News
Southland Swimmer leads way for NZ
By LOGAN SAVORY - The Southland Times
Coach Jeremy Duncan has declared Southland's leading swimmer Natalie Wiegersma ahead of schedule as she chases a ticket to this year's Commonwealth Games.
The Southlander was New Zealand's best-performed swimmer at the New South Wales state championships at the weekend as she continues to march towards a trip to the Games in India in August.
Wiegersma broke a New Zealand record when she finished second only to Australian world record-holder Emily Seebohm in the final of the women's 200m individual medley in Sydney on Sunday night.
Wiegersma broke Helen Norfolk's New Zealand record, set at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, as she headed home 2008 Olympic gold medallist Stephanie Rice to be placed second at the state championships.
The 20-year-old also bettered the Commonwealth Games qualifying time twice during the meet.
However, it is April 6 at the New Zealand trials in Auckland when the times really count for Wiegersma.
That is when she will be swimming for a spot at the Commonwealth Games.
"We're slightly ahead of where we probably thought we would be at the moment," a delighted Duncan told The Southland Times from Sydney yesterday.
Duncan said the youngster's performance across the Tasman at the weekend was a confidence boost as she again cracked the qualifying time leading into D-day in April.
"The more often she does it, the more confident she will get," he said.
Wiegersma led the way for New Zealand in Sydney and, ironically, it took a Southlander to do so.
The majority of the New Zealand swimming squad train together under the national coaches at the Millennium Institute pool in Auckland.
Wiegersma, however, has chosen to stay in the south and chase her swimming dream out of the Splash Palace pool in Invercargill.
Swimming New Zealand official Jan Cameron praised the efforts of Wiegersma and her coach to get to where they are at the moment.
"It was a superb weekend for Natalie and her coach Jeremy Duncan.
"She made huge strides and this is excellent rewards for some very hard work," Cameron said.
"Natalie is a very young swimmer who has been moving up the world rankings consistently and the challenge will now be to kick on from here and improve further at the trials. This is an excellent confidence boost for her."
Southland sent a further four swimmers to compete in the New South Wales state championships at the weekend and they also showed promising improvements.
Lisa Pankhurst recorded some personal bests while Duncan also said Richard Harris and Michael Finlay posted some pleasing times.
Rower Begins his Push for Prague
By LOGAN SAVORY - The Southland Times
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James Hargest College has an impressive record for progressing rowers through to national honours and year 13 pupil Ollie Behrent is eager to be added to that list this year.
Behrent will line up in the New Zealand senior rowing championships at Lake Karapiro, which start today, as he takes another step towards trying to push his way into the New Zealand team to attend the world junior rowing championships in Prague this year.
Behrent took up the sport four years ago when he spotted a note being passed around at school and thought rowing might suit him.
He was right. Two seasons into the sport Behrent realised he had some talent.
That talent has reached the point he is now being regarded as a future champion around the southern rowing circuit.
His success to date certainly hasn't gone unnoticed.
He was picked up this year to be part of the Academy of Southland Talent Xclerator sports programme.
The programme helps Southland youngsters in a host of different disciplines, including mental skills, nutrition and planning, as they attempt to have success on the world stage.
Already Behrent's achievement list is lengthy as he begins to add another chapter to his school's successful rowing history.
Last year he played a major hand in what was a very successful trip for James Hargest to the New Zealand secondary schools championships.
Behrent sat in the stroke seat for the JHC under-17 quad, which won gold at the national secondary schools championships.
That effort saw the quad later in the year named Southland secondary school team of the year.
Behrent also won silver in the under-18 single scull, being pipped by schoolmate Hayden Cohen, although the two did team up to win the bronze in the double.
Behrent knows the return trip to this year's nationals is an important one for him.
A top-two finish in the under-18 single or pairs races at the secondary school championhips could book him a trip to Prague.
Otherwise, Behrent could qualifying by posting a quick time in an erg (ergometer) test at a later date.
Rowing Southland official John O'Connor said Behrent had certainly caught the eye of rowing folk nationally and had a promising future ahead of him.
O'Connor said Behrent was another product of the association's winter development programme, which has had great success in recent years with many Southlanders progressing through to the national ranks.
