SWIMMING

Evening Star, Issue 22459, 2 October 1936, Page 4

SWIMMING

NEWS AND NOTES

[By Hooker. ]

KIWI JOTTINGS. The sympathy of all club members will be extended to Mrs Kearns on the continued illness of Mr Kearns. _ Lyall and Lorraine are very keen swimmers and are making rapid progress on the breast stroke. Maud Stewart, the Otago junior girls’ 100yds champion, has resumed training and will again represent the club in this class. At present she has a bad tendency to lose her balance and roll badly, but she can still sprint a good length. She needs to get right down to solid training if she intends to make a bid for the Nawi Kira Challenge Shield, which is to go to the winner of the junior girls’ 100yds at the Otago championships. One of the most thorough boys in training at present is Gordon Reid, and many of the other intermediates would do well to follow his example. He is developing a fair leg drive, and with the powerful arm stroke he has should do well over the longer distances this season. Edna Goldthorpe is putting in a- lot of good work at present, and this girl, who has been in the club a year, will be seen swimming in the demonstration events at the parents’ night, which is to be held on October 6. Christine Garvin is being coached by Mr P. A. Mathieson, and is showing promise of developing _ into a speedy swimmer. She is sticking to training, and should be heard of in interclub competition. Agnes Brown is another promising free-style intermediate swimmer who shows signs of making rapid progress. She is a strong swimmer, and if she attempted more distance work would soon return faster times. Monty Goodwin is at present training his young sister, and she has the makings of a very fine free-style swimmer. She should soon be seen in junior competition. Commencing at the club hour last Tuesday, a number of intermediate swimmers have taken turns on duty. This has been made necessary by the increasing membership, and those who acted this iveek were C. Lawrence, W. Carr, G. Reid, G. P. Chambers, and X. Hall, and Misses A. Brown, W. Dunn, C. Knowles, E. Abernethy, and P. Sutherland. The Lees are very regular attenders at the club hour, and Evelyn and Doris are concentrating on breast stroke at present. They are both showing ini-’ provemeut, and Fred looks like being a good free-styler if he sticks to his training. Derek Kiddell is another keen junior free style exponent, and for so small a boy has quite a promising stroke. He should do more slow work,, so that he can develop his shoulders and improve his stroke. Peter Mathieson is loosening up in preparation for the coming season, and promises to swim better than ever in the forthcoming interclub carnivals. Arthur Thomas is also getting down to training again. He is a very useful sprinter on the free style, but should endeavour to loosen up and overcome a tendency to roll too far over. As a 400 metres back stroke event has been added to the national championship programme ho should do well in this event, as ho had plenty of staying power. In place of tho 150yds event, in which he was second last season, a 100yds back stroke race has been placed on the national championship programme. If Dave Pickard elects to tackle breast stroke seriously ho should do well in competition this season. Ho has a powerful and proficient stroke. The first water polo practice of tho season was held on Thursday of last week, and it is good to seo so many of the younger members showing keenness. Noeline Peat is a keen junior girl, who shows proficiency both on free style and back stroke She should do well in interclub competition this season. The club is numbering among its vice-presidents Mr C. J. L. White, who was elected at tho annual meeting. He is a great enthusiast, and should be a real acquisition on the administrative side of the club’s activities. The club races in all divisions will be commenced on Tuesday, October 13. ST. CLAIR PROSPECTS. The St. Clair Surf Life Saving Club had a successful annual meeting, and a. strong committee has been elected for the coming season, which promises to be a very good one, judging from tho early enthusiasm of members. It is particularly gratifying to note that a number of the younger members have been selected for important offices, but the only possible choice for president was Mr H. H. Henderson. who has given very fine service in that capacity over a long period of years. The club captain is Harry James, who did very good work last year as secretary, and who is a son of Mr E. 14. James, a member of tho Otago Centro since its inceptipn. Harry is an enthusiastic surf life-saver, and a good swimmer, and lie should make a thorough success of the job, especially as lie will have associated with him as deputy-club captain, W. J. Jarvis, the former New Zealand 100yds and 220yds champion. Tho new secretary is A. G. Beadle, a keen member of the club for some years. He and Hugh Callender (who represented Otago in tho New Zealand 220yds men’s breast stroke championship last year) will bo tho club's delegates to the Swimming Centre, II I). Gillies iliul 11. .la mes (both men ot considerable experience) being the delegates to the Surf Life Saving Association. H is intended to open the season at St. Clair about the first week in November, and in the meantime activities are being carried out at the club’s hour at tho Municipal Baths on Monday nights. DIVING CONTINGENT KEEN. Otago should be represented by a fine batch of divers in various New Zealand championship events, and already many aspirants for honours

have settled down to serious work on the boards.

