Merrylands will be represented by 2 swimmers at the NSW State Age Championships which will be held at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre from Friday, 13th to Wednesday 18th December, 2019.

Our team consists of:

Congratulations to both Vanessa and Alison for qualifying and we wish them well for the meet.

See Also

• NSW Senior State Age Championships
• NSW Senior State Age Championships - Live Results

SNSW Senior Metropolitan Championships

Congratulations to Alison Sakurovs who represented our club at the Metropolitan Championships last weekend. Alison swam in the Womens Open 50 metres Freestyle, clocking 28.89, a season best time. A great warm up for the State Age Championships in two weeks time! Congratulations Alison.

Chocolate Fundraising

Please return any outstanding funds raised to Trish Johnston. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to help sell the chocolates and raise funds for the club.

Christmas Hamper Raffle & Christmas Events

We ask if you could please donate non-perishable items as prize items for our Christmas Hamper Raffle. The raffle will be drawn on Saturday 21st December, 2019 after club races. Tickets are $1 each (books of 10 tickets $10) and are available from today.

Following club races we will also be holding novelty events, a breakfast bbq and squad Christmas Party, so please stay around and enjoy these activities.

Squad Training

Remember training breaks from Saturday 21st December, 2019 and resumes on Saturday 4th January, 2020. If you plan to be away over December or January please let your coach know. To do this complete the online form. More details here.

Club Uniform

Our great range of club uniform items are available for sale and these can be sourced through the online shop (https://shop.merrylandsasc.asn.au/). Please see our Property Officer (Margaret Edwards) if you need assistance or have questions about the club uniform items. Margaret is also taking orders for hoodies and winter jackets, as these require minimum order numbers and have a lead time to obtain.

Timekeepers Course

I hope to be able to provide the date this morning for the Timekeepers assessment. Stay tuned at presentation after club races today.

Christmas & Holiday Events @ Club Merrylands Newman St, Merrylands

FREE Santa Photos - Monday 9 December 5.30pm – 7.30pm

Kids Toy Raffle - Monday 9 December 7.30pm @ Club Merrylands

FREE Kids Barefoot Bowls - Friday 10 January 9.30am

FREE Bingo - Wednesday 15 January 2pm

FREE Reptile Show - Sunday 19 January 12.30pm

Pizza Making - Tuesday 21 January 5pm - $5

Club By-Laws

The Club By-Laws have been updated and are now available on the club website. They can be accessed at here.

Be Sun Smart

Reduce your risk of skin cancer by protecting yourself in 5 ways:

• Slip on clothing that covers your shoulders, arms and legs. Choose shirts with collars, high necks and sleeves and trousers or longer shorts and skirts that come below the knees;
• Slop on SPF30+ or higher broad-spectrum water-resistant sunscreen. Apply generously 20 minutes before going outside and re-apply every 2 hours. Never rely on sunscreen alone;
• Slap on a broad-brimmed hat that protects your face, ears and neck. Broad-brimmed, bucket and legionnaire style hats provide good protection. Baseball caps are not recommended, as they do not protect the ears, cheeks or neck;
• Seek shade whenever you can especially when UV levels are highest between10am and 2pm (11am and 3pm during daylight saving);
• Slide on sunglasses that meet Australian Standard AS1067 and that fit your face well.

Sun screen is available in the club room for your protection.

Information courtesy of Cancer Council NSW

Upcoming Events

Whales Tales Online

Do you want the weekly Whales Tales delivered straight to your inbox? Simply sign-up online, and never miss the latest news.

Sponsors

We again thank our major sponsors who provide fantastic support to our club. If you know of a business or organisation who may be interested in providing sponsorship or support to our club please let Graham know.

Alison Johnston swam a season best time at the NSW Metropolitan Championships yesterday.

Swimming in the Open 50m Freestyle, Alison finished in 28.89, her fastest time so far this season. A great result as she prepares for the State Age Championships in two weeks time.

Congratulations to Alison on her swim.

Alison Johnston will represent Merrylands at the 2019 NSW Metropolitan Championships this weekend.

The Championships are being held at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre on Saturday 30th November & Sunday 1st December.

Alison will compete in the Open 50m Freestyle and we wish her all the best for the meet.

See Also

• Swimming NSW
• 2019 NSW Senior Metropolitan Championships

Our team of four swimmers achieved excellent results at the Metro South West Long Course Championships over the weekend.

