Claremont had a wonderfully successful meet at Nationals.  As well as clearly winning the overall pointscore, we were awarded 3 relay trophies for best performance across 3 different relay age groups.

Every single swimmer played a huge part in our win.  I am almost reluctant to forward this medal tally, as it is certainly not just the medal winners who deserve accolades – we had another 20 swimmers who did not win individual medals who swam fabulously… in fact, a number of these swimmers were the ones who made the greatest leaps in terms of PBs.  It was lovely to see that many of these swimmers did come away with relay medals. Club Captain Nicky Corsbie will be looking at all our swimmers’ results and awarding a Male and Female Groper of the Meetin due course!!!

Anyway… for the stat-heads amongst you, here are our amazing results:

Total medals: 121, made up of total individual medals: 101 (including OWS), and total relay medals: 20

Perc Edwards: 9 medals – 8 Gold, 1 Silver
Graham Croft: 6 medals – 6 Gold
Paul Blackbeard: 8 medals – 5 Gold, 3 Silver
Adrian Davini: 5 medals – 5 Gold
Paul Vivers: 9 medals – 4 Gold, 4 Silver, 1 Bronze
Anthony Dunne: 5 medals – 4 Gold, 1 Silver
Carolyn Gorrick: 5 medals – 4 Gold, 1 Silver
Sally Stanford: 4 medals – 3 Gold, 1 Silver
Nicky Corsbie: 6 medals – 3 Gold, 3 Bronze
Sally Bell: 9 medals – 2 Gold, 5 Silver, 2 Bronze
Barrie Eves: 6 medals – 2 Gold, 1 Silver, 3 Bronze
Dean Stockwell: 4 medals – 2 Gold, 2 Silver
Stephanie Berghofer: 3 medals – 1 Gold, 1 Silver, 1 Bronze
Trish Burton: 4 medals – 2 Silver, 2 Bronze
Jenny Williams: 3 medals – 2 Silver, 1 Bronze
Chris Twomey: 4 medals – 1 Silver, 3 Bronze
Charlotte Stone: 1 medal – 1 Silver
Bastiaan de Boer: 1 medal – 1 Silver
Mark Paull: 2 medals – 2 Bronze
Jenni Vile: 2 medals – 2 Bronze
Lynette Quinlivan: 2 medals – 2 Bronze
Graham Senders: 1 medal – 1 Bronze
Stuart Gray: 1 medal – 1 Bronze
Glenn Morrison: 1 medal – 1 Bronze

Relay medals: 9 Gold, 8 Silver, 3 Bronze – although there is one of our teams (240-279 Mens Medley) which was omitted from the results andmay have got a medal… we are following this up.

Individual National Records: Carolyn Gorrick: 3 (100 Free, 200 IM, 50 Back) – congratulations Carolyn!  No doubt there were a number of individual State records as well, however it is a very time consuming process to work this out (matching up event results with the Results Portal for every single event in every age group!!!).  We will celebrate those records when we present your certificates in due course!

Relay National Records: 2 (200-239 Mixed Medley, 200-239 Womens Medley)

Relay State Records: 6 (200-239 Mixed Free, 120-159 Mixed Medley,
200-239 Mixed Medley, 200-239 Womens Free, 200-239 Mixed Medley, 200-239 Mens Free)

What can one say??? It’s just an incredible effort from all swimmers. CONGRATULATIONS!

Sal B

Nationals Relay Results and Splits

Claremont Masters Success in Tasmania

Fourteen members of Claremont Masters Swimming Club have recently returned from the National Championships in Launceston with a swag of medals and records. The impressive club haul totalled 28 Gold, 19 Silver and 20 Bronze medals, 2 National Records and no fewer than 46 State Records.

Leading the charge was club stalwart Perc Edwards, 85, of Mt Claremont, who returned home with 7 Gold, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze medals and 6 State Records to his name.

Anthony Dunne, 47, of Dalkeith came away with 4 Gold, 1 Silver and 3 State Records – and the achievement of being the fastest overall competitor for 25, 50 and 200 Breaststroke, despite racing against men 20 years his junior.