R. 6. Johnson, the New Zealand men’s champion, who was coached fast season by Mr W. H. Matthews, has begun training, and Mr P. A. Mathieson has a good batch of competitors under his charge at present. For so early in the season, Miss Gwen Kix, the national ladies’ champion, is showing surprisingly good form. The conscientious training and amount of hard work the champion indulges in is one of the secrets of her success. Doug. Freeman, who was third in the national men’s event last year and gave R. O. Johnson a very close tussle in tho Otago championship, is buckling down to hard training m earnest, and he should be a much more finished diver this year. It is very pleasing to see Ralph Gibbs working out on the boards. He has the natural ability to give a good account of himself in championship competition, and would be well advised to prepare himself for the Otago championships. Similar remarks may bo applied to Reg. Geddes, who performs some of the most difficult dives with real brilliance. Reg. would be a championship prospect if he elected to tackle diving in earnest rather than as a sideline. Bruce Ingram, new Zealand junior boys’ champion, and Miss D. Pope, Now Zealand intermediate girls’ champion, are both training well, and there will be several newcomers in competition in the various classes to make tilings most inteiosting this season. Dunedin Dashes. Tho Dunedin Club had a most successful annua! meeting, and that stalwart, Mr \V. H. Matthews, was reelected to the position of president. Mr Matthews has given great service to swimming as an executive official on his club and on the centre, and as a diving coach he has been responsible for the success of some of New Zealand’s best performers over a long period of years. Whether it be a comparative novice or a champion that requires coaching, Mr Matthew’s services are always available, and it matters little to him to what club the aspirant for honours belongs so long as he or she possesses the requisite keenness. That staunch supporter, Mr D. C. Bannatync, is again the club’s patron, and no better choice for the position of club captain could have been made than that of Brian Kerr. He is a fine swimmer at all styles, an excellent water polo player, and member of the Otago representative team, and an executive official of considerable experience. The club should have a good season under his direction. The deputy-captain is Ted Toase, who represented Otago last season, and is one of the most promising senior swimmers in the province. Good things are expec.ted of him this year. Two of New Zealand’s best known performers fill the roles of ladies’ club captain and deputy ladies’ captain, these being Miss M. Mathicsou (who scored three seconds for Otago at the last national championships and has a great record in competition) and Miss Gwen Rix (the national ladies’ diving champion). Both have been members of the Dunedin Club for many years. Tho club is fortunate in obtaining tho services of Mr S. Boyd as secretary. He has had good experience of carnivals, and should make a thorough success of his new position. Well-deserved tributes were paid at the annual meeting to the work or the Social Committee, which assisted greatly on tho financial side, and special mention was made of Mrs .1. M'Tnggart, who has been a great worker for the chib and for Otago swimming in general, SPLASHES. The Kaikorai Club’s annual meeting is fixed for Tuesday, October 20, but it is .anticipated that the dub’s pool will be opened before that date. Having regard to the success that attended the Labour Night carnival last year, it is certain a similar fixture will bo held on October 26, and the probability of Len Newell (national 440, 880, and one mile champion) and the former champion, Alex Stokes, coming from Christchurch to compete will give added interest to what is generally voted to be one of tho most enjoyable carnivals staged by tho centre during tho season. Nearly all of the wellknown swimmers have now begun training. After the centre’s annual meeting on October 12 activities should bo in full swing, and it will not be long before the water polo competitions are begun. A well-earned tribute was paid to Mr D. C. Bannatyne by the captain of the Dunedin Club’s B team (Neil Williams) at the complimentary function that was tendered to the team by tho club’s Social Committee last week to mark the team’s success in winning tho Harrison Cup for the B grade premiership. Mr Bannatyne lias given a lot of time to the water polo side of tho Dunedin Club’s activities, ami his efficient coaching played no small part in that chib’s long run of successes in the Donald Stuart water polo competition, which was checked by Kiwi’s win this year. Mr Bannatyne has always believed in encouraging the younger players, and his policy was shown by the displays given by the young Dunedin B team, which beat teams composed of many older and more experienced players. Swimmers are delighted with the success attained by “ Tony ” Black as a member of Otago's Banfurly Shield team during tho recent season. “ Tony ” is as popular in swimming circles as he is with the Rugby public, and though ho did little active swimming last season, lie was a regular member of the Kiwi Club’s A team at water polo the previous year, and also figured well in short-distance handicaps.

With the Macandrow Lay regatta on Boxing Day and a demonstration carnival at Mocraki in connection with tho centenary celebrations, swimmers will have plenty to occupy their attention over the Christmas holidays. Tho fixture at Mocraki will be the first organised carnival held there, and as it is intended to send some of the province’s best swimmers there, tho gathering should lie a successful one. Support for ibis carnival i< also likely to lie forlh- . omin,; from I lie Oamaru Chili.