Our team had fantastic results at the New South Wales Junior Metropolitan Championships held at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre this weekend.

Leo Zhu contested 7 events at his first Metrops and achieved 100% new personal best times.  Leo was just outside the top 10 with 11th place in his 100m Breaststroke, took a massive chunk off his 50m Backstroke to win his heat from lane 0, and achieved 6th place in the 200m Breaststroke, earning himself his first Metropolitan finalist ribbon.

Joseph Assi raced 3 events and achieved 2 new personal best times.  Joseph gained another Junior State Age qualifying time with his personal best in the 100m Breaststroke. Joseph also was a Metropolitan finalist with a top-10 finish in the 200m Breaststroke taking 2 seconds off his time in the process.

Well done boys and thank you to Alison for all her hard work with the team.

Varant Jambazian will represent Merrylands at the NSW State Masters Long Distance Championships at Birrong Leisure & Aquatic Centre today.

Varant is competing in the 400m Breaststroke and 400m Freestyle.

We wish him the best of luck at the meet.

Three members have qualified for the NSW Junior Metropolitan Championships which will be held at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre this weekend.

Congratulations to:

Joseph Assi
Leo Zhu
Ren Hum

Best of luck at the meet boys!

See Also

• 2022/2023 NSW Junior Metropolitan Championships

SNSW Junior Metropolitan Championships

Congratulations to Joseph Assi, Ren Jie Hum & Leo Zhu who have all qualified for the Junior Metropolitan Championships being swum at SOPAC this weekend.

Good luck Joseph, Ren & Leo in your swims and may the Whale be with you all.

NSW Masters Long Distance Championships

Good luck to Varant Jambazian who is swimming at the Masters Long Distance Championships on Sunday at Birrong Aquatic Centre. Varant is swimming in the 400m Breaststroke & 400m Freestyle events. May the Whale be with you Varant.

Relay Competition

Remember that your relay team needs to complete the weekly form nominating the 4 team members who will swim that week. This form can be completed here.

Lions Club Award

Nominations are open for any member to recognise the service of other members.

You can nominate a club member online here.

Club Uniforms

To order club uniform items go to https://shop.merrylandsasc.asn.au/club-uniforms

Membership Cards

Remember to download a copy of your membership card from Swim Central to show to the pool staff if requested when entering the swimming centre. Instructions are here.

Championships Qualifying Times

Our two long distance championships are still to come. Remember to qualify for the 800m Freestyle (17^th December) & 1500m Freestyle (18^th March) you must have swum under the qualifying times this season prior to the Championship being swum.

The qualifying times for these Championships are:

800m – 6.45:00 in the 400m Freestyle this season

1500m – 6.30:00 in the 400m Freestyle this season

If you are planning to swim in these Championships make sure you have swum your qualifying 400m Freestyle. There are 3 more 400m Freestyle graded race swims still to come before the 800m Freestyle Championships.

Number of Swims Allowed

A reminder that there are limits to the number of swims allowed each week, depending on whether a Championship is being swum. The limits to the number of swims are:

No Championship being swum:

Swimmers can compete in a maximum of three (3) graded races.

Championship being swum:

Swimmers can only compete in two (2) graded races on those days when Age Championship events are held, except, on those days where the Championship age precludes a swimmer from competing in the championship. Where the swimmer is precluded from swimming in the Championship event due to their age they may swim in three (3) graded races.

Upcoming Meet Calendar

Check the website for the full list of upcoming meets, closing dates, programs and qualifying times.

Sponsors

Thank you to our major sponsors who provide fantastic support to our club. If you know of a business or organisation that may be interested in providing sponsorship or support to our club please speak to Graham Edwards.

Club Captains

Voting closed for the election of Male and Female Club Captains last Saturday. We will announce the Club Captains for 2022/23 at presentation after club races this morning.