Three other members won 3 Gold medals each – and a handful of Silver and Bronze – namely Graham Croft, 62, of Doubleview, Paul Blackbeard, 52, of Como and Nicola Corsbie, 48, of Cottesloe. Paul set 7 State Records, Nicola set 4 and Graham another 2.

Sally Stanford, 50, of Dalkeith won 1 Gold, 2 Silver and 6 Bronze medals and set a State Record in every one of her swims. Cottesloe residents Trish Burton, 40, Gary Bradley, 52, and Bastiaan de Boer, 49, also recorded impressive individual achievements, with Trish taking away 1 Silver medal, 3 Bronze medals and 3 State Records, Gary 3 Bronze and 1 State Record, and Bastiaan 1 State Record.

“The highlight of the meet was definitely the relays,” said Club Captain Nicola Corsbie. “We came away with 3 Gold, 3 Silver and 2 Bronze in relays – our best ever performance at a National Championships,” she said.

Two of the relay teams swam National Record times – a major achievement in Masters competition. Both teams were in the 200-239 age group, reflecting the combined ages of the four team members. Nicola Corsbie, Sally Stanford, Gary Bradley and Paul Blackbeard broke the record in the 4 x 25 Mixed Medley Relay while Gary and Paul teamed up with Anthony Dunne and Bastiaan de Boer to rewrite the record books for the 4 x 25 Mens Medley Relay.

Sally Bell, PR Officer

Not much sleep was had by me the newbie, but surprisingly also from the seasoned competitors. A feeling of gut wrenching anxiety was beginning to take hold (a feeling I might add that lasted for 4 days solid!) A feeling which surprisingly became a comfort as I knew an event was coming up soon and it was time to overcome my fears! Then it was time…my first event, the 25m Backstroke. I was terrified. My stomach was churning. I thought I was going to be sick. But then it was over in a flash! I slipped at the start, and stuffed up my final stroke but I had made it! What a buzz! I felt like I had climbed Mt Everest and made it back down alive! My bathers didn’t fall off and I didn’t make a fool of myself in front of all those people! Next came the 100m Individual Medley. Oh my God! All I could think of was the order… Butterfly, Backstroke, Breaststroke, Freestyle… don’t get it wrong! Seconds to go… butterfly, backstroke, breaststroke, free… Go!! Once you hit that water, it all happens so quickly you don’t even have time to think about anything let alone the order, you just do it. I can just see Frank nodding his head saying “I told you so!”.

And so it continued… Freestyle, breaststroke backstroke and butterfly in every combination you can think of. With 14 of us Gropers and our adopted Groper Eleanor Parsons from Stadium Snappers,and Jill Woodworth a former Groper, there was never very long before you were screaming at the top of your lungs for one of your teammates and you wouldn’t stop until they acknowledged you from the starters blocks. Yes they can hear you! It didn’t take long before the trepidation I had felt at not really knowing anyone disappeared. The incredible amount of support and camaraderie between the team was unbelievable, and the sheer joy and exhilaration of competing was shared by all. The fact that it didn’t matter where you came (which was lucky for me!) and that the enthusiasm and support was unwavering was intoxicating. I may not have won my heat, but it didn’t matter. The fact I’d done a PB however was celebrated with genuine support, encouragement and excitement. You see, we were surrounded by 563 swimmers of all ages and sizes (and some interesting swimming costumes i.e. the purple leopard print bathers on a rather larger woman that I think were beyond their use by date!) who were there to swim their hearts out, not only for World Records and National Records, but just to feel the water on your skin and the surge of adrenalin at the starters gun. Every nerve ending was tingling, muscles were twitching and you knew you were alive, very alive! What a buzz! Everyone needs to feel this alive at some time. It is exhilarating and exhausting all at once. I want more and feel like I am bursting with news that I want to tell everyone… hence this essay that was only meant to be a paragraph.