While Behrent has his sights fixed on New Zealand selection this year, he first has this week's national senior championships to contend with.
He will line up in the under-21 single, under-19 double, senior four and senior eight races.
Dawkins gets step closer to world dream
By LOGAN SAVORY - The Southland Times
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BARRY HARCOURT/The Southland Times |
Dawkins was the shining star of the 2010 elite New Zealand Track Cycling Championships, which ended on Saturday night.
After winning the 1000m time trial in record time on Thursday night and claiming the men's keirin on Friday night, Dawkins didn't rest on that success.
On Saturday, the talented 20-year-old made it a trio of gold medals when he took out the men's open sprint race at the ILT Velodrome in Invercargill.
In the best-of-three final he beat Manawatu's Simon Van Velthooven in two races.
Just to add to the special performance on the way to winning gold, he completed the flying lap in the sprint of 250m in 10.249sec, 0.25sec off the previous national record.
"It's been a great week for me. I did not rest for this week. I was in the gym the day before it. So to achieve these results and times this week is pretty exciting," Dawkins said.
"I know I have a long way to go. But my goal is to get to the top of the world in this sport. I don't know how long it will take but I'm determined to get there."
New Zealand track sprint coach Justin Grace was confident where Dawkins was at at the moment.
"He is only 20 and sprinters don't reach their peak until their late 20s or early 30s, so the future is pretty bright," Grace said.
Dawkins' third gold-medal-winning effort was not the only reason the Invercargill home crowd was buzzing on Saturday night.
Southland's Tom Scully was given a light workload during the nationals as he builds up to the world championships and Commonwealth Games events this year.
Despite this, he still found time to win a gold medal when the 19-year-old took out the scratch race on Saturday night in impressive fashion.
He held off Olympian Marc Ryan and points race winner Shem Roger in the sprint to the line.
Scully continues to be impressive with every meet he takes part in, which has included winning five medals in the previous two World Cup meets he attended.
Meanwhile, Canterbury's Natasha Hansen defended her national women's sprint title, Russlee Buchanan won the women's scratch race over 10km, while Auckland finished first and second in the men's team's pursuit race.
In the omnium, which is made up of a series of events, Westley Gough was the men's champion and Levin teenager Gemma Dudley was the women's champion.
DAWKINS' EVENTS EXPLAINED
The 1000m time trial
Each rider has to cover the 1km distance in the fastest time possible. Competitors intricately formulate a speed that each lap must be completed in, based on their target time.
The keirin
In this race the cyclists sit behind a motorised derny bike that gradually builds up speed over the four laps before the derny leaves the track. The cyclists then battle it out, with the first one home the winner.
The sprint
Unlike the sprints in athletics, cycling track sprinters do not start sprinting from the starting line. The early parts of the race will often be highly tactical, with riders pedalling slowly in a game of cat and mouse, determining who will make the first move. When one goes they will sprint to the finish line to try to claim victory. Only the last 250m is timed.
Cycling stars back from Beijing
By LOGAN SAVORY - The Southland Times
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BARRY HARCOURT/The Southland Times |
The sport in Southland is buzzing as the success stories mount up almost on a weekly basis.
Southland's outstanding cyclists Eddie Dawkins and Tom Scully returned home to Invercargill from the World Cup meet in Beijing to a reception of about 40 family and friends.
Dawkins had picked up gold in the elite men's sprint while Scully banked three bronze medals.
Among those who turned out at the airport to welcome the pair home was Southland cycling stalwart Laurie Tall.
Tall worked with the promising pair in the early days of their riding and was thrilled to be able to be part of a special homecoming.
"I was part of (coaching) the Licensing Trust development team that Eddie was in a few years ago now. It was so obvious that he was going to go further," Tall said.
"Tom, well, he showed a lot of potential as well when we started in Cromwell. That's why his father sent him down here to go to school."
Scully said yesterday he and Dawkins had wondered on the plane home from Beijing what they may strike at Invercargill Airport. He added soon after they touched down that the pair weren't disappointed. "To get home and see a good Southland crowd turn up for us is great. It's great to be home," Scully said.
The pair will now quickly turn their focus to the New Zealand track cycling championships in Invercargill next month before they eye a trip to Denmark for the world championships in March.
