssec for 1,500 metros, and 25min 46sec for one mile. The time for 1,600 metres disposed of the listed record of 2omin 6 3-ssec, set by Miss Helen Wainwrjght, and although Miss Ethel M'Gary has to her credit the American standards of Ifirain 19 2-ssec for 1,000 metres, and 23min 36sco for one mile, these performances were achieved a 40-yard pool, and fail to comply with tho international that records for distances greater than 500 metres must be made over courses of not less than fifty metres. Allowing for the gain at the turns, too. Miss Mayne’s one mile exploit is a little better than Miss M'Gary’s, and starting the English girl the greatest middle distance naiad ever developed. . John Weismuller astonished aquatic fans by making his debut as a_ distance swimmer in the yearly Chicago River marathon recently. Aided by current he negotiated the three-mile course in 56mm 46sec, and won the event by more than 500yds from Solomon Adlar, of the Covenant Club, who finished second. Belgium has produced a young swimmer of whom great things are expected in Henry Du Pauw, of Ghent. Recently ho won the 400 metre junior national free-stylo championship in smin 43sec, slashing 15 4-ssec off the record for the fixture, and he has shown such striking improvement within the last year that his countrymen feel confident that ho is destined to develop into one of Europe’s leading stars. _ _ Miss Eleanor Garratti, of San Rafael, American national 50-yard _ swimming champion, sprinted this distance in 27seo flat over a straightaway course at Alameda one week ago, beating her own registered world’s record of 27 3-ssec. and equalling the new mark recently claimed for Miss Lily Bowmer May, of Santa Monica, which has yet to receive official recognition. Swimming is truly an international sport. Recently the foremost women swimmers of Holland and Germany tried conclusions in a national dual meet, and, to everyone’s surprise, the Dutch girls won. Holland’s star performer was Miss M. Baron, who won the 220yds breast-stroke test in 3min 23 3-ssec, and helpfed the Misses Braun, Don Turk, and Vlapwky to capture the 200 and 400 metro relay races in 2min 15 3-ssec and smin 20 7-10 sec.. Miss D. Morgan, who won the Otago Girls’ High School championship last week, is a promising swimmer. She has been well coached, but has difficulty in getting to training. She is lacking a little in finish, hut, is a very lair swimmer over 100yds. The Girls’ High School meeting generally was a good one, there being some very likely material coming on. The winner of the novice crawl, Miss N. Benzoin, shaped very well, and should be heard of again. The diving attracted large entries, and the standard was the highest for some years, St. Dominic’s College held a successful little meeting last week, the championship being won by Miss Bartholomew. She is a fine littk swimmer, with a good crawl stroke, being one of the best secondary school girl swimmers in Dunedin. . A-'remarkable performance for a girl was put up at tho St. Dominic’s College fixture, Miss Rocca Vallis doing 451 t in the long plunge. Tho writer understands that, following tho Otago championships, the Kiwi Club will'he on tho scene with a carnival, though the date has not yet been fl lL Ena Stockley, the New Zealand ladies’ champion, took part in an exhibition swim at tho opening of the new Manly baths in _ Sydney recently, this being tho occasion, that Andrew Charlton “made his reappearance in swimming. . Miss Gladys Fidgeon, 220yds breaststroke champion of New Zealand, is on a visit to Sydney (says the Referee ). At the Domain Baths the other day 1 was very much impressed by her action, which is powerful and clean, but Miss Fidgeon drops her right shoulder appreciably. The New Zealand star saw Ettie Robertson, the Australian champion, swim at Manly on Saturday, and says she realises that in the Sydney girl she will meet a tough opponent. Both girls are record-holders of their respective countries, which in each case is 3min 40sec for 220yds.