PROGRESS OF SWIMMING

Taranaki Daily News, 19 December 1930, Page 5

PROGRESS OF SWIMMING

NEW PLYMOUTH SWIMMING

ADDITIONS AND CLUB CHANGES.

MISS KATHLEEN. MILLER RETIRES.

(By “Backstroke.”)

The New Plymouth Amateur Swimmig Club has lost two of its most energetic members, L. Petty and T. Godfrey. During the past few years both have taken a leading part in the activities of their chib.

Petty is now fitatiofied at Eltham. Since he was at the New Plymouth Boys’ High School he has shown a good turn of speed over <” -dances up to 220 yards and this has made him an asset to the club as a polo player. It is as a diver, however, that he is most outstanding and for a number of years he has been in the front rank of Taranaki divers. Godfrey, who has been a member of the New Plymouth senior polo team for some time, has left for Dannevirke. .As a swimmer he has earned a reputation for consistency. He was placed in the first aggregate race of the New Ply* mouth club this season. A new swimmer of promise who has recently joined the New Plymouth club is Guzzwell from Auckland. At last two aggregate competitions of the club he gained first place in the men’s 33 l-3yds and 50yds respectively. The Fitzroy Surf Club has. been singularly fortunate this season in its membership, which has increased ver rapidly. From the Waitara club Fitzroy has received two useful meiribers, F. .Trueman arid R. Clayton. The old members of the club, however, have been showing good form. In the aggregate races, W J. Toomey and C. Plumtree have been gaining the first places.

LADY CHAMPION RETIRES. --- L -- The retirement of Miss Kathleen Miller, New Zealand free-style ehampion, from coiripetitve swimming will, be a severe loss to the sport in the Dominion. Miss Miller is reported to have recently accepted a position at the Te Aro Baths, Wellington, thus automatically losing her status as an amateur,, says the NeW Zealand Herald. A pupil of Mr. E. H. Olds, who is now a successful coach in America, Miss Miller first came into prominence when she won the Otago schoolgirls* cliainpionshp. In the 1921-22 season her swimming had so improved that site earned a place in the Otago representative team, which competed at the national championship meeting at Wellington. . The first indication of Miss .Millet’s prowess was given at Napier in 1926, when she won the 220yds intermediate girls’ championship in the New Zealand record time of 2min 57 2-ssec. On her graduation to senior rank the following year she won the. 22Oyds arid 440yds. New Zealand championship at Auckland in 2miri/52 2-ssec arid Bmin 11 2-ssec respectively. In the 1927-28 season shfe made wonderful improvement, retaining her national-titles at Dunedin in 2min 5160 c and 6min 9 2-ssec. Visiting Australia, Miss Miller won the 440yds New South Wales championship at Sydney, her time, 6min 3 9-10 sec, being 4 l-10sec faster than the then New Zealand record. This was her best performance for the distance. At Melbourne she won both the. 220yds and 440yds Australian championships in 2min 52 3-ssec and 6 min 13 3-ssec respectively, and finished second to. Miss E. Stockley in the 100yds event. /<-/. i ’ ' Miss' Miller was selected to represent the Dominion at the Olympic Games held at Amsterdam in 1928, and, although opposed to tile world’s best, she was able to qualify for the semi-finals of both events in which she competed. At the Tailteann Games in Ireland she won the 400 metres champonship in 6min 10 4-5 sec, a record. . . On. Her .return to the Dominion Miss, Miller retained., her 220yds and 440yds titles ■ at the national champbnships at Wellington. Her time of 6min 2-ssee for the quarter-mile distance was 1 3-5 sec better than Miss G. Shand’s record. This year at Greymouth Miss Miller did not encounter strong- opposition, retaining easily her two distance titles for the fourth successive year and winnirig the 100yds championship for the first time, thus, accounting for the three free style titles. This is the first occasion that such a feat has been performed, and it was a meritorious finish to an outstanding career. .

PROMISING YOUNG SWIMMERS.