It is however the bonds that have been forged and the friendships that have evolved that has been the most rewarding part of this trip for me. I have laughed myself silly, to the point of exhaustion and pain (ie the spider in the maxi-taxi with Anthony and Perc to the rescue, and the ongoing debate as to who or what ‘Myrtle” might be!). I have pushed my body hard and it has responded (thank you Frank, Richard and Elena) and I can’t wait for the next comp. Roll on the State Titles in 3 weeks! What a transformation.

Bottom line, I think I finally get what this is all about… amazing people doing amazing things all the while encouraging you along for the ride. Claremont Masters is an amazing club because of the people who proudly wear its name on their sleeves and caps. When you see people like Perc Edwards at the age of 85 and Richard Hughes standing on their feet officiating all day, then competing in their own races and then coming out and doing pb’s, it blows you away. Their dedication is phenomenal and awe-inspiring. How could you not want to be a part of that. I could spend all day listing all the things that people have done so I have chosen a select few…

Gary and Julie for organising everyone , feeding us and generally looking after us. Nicky for organising the amazing Relay teams that blitzed the field and everything else behind the scenes that I can’t even begin to fathom. Christine, Paul and Linda for welcoming us into their home away from home for dinner and just being so supportive and gorgeous (you too Paul!) Richard for all his tips and encouragement (and healthy rivalry… roll on the States!) and Roxanne for her contagious laughter. Ray for his genuine smile and Lynn for being so gorgeous and sharing her stories about potato mashers! Pip for making sure we had done our warm-up before our events and being a constant motivator. Trish for being the instigator to getting me down to the pool 1 year ago and for making me laugh so hard I couldn’t breathe and for being someone I am honoured and humbled to call my friend. Crofty, Perc, Anthony and Bastiaan for being our hunky next door neighbours, ready to help out or just have a laugh. On a personal note to Bastiaan, Anthony and Trish for sharing with me a moment in time (make that 2) that I will never ever forget as part of their relay team (and a few medals to go with it!). If only you could bottle those feelings! Sally for an amazing swag of medals even though she didn’t get any sleep, yet had a smile on her face throughout. Last but not least, Eleanor our adopted Groper. What a gorgeous lady who was so humble in her achievements and a delight to meet and share an apartment with. Another personal note… a big thankyou to my amazing husband John for giving me the time and space to fulfil that crazy idea that I might be able to go to the Nationals by taking a week off work to look after my 3 beautiful boys whilst I followed my Nationals dream and achieved my goal!

I was proud to call myself a Groper and to encourage people to come to the Nationals in Perth next year. I will forever remember the sight of a 70yr old-ish lady jumping up and down screaming encouragement to her also 70yr old-ish team-mate as she swam the final leg of their relay. In front of a packed stadium, her enthusiasm and encouragement to spur on her team-mate brought a tear to my eye. They didn’t win or even get a medal but they won me. I want to be that lady in 20, 30 or 40yrs time still swimming and screaming and yelling and not being ashamed to walk the pool deck in bathers. They were fit, healthy, happy and intoxicatingly alive! What more could you ask for. What a way to live your life. Bring it on!

Orla Flecker

We managed to finish the day with the overall win and wins in two age groups as well as a swag of State Records but perhaps the greatest success of the day was the terrific organisation from club members who ensured the event ran smoothly.  Congratulations to all who were involved.

Please find the full list of results attached in PDF format below including individual split times.

Golden Groper Relay Carnival Results

The results from the recent state championships are available by clicking on the link at the end of this message.

Regards,

Elena

2009 WA Stats Championship Results (Adobe PDF file)

A chilly morning greeted those braving the drive to Swan Park Recreation Centre for the Swan Hills carnival: a novelty short course event complete with 25m races and 4×25 relays. It was a great chance to pick up some rarely set State records. Other clubs at the carnival included Carine, Gosnells, Maida Vale, Mandurah, Riverton and Snappers. The pool filtration system was creating very strong currents in lanes 3 and 5 and these weren’t used for racing, so it was a weird combination of racing lanes with these central lanes vacant.