The meet kicked off with the Open 50 Breaststroke.  Brendan was the first to swim and achieved a solid season best time.  The girls were up next and Laura-Belle took a massive 2.5 second chunk off her previous time and Sophia was right on her entry time.

The Open 50 Butterfly followed with Brendan having another top swim, getting under the 31 second mark.

Laura-Belle had a cracker of a swim in the 14 Year Girls 100m Freestyle taking over 5 seconds off her previous best time.

The Open 50 Backstroke was a PB-a-thon for the girls with Sophia, Laura-Belle and Alison all reducing their times.

The last event for Saturday was the Open 50m Freestyle. Brendan took a second off his entry time to dip under 29 seconds. Laura-Belle achieved another PB to keep Sophia on her toes, who followed with a solid time.  Alison was a finalist in the event, coming 8^th overall.

There was no signs of fatigue on Day 2 as our swimmers continued to excel. Brendan achieved a Season Best in the Open 100 Backstroke, earning himself a ribbon in the process.  He then raced to the other end of the pool to back straight up for a gutsy 50 Butterfly, which was within a second of the time set the day before.

Alison earned the first medal of the meet, picking up a Bronze in the 17/Over 50m Butterfly.

The second medal of the meet was from Alison in lane 1 of the Open 100m Freestyle, picking another bronze.  Not to miss out on the “skins” action, Alison made her way to the other end to back up with a 50m Backstroke straight after.  The ribbon was appreciated, the lactic was not.

Brendan dipped under the 29 mark again in the Men’s 17/Over 50m Freestyle to pick up another ribbon and beat his time from the previous day.  A gold was won by Alison in the Women’s event, with the time also faster than the previous day.

The 17/Over 50m Breaststroke was next, with Brendan coming 4^th and 0.1 outside the time he swam the previous day.  Alison also came 4^th in the Women’s event.

Laura-Belle finished the meet off with a bang in the 14 Year Girls 100m Breaststroke. Laura-Belle took a huge 7 seconds off her previous mark and achieved a top 10 finish in the process.

Congratulations to all our swimmers on their wonderful performances!

Medal Tally

Gold - 1
Bronze - 2
Top 10 - 8

Merrylands will send a team of 4 swimmers to the Metro South West Senior Long Course Championships.  The Championships are being held at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre on the 2nd and 3rd November, 2019.

Our team is competing in 22 individual events over the weekend.

Good luck to Laura-Belle, Brendan, Alison and Sophia!

Merrylands has a team of 5 swimming at the NSW State Masters Short Course Championships. The championships are being held at Peninsula Leisure Centre, Woy Woy over the 12th and 13th October, 2019.

The team of 5 are competing in 23 events across the weekend. Good luck to Peter, Brendan, Kylee, Alison and Leanne.

The club is also being represented by 3 swimmers at the Swimming NSW Junior Area Representative Meet at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre on Saturday.

Niushka, Summer and Matt are part of the Metro South West Area team and have been selected in 15 individual events and 3 relays between them.

Good luck to both teams. We know you will make us proud!

Merrylands' team took home 8 medals from the NSW State Masters Long Distance Championships on Sunday.

The club finished with 6 Gold, 1 Silver and 1 Bronze.

Congratulations to Ian Wilson, Brendan Kirkpatrick, Peter Johnston and Alison Sakurovs on their swims.

Merrylands will be represented by 4 swimmers at the NSW State Masters Long Distance Championships at the Knox Grammar School Aquatic Centre on Sunday, 8th September.

Ian Wilson, Brendan Kirkpatrick, Peter Johnston and Alison Sakurovs will compete at the meet in 2 events each.

We wish them the best of luck at the meet.

Alison Sakurovs became the club's first finalist at a Swimming NSW Championship since 2016 at the NSW State Age Short Course Championships today.

Alison finished 7th in the 19yrs & Over 50m Freestyle in 28.01 - her second fastest time ever, and her fastest time in 3 years. This was also Alison's best ever placing at a Swimming NSW Championship.

Alison's result is off the back of some excellent swims at the FINA World Masters Championships in South Korea last week.

Congratulations to Alison on her fantastic result.

See Also

• 2019 NSW Senior State Age Short Course Championships - Live Results
• 2019 NSW Senior State Age Short Course Championships - 50m Freestyle
• 18th FINA World Masters Championships - Report