Club Championship Races

Last week two championships (100m Backstroke & 100m Butterfly) were swum. Congratulations to everyone who swam in these races. A club championship record was broken by Kylee Murray in the Veterans Women’s backstroke championship. Kylee set a new record time of 1:45.49, beating her previous record time of 1:46.18 set in 2018. Congratulations Kylee

Today we have the 400m Freestyle championships being swum. Good luck to all swimmers competing in these championships.

Parramatta Inter-Club Cup

The Inter-Club Cup was swum and WON last Saturday afternoon. Congratulations to our team of 44 swimmers who were victorious in winning the cup. Our club last won the cup in 2016 (not swum in 2020 or 2021), so it was great to break the streak held by Parramatta City.

The final point score tally was Merrylands 1,148, Parramatta City 1,080 & McCredie Park 156.

Our team ranged in age from 6 to 70 and achieved a total of 90 new personal best times. 13 swimmers competed at their first carnival for the club and some swam in distances longer than they had previously swum.

What really stood out during the meet was the great spirit displayed by the clubs and swimmers competing. So much support for team mates in races, as well as great sportsmanship after races, with swimmers from each club congratulating each other on their swim.

We also had a few treats in store, with the coffee cart arriving at the start of the meet, the wraps & pizzas for some sustenance after the races and topped off with the ice cream van serving choc top & sprinkle topped ice creams. A swimmers heaven!

A very big thank you to everyone involved in the organisation and running of the meet. Without everyone getting involved on the day in set up, officiating, food delivery & pack up we couldn’t run our swim meets so successfully.

Thank you to our Club Captains who worked tirelessly during the meet looking after our swimmers and making sure they were ready for the all-important relays.

Thank you to Ms Julia Finn MP, State Member for Granville, Shadow Minister for Sport & Shadow Minister for Youth who attended the meet and presented the cup to our Club Captains.

Congratulations Merrylands

Relay Competition

Remember that your relay team needs to complete the weekly form nominating the 4 team members who will swim that week. This form can be completed here.

Lions Club Award

Nominations are open for any member to recognise the service of other members.

You can nominate a club member online here.

Club Uniforms

To order club uniform items go to https://shop.merrylandsasc.asn.au/club-uniforms

Membership Cards

Remember to download a copy of your membership card from Swim Central to show to the pool staff if requested when entering the swimming centre. Instructions are here.

Safe Sport

Swimming Australia and Swimming NSW remain fully committed to the protection of children, young people and all members in our sport. All member associations, including states, areas, clubs, coaches, parents and swimmers are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the six policies that make up the National Integrity Framework (NIF) below, and to prioritise safety and integrity at every swimming club and event.

The Swimming Australia NIF consists of six documents:

• Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy
• Competition Manipulation and Sport Wagering Policy
• Member Protection Policy
• Improper Use of Drugs and Medicine Policy
• Swimming Australia National Integrity Framework
• Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy

The Safe Sport Framework (SSF) for swimming is our guiding document to keep all members safe, particularly children and young people.

The SSF consists of two documents:

• Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy (matters or complaints concerning the safety and wellbeing of children or young people in swimming must be considered under this policy) and
• Member Protection Policy (this concerns matters relating to such things as discrimination, harassment, bullying, victimisation and abuse).

For more information please visit https://clubhouse.swimming.org.au/safe-sport

Upcoming Meet Calendar

Check the website for the full list of upcoming meets, closing dates, programs and qualifying times.

Sponsors

Thank you to our major sponsors who provide fantastic support to our club. If you know of a business or organisation that may be interested in providing sponsorship or support to our club please speak to Graham Edwards.

Merrylands successfully reclaimed the Inter-Club Cup for 2022, after last winning it in 2016.  It was exciting to be able to win the meet with some very tight racing between the clubs. It was also so pleasing to see the friendly rivalry and support the clubs gave each other.  There were so many highlights throughout the day and all teams were always going to be winners.