First off were the 200s, and in the IM Sally Bell and Frank Glass powered to first places, and Trish Burton managed a more controlled race, so she wasn’t feeling physically ill for the next couple of hours. Next up was the 200 Breaststroke where Anna Brockman, Anthony Dunne and Richard Fox were the only swimmers in their age groups, so it was easy picking for top points.

Then was the 100 Choice and many of the Claremont swimmers decided to swim a form stroke, unlike most of the other clubs. Lesley Chute outpaced some close competition from Snappers to get the first of her 2 top placings. Newcomer to carnivals Chloe Ross – complete with family cheer squad, was on the way to the first of her 3 first places (youth and speed are wonderful things) with an impressive 1:16. There’s no way you’re leaving the A lane with times like that! Also on her way to 3 first placings was Elena Nesci clocking a 1:10. Natalie Roberts swam a tidy breaststroke. Sally Bell swam fly and still got as first place. Anna had to dash and was gone after a tidy freestyle. In the men’s 100m there was excitement everywhere you looked. Chris Roberts was DQ’ed for an alleged false start (where the starter seemed to be the issue, not the swimmers), but had his time re-instated – and no wonder he wanted as an official time at 1:06. There was a battle royal between Duncan Booth (free) and Dean Stockwell (IM) swimming side by side: Dean won on the touch 1:14.44 to Duncan’s 1:15.07. Patrick Verryn came oh-so-close to going under that elusive 1 minute barrier with 1:00.91. Also down in the 1:0-somethings was Anthony Dunne at 1:03. Our resident Thorpedo – Sam McLennan was in his usual place: ‘way out front’ and made a 57 look easy. Please show me how! Gary Bradley had to be content with a close second, before resuming normal service of first places in his 50 and 25. Richard Hughes took the opportunity to swim a 100 IM. Ray Ploughman, swimming for Claremont for the first time, swam the first of his 3 freestyle events. It’s good to see some of our new ‘second club’ members coming along and getting into the Claremont carnival atmosphere.

Once the long distance events were out of the way it was down to the 50s, and then the blink-and-you’ll-miss-them, 25s. Keith Fletcher did the first of his 2 breaststroke swims (surely your free isn’t so bad you can’t knock out a 100 of it?). The men’s 40-44 age group was the most popular/competitive with 8 swimmers, 5 of who belonged to Claremont – and in this age group we had swimmers at both ends – the fastest, and the tail enders – those doing form strokes. The 50 was also the first outing for “Henry” (aka Pete) Gardner, who will be pleased to know the results have his name correct, rather than his second cousin’s name as was shown in the program. “Henry” swam a respectable 50 Breast, despite still carrying a nagging injury – or was that just his excuse for not coming to training?

Finally – the moment (quite literally) everyone had been waiting for – the 25s. With all 4 strokes on offer, and very few state records existing, there were many chances for inaugural state records. Rock up and swim and you’ll set a record – which is exactly what many did. Expect the 25m records to be handed out like confetti at an up coming club night. There would be too many attempt to list here, but go and have a look at the results portal on the Masters Swimming National website www.portal.aussi.org.au to see what the old records were. Your name will be up in lights in the not too distant future. BTW it was announced that 38 records had been set during the carnival.

The 4×25 relays were fast and furious. It would appear that Claremont set state records in 5 of the 6 relay swims – all of which Claremont won. Well done to all the relay swimmers.

With such impressive performances across the board it was no real surprise that Claremont won the carnival with 236 points and second were Maida Vale on 192.

It was a sad occasion too, as this was the winding up of the Swan Hills club who were down to a single member: Sandra Mutch. Sandra effectively ran this carnival, doing all the recording, and she has been a great contributor to other carnivals and state swims. We hope she can find a club to move to. It’s always sad to see clubs fold, and we should be thankful that our numbers are swelling.

The short course racing was certainly fun, and its put the fire in the belly for a few. This year’s State Champs is short course, and is being held at Challenge on August 23/24. I don’t the first placings will be so easy to come by, and those newly won records might only be short standing. Get them framed now!

Richard Hughes