Blenheim swim club’s talent pool runs deep
From left, coach Shane Skehan, Finn McNabb, Jack Love, Nicola Lovell and Max Skehan at the National Age Group Champs in Hawke’s Bay. Photos provided
Blenheim swimmers have produced a swag of medals and personal bests on the national stage over the past two months, underlining the local club’s ability to compete with the nation’s best.
Local para swimmer Jack Bugler got the season underway with a superb performance at the New Zealand Championships staged in Auckland.
He won two silver medals (400m free and 4 x 100IM relay) and two bronze medals (100m and 200m freestyle free) in the multi-class events. Jack is currently representing New Zealand at the Virtus Games in France.
Meanwhile, four Blenheim swimmers excelled at the National Age Group Championships, held at the brand-new aquatics facility in Hawke’s Bay.
The quartet of Jack Love (16), Finn McNabb (15), Max Skehan (14) and Nicola Lovell (14) attended, all four swimmers recording personal bests over the week.
Jack, Finn and Nicola qualified for finals in events that ranked them in the Top 10 in the country. Jack finished fifth in the 200m fly, sixth in the 100m fly and 10th in the 200m free. Finn came ninth in the 200m back while Nicola Lovell finished sixth in the 50m breaststroke.
Finally, nine swimmers represented the Blenheim club with distinction at the recent Division II Championships in Wellington.
The team of Jack Love, Kyla Thorstensen, Sophie Kole, Finn McNabb, Carys McNabb, Charlotte Rose, Jessica Lovell, Max Skehan and Nicola Lovell swam extremely well, with all swimmers posting personal bests throughout the week.
Several of the Blenheim contingent also managed podium finishes.
Jack showed the way with one gold, one silver and three bronze, Jessica bagged one gold and a silver, Max won a silver, Nicola claimed a gold and two bronze while Finn picked up one gold, one silver and one bronze.
The girls relay team, comprising Kyla, Sophie, Jessica, Charlotte and Carys, also swam very strongly to secure fourth and eighth placings, while competing against some much larger clubs.
Also of note was the fact Blenheim finished in 12th position out of all attending clubs, despite only travelling with a relatively small team.
All swimmers are now training hard for upcoming regional and national short course championship events. For more information on the Blenheim Swimming Club and how you can get involved, please see their Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/BlenheimSwimmingClub.