UNBEATEN AT BACKSTROKE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26367, 23 January 1947, Page 2

UNBEATEN AT BACKSTROKE

NGAIRE LANE IN AUSTRALIA With appearances now to be made only in Newcastle to-morrow and in Canberra next week, Ngaire Lane, the New Zealand women’s backstroke champion, has maintained her unbeaten record in Australia at that style, and she will return to the Dominion with the New South Wales 110 Yards and the Queensland 100 Metres titles in her keeping.

Miss Lane was described by a Brisbane paper as the fastest woman backstroke swimmer Queensland has ever seen. In winning the Queensland title last Thursday night at the Valley Baths, Brisbane, she clipped 2 l-10sec off the Queensland Women’s 100 Metres record by swimming 80 9-10 sec.

Ngaire Lane's chief opponent was the Queensland girl, Nancy Lyons, who won the Australian Junior 110 Yards title last year. Nancy beat Ngaire in the start, but the Dunedin girl was ahead when they began to swim after the push-off, and she had a lead of about a yard at the turn, which she “muffed” badly. She made headway, however, in the first half of the second lap, and appeared to be leading by about three yards. Miss Lyons made a bold bid to overtake Miss Lane, but Ngaire was cheered home by a squad of'New Zealand airmen, the New Zealander winning by a good two yards.