Fairweather among records in big week for Otago
OLYMPIC swimmer Erika Fairweather capped a big week for the Otago team at the New Zealand shortcourse championships in Auckland on Saturday.
Fairweather broke three Otago records and two New Zealand agegroup records.
The Neptune star won the 800m freestyle in 8min 18.63sec, an Otago open and 18 years record and a New Zealand record for her agegroup.
A third OtagoNew Zealand record double is pending. She clocked 4min 6.29sec at the 400m mark of the 800m race.
Fairweather, who competed in the 200m and 400m freestyle at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, a year after making the 400m final at the Tokyo Olympics, beat the Fina ‘‘A’’ qualifying standard with her Auckland time.
Fellow Otago swimmer Caitlin Deans just missed out on that standard, clocking 8min 30.75sec to finish second, Ruby Heath completing an allNeptune podium in 8min 41.04sec.
Neptune swimmer Luan Grobbelaar was the other Otago recordbreaker on Saturday.
He won the 200m individual medley in 1min 57.77sec, breaking the mark of 1min 58.05sec set by Kurt Crosland in 2013, and beating the Fina ‘‘B’’ standard.
Otago swimmers claimed nine medals in all on the final day in the pool, and Neptune finished third on the open club points table.
Eva Borkowski (Neptune) won bronze in the female 1718 years 50m freestyle, and Caleb Ludlow (Alexandra) won bronze in the male 15 years individual medley.
Fairweather, Grobbelaar, Curtis Mellsop and Esme Paterson led Neptune to silver in the mixed 4x100m medley relay, and Fairweather, Grobbelaar, Deans and Mellsop won bronze in the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay.
Paterson claimed her first national title on Friday, winning the female open 200m butterfly in a time (2min 12.99sec) under the Fina ‘‘B’’ standard, while Grobbelaar won silver in the 200m butterfly.
Heidi Winter (Alexandra) won silver in the female 13 years 50m backstroke, and Ludlow added bronze in the 100m breaststroke.
The Otago recordbreaker on Friday was Neo Salomonsson (Kiwi), whose 29.99sec in the male 13 years 50m backstroke broke a nineyearold record.
Earlier at the meeting, Deans (400m, 200m and 1500m freestyle), Grobbelaar (400m individual medley) and the Neptune 4x100m freestyle relay team (Heath, Deans, Borkowski and Paris Cutler) had won gold medals; Paterson (female open 100m butterfly), Heath (400m, 200m and 1500m freestyle), Liam Rees (Alexandra, male 15 years 200m backstroke), Ludlow (50m breaststroke), Winter (100m individual medley), Grobbelaar (200m breaststroke) and the Neptune 4x50m female freestyle relay team (Heath, Borkowski, Deans and Mereana Martin) had won silver; and Maddie Young (Wanaka, female 13 years 200m backstroke), Georgia Dunn (female 14 years 50m butterfly), Ludlow (100m individual medley) and Rees (400m individual medley) had won bronze.
Other Otago recordbreakers had been Deans (1500m freestyle, 16min 5.52sec), Alfie WeatherstonHarvey (male 14 years 200m backstroke, 2min 10.68sec), Paterson (100m butterfly, 1min 0.56sec; 50m butterfly, 27.66sec), Grobbelaar (50m breaststroke, 28.16sec; 400m individual medley, 4min 10.47sec; 200m breaststroke, 2min 8.66sec), the Neptune female 4x50m (1min 46.28sec) and 4x100m (3min 49.80sec) freestyle relay teams, Dunn (50m butterfly, 28.91sec) and Borkowski (50m butterfly, 28.37sec).
Otago won 31 medals in total at the championships.