Holder of all three New Zealand intetmediate girls’ swimming titles, Miss Maxine Mathieson was opposed only in the 100yds event at the Otago championships this week. Without opposition fehe won the 100yds event in 76 l-ssec, and the event in 3min 8 2-ssec, but owing to an oversight no time was fatten in the 75yds breast-stroke race, in which Miss Mathieson holds the New Zealand

record. Mss Mathiesofi’s times were better than those She registered at the provincial meeting last year, but she is another who is expected to kftock seconds off these times, especially for the fur10La’st year at the New Zealand swimming championships Walter Jarvis swam second to Reg Geddes in every event in the junior division, and he will be hard to beat in the championships again this year. He had no real opposition at the champonships, and won every event by a very big margin. He carved out the 50yds in 20 3-ssec, and merely had to paddle over the 100yds in 71sec, While he won the ‘Zoyds breast-stroke in 66 4-Ssec. His U-year-old brother, Sid Jarvis, swam second to him in every event. , . . Miss Nancy Olds, New Zealand junior girls’ breast-stroke champion, showed complete loss of form, her stroke going to pieces and she lost all her titles.

GENERAL NEWS OF THE SPORT. Owing to the depleted state of. its finances, the New Zealand. Amateur Swimming Association has decided that no tours by overseas swimmers be undertaken this season* Mr. P. Coira and Mr. A. Gamp have been appointed to represent the council of the New Zealand Amateur Swiniming Association on the Olympic Council. Regret at the withdrawal of the Government grant to the Lfe-Saving Society was expressed by Mr. P. Fraser, M;P., at Wellington, when speaking at the gathering in honour of Sidney Grofinsell, who saved a little boy from drowning last year. Mr. Fraser said he was uisappoirited that the Government had decided to withdraw the grant. He hoped that when financial stability was restored one of the first acts of the administration would be to assist swimming to a greater extent than in the P At the first Wanganui carpival this season on Saturday good fields contested the events. In the 100yds breast-stroke event L. Smith, New Zealand record holder, was second in his heat and second jn the final, his time being 90 3-ssee. Tlte 220yds English ladies’ breaststroke swimming championship, decided at Birmingham last month, was won by Miss Celia Wolstcffiiolme, Empire Games champion, in 2min 56 4-ssec. Miss Joyce Cooper, famous English swimming cliampioh, made a successful attack - recently oh Miss Hilda James’ British free-style 440ydp record of Chiin 1 3-s Sec, covering the distance iff smin Twice in Australia has Ari under-water swim of over 100 yrirds beefi accomplished. W. B. Llewellyn did llojyds in 1892 and in 1904 W. Howatson accomplished the feat by swimniirig 110yds.' Both successes were achieved at Perth. Carl Atkinson, former Canterbury and New Zealand chainpion swimmer, is maintaining his connection with the sport in Napier. He takes a part ih the administrative side bf the game, and is a member of the executive of the Napier club and the Hawke’s Bay—Poverty Bay centre. His competition days arfe not over either, for he can still hold his own With mariy of the youngsters. Last year he Won the cup for the most points in club events and a title or two at the Hawke’s Bay championship meet.iiig.. " . . ■ ■ .. Few champions take thfein preparation so seriously as the world's backstroke record holder, Bonnie Mealing, Australia. Always abed at 9 p.hi., she studies her diet, swims absolutely to instructions and at the same hour every day, and does ten minutes arm and leg work on her bed before retiring every night. Miss Mealirig is one of four sisters who are probably the most accomplished swimming sisters in the wbflH. The 100yds backstroke champion of New South. Wales’and Australia, she holds the world’s record for 100 metres and 150 yards backstroke. She seenis destined to place Australia high in swimming among the* women of the world. ; Shafti Ahmed, 25-year-old Indian student, recently swam for 69 hours 2 minutes in the Worthington (England) corporation baths, thus breaking the world’s record of 68hrs llmin made by Rzzio, a Maltese. Shafti was fresh at the end of his task. During his three days and nights in the bath he was fed on chicken broth, lie shaved while floating and talked in broken English to onlookers. He has been swimming for only 18 months. '• ■ . l- . The trip to Canada has improved Noel Ryan immensely, says the Sydney Referee. Prior to the tour he was shy arid so retiring it was difficult to get a Word out of him, Now he converses just as modestly but most entertairiingly of his impressions arid has made a host of friends. “Tiger* is rapidly striking form and will be hard to head m the forthcbffitng 220, 440, 880 arid mile national championships. ‘