A Flood of memories come back with return
Stolen car cruels win at world championships
RETIRED Olympian Naomi Flood has answered Northcliffe’s 11th hour plea in a remarkable return to action.
Australia’s most successful female ski paddler will come out of semi-retirement to help Northcliffe in their hour of need for this week’s World Lifesaving Inter-Club Championships in Adelaide.
Flood, 32, who retired after the 2016 Rio Olympics to become the club’s first full-time female coach, will replace injured ironwoman and Australian captain Harriet Brown.
Brown tore the ligaments in her foot in the opening Oceanwoman heats of the National Teams Championship on Saturday and bravely led the team to their first victory in eight years on Sunday as she hobbled around the Glenelg Oceanwoman course – finishing third to Northcliffe teammates Georgia Miller and Danielle McKenzie.
Flood said she was more than ready to “do it for the team” and although she has three days to prepare for the shorter racing, the first thing she has to do is find a ski.
“I actually saw one of my old skis in scrutineering and thought ‘that will come in handy’ but ... teammate and my roommate Kristyl Smith, who is a partner owner of Dolphin skis, will hook me up with a craft. I have a paddle so that’s one thing,” said Flood, who finished second in the 28km Fremantle Doctor race from Rottnest Island to Sorrento on Saturday.
“I’m not going out to win anything, it’s all about getting points for the team and ... as one of the team carriers in the rescue tube rescue.”
“The Unbeatables” at the past 14 Australian Championships, Northcliffe are also without two male mainstays – five-time world ironman champion Shannon Eckstein (injured) and emerging ironman and board paddler Luke Cuff. HE helped Australia take down the world ... now if only Currumbin lifesaver Matt Davis could find his car.
In a cruel ending to the World Lifesaving Championships in Adelaide, the 22year-old on Sunday got a call from a mate who said Davis’ white Suburu Outback (licence plates 399YBU) had been pinched on Saturday night from outside his Palm Beach house.
It was a disheartening end to a stunning week for Davis, one of the stars of Australia’s victory over three-time defending champions New Zealand.
It’s a particularly bitter blow for the teacher’s aid at Currumbin Special School who is aiming for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the pool and who coaches youngsters in his spare time to fund his dreams.
“We are now in the process of looking for it and filing the police report after a mate gave me a call and said that he came out Sunday morning and the car was gone,” said Davis, Australia’s only gold medallist in the pool rescue competition and a key part of the beach sprint squad.
“I had actually been on the phone all morning to the police trying to help them out – my mate said there had been three or four cars stolen in the same area.
“I just got the car and I only just paid six months registration to get me around to work and training.
“I guess I’ll have to ride my push bike everywhere for a while and I may have to resort to hitch-hiking to the pool for training.”
Davis trains under Graeme McDonald at the Palm Beach Aquatic Centre.
He won gold and two silver medals in pool in Adelaide before anchoring the Australian team to a bronze medal performance in the beach relay.
He will remain in Adelaide for another week to spearhead his club side, Currumbin, in the pool, the ocean and beach as the Vikings mount their campaign for the World Inter-Club Championships.
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