SWIMMING.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16942, 17 January 1923, Page 4

SWIMMING.

CA NTERBURY CENTRE DISTRICT SCHEME ADOPTED. At a largely attended meetfuiy of the Canterbury Centre of the Ne«v Zealand Amateur Swimming? Association held last niorht, a proposal to introduce a. district scheme iu regard to swiinmins: was adopted. Mr H. Williams presided. The meeting was a special one called to discuss the following motion, of which notice had been given by Mr C. Atkinson:-- " That all clubs must have their headquarters at school baths and no Club shall be allowed to conduct or control a carnival at the Tepid Baths. In the case of the United and Christchurch Ladies' Clubs, they be Allowed to select the bath at which they will have their headquarters, assuming such bath has no club attached to it. at the present time. No club to be allowed affiliation that has any specified time set aside for it at the Tepid Baths. All new members shall belong to the club that is nearest, and in the event of a club being formed in a district members shall have the option of naming the club.” In submitting the motion Mr Atkinson said its adoption would mean that ail clubs which had their headquarters at the Tepid Baths at present would have to find other baths as their headquarters. The clubs affected were the United, Christchurch Ladies’ and the P. and T. The motion was seconded by Mr L. Annand (Opawa). The chairman said the resolution would not prevent a member belonging to the Tepid Baths or carrying on his training there as long as he did not have special Mr Annand said an important point was that if all clubs were granted special hours, as enjoyed by the particular clubs which had the privilege at present. '.he City Council would have to shut down altoii public institution and should be treated as such , Mr Sutherland (United" said he thought the motion as it stood at present was rather too drastic. If it was carried the centre would in reality tell swimmers that they must, not use the Tepid Baths wit.i thoir fine appointments hut. resort to some of the antiquated pools nearest their own homes. He advocated the training of! the young swimmers under pleasant condition? in up-to-date baths. Mr E. 11. 9. Batchelor said ho understood it was made clear that, the proposal was not to affect training. Mr Kent (Waltham), in supporting the motion, said he thought that if district swimming was introduced the sport would go ahead by leaps and bounds. Mr Sutherland said they would never go ahead until they let the public into their business. Mr Annand said they must get the district swimming going before they could secure the interest of the public. Where they “ missed ’’ in having carnivals at. tho Tepid Baths was mat they did not get the public; their supporters were the same people every time. The outside clubs liart gout' to the -trail, ho hollered, for no other reason than the existence of tile Tepid Baths and one or two bis clubs. Even in 2918 there was better sport than existed in 10-22. It was the succession of carnivals that was going to produce the sport. This swimming at the Tepid Baths was merely a theatrical business. Mr Sutherland: It is bringing out the champions. The chairman said it was better to have ten live clubs than two big clubs who swallowed up ail That was why he supP °ln t support of the argument that swimming war. better in 19Tb ( Armand asked mile race at present. He remarked that before the war they had in Lyttelton forty-seven entries in a mile race. Mr C. Atkinson, quoting times for various distances, said that while swimming had improved vastly in other parts of the world, in New Zealand it was praoticallv stationary. The swimming generally had not improved, neither had it improved from a record point of view. The best swimmers were those who were swimming in cold baths. Mr H. Patten (Post and Telegraph) in supporting the district scheme said that in Australia they had attributed the falling off in the standard to the fact that their swimmers had gone to the surf: he thought the effect of the tepid baths in Christchurch had been the same as the surf in Australia. Mr S. White (United) said if the outside clubs would take a little more interest in their swimmers there would be no need

Mr Wilson (Fendalton) said one reason why he supported the district scheme was that swimming was an outdoor sport. Mr H. S. Batchelor (East Christchurch; B*id "hat the formation of new clubs m outside indicated to Ms opinion that there was h demand for district swimminS repl3- to )Ir H. I- Collins (Royal Life Ravins Society) the chairman aai" proposal would not affect tlio Life Baviuc Society. Tt touched merely on the colons' saiil apart front this be had been instructed to support tba anheu... Answering Mr White the chanman said the motion provided for the cen re o ing carnivals at tho tapid bath.-. B? this means all clubs would participate.. Mr Sutherland: In tepid water. The chairman: No. financially ine centre wants funds to send its swimmtis Mr Tulloch (Beckenham) supported the proposal because ho was of opinion it was going to be for the betterment o. Messrs & (Richmond' and M Cracken (Addington) also spoke in sup!X'ir Sutherland asked if swimming had got down to such a low ebb how did they account for the centra- swimmers carrying everything before them at the last championships. Mr Atkinson: Cold water swimmers won it The chairman said they knew the United Club would be effected more than any other. There were sacrifices to be made and unfortunately the United Club would have to make these. They hoped, however, that this club would endeavour to get cold water baths and continue to show the same enterprise as they had done in Mr Sutherland moved as an amendment: “That the Council of the New Zealand Amateur Swimming Association be asked to obtain from all centres their opinion as to the introduction of district swimming in tlieir respective districts. The chairman taid he could not accept that as an amendment. He said it did not matter to Canterbury what other bodies thought. He suggested that Mr Sutherland should submit the amendment as a remit to the conference cf centres. The motion was then carried with the following addition relating to transfers: “ No person to be allowed to join a club outside his own District from January 16, 1923 and no person to be allowed to transfer from a club of which ho is at present a member to any club except such transfer maan-i joining a club in his own district." Voters against the motion were Messrs Y lute. Sutherland and Cook.