Our team achieved 90 new personal best times and won the point score by 68 points but there were countless achievements throughout the day.  Our swimmers aged from 6 to 70 supported each other throughout the meet with lots of cheering for each race. Thirteen swimmers competed at their first carnival for the club - congratulations Cameron, Aiden, Patrick, Pavla, Coralie, Anna, Emma, Hannah, Jude, Leah, Anastasia, Nikolai and Samantha.  Some of these swimmers had never raced in events longer than 25m before but were willing to give the 50m a crack to earn points for the club.  Some had their first attempt at 50m Butterfly and were even rewarded with a re-swim for their efforts, taking it in their stride and sharing a warm dry towel while waiting for their re-swim.

All age groups contributed to the point score and there was a great feeling of team spirit as everyone worked together. Some of our older swimmers who "don't do breaststroke" or "don't like backstroke" stepped up, (with some light prompting), to ensure we were represented in every event. Some of these swimmers even surprised themselves with their results!

Thank you to our Club Captains Matthew and Darla for organising our swimmers and looking after our younger members. Our captains also gave many their first experience of a carnival "tattoo" of event numbers, worn like a badge of honour.  Some may still have remnants on their arm at training on Monday.

With the arrival of the ice cream van, our swimmers fought the temptation until the end of the meet and celebrated the sweet taste of victory at the end of the meet with a well-deserved choc-top.

Congratulations to all our swimmers on their amazing results, and thank you to everyone who helped organise and run the meet.  Go Whales!

See Also

• 2022 Parramatta Inter-Club Cup - Results

Congratulations to Kylee Murray who set a new record in the 100m Backstroke Championships this morning.

Kylee set a new record in the Veteran Womens 100m Backstroke, finishing in a time of 1:45.49 and taking 0.69 seconds off the record she set in 2018.

Congratulations to Kylee on her swim!

See Also

• Championship Records

Club Captains

Voting closes this morning at 9.30am for the election of Male and Female Club Captains. Every first claim financial member was sent an email this week with a voting link. If you have not yet voted we encourage you to do so before 9.30am.

The nominations for Club Captains are:

We will announce the election result next Saturday after club races.

Club Championship Races

Last week two championships (100m Freestyle & 100m Breaststroke) were swum. Congratulations to everyone who swam in these races. Two club championship records were broken. Matthew Vicic setting a new record time of 1:02.67 in the Mens 15 Year Olds 100m Freestyle (dual record of 1:02.74 held by Troy Tomkinson set in 2003/04 & Anthony Ventra in 2008/09). Leo Zhu set a record time of 1:25.47 in the Boys 13 Year Olds 100m Breaststroke (breaking the record of 1:25.96 set by Todd Jenkin in 2001/02). Congratulations to Matthew & Leo on these achievements

Today we have the 100m Backstroke & 100m Butterfly championships being swum. Good luck to all swimmers competing in these championships.

Club Uniforms

To order club uniform items go to https://shop.merrylandsasc.asn.au/club-uniforms

Parramatta Inter-Club Cup

The Inter-Club Cup is being held this afternoon. Good luck to our team of 44 swimmers competing against Parramatta City (67 swimmers) & McCredie Park (11 swimmers).

Entry to the swimming centre is free. We have also arranged catering with food, coffee & ice cream through a grant we received to fund the meet, so we hope you enjoy the meet.

Warm up commences at 3.00pm so swimmers need to be stretched and ready to enter the water at this time. Races commence at 3.30pm.

We are also expecting to welcome Ms Julia Finn MP, State Member for Granville, Shadow Minister for Sport & Shadow Minister for Youth, during the afternoon, so please make welcome.

We require the help of everyone on the afternoon and we will be at the pool from 1.30pm onwards to set up so if you can help from this time that would be greatly appreciated.

MSW Open Water Championships

Merrylands was represented by Joseph Assi & Daniel Vicic at the Open Water Championships swum at the Sydney International Regatta Centre last Sunday. Congratulations to Joseph & Daniel who both swam the 2.5klm event for the 2^nd time. Both Joseph (over 8 minutes) and Daniel (over 6 minutes) off their previous times

Learn to Swim

The Learn to Swim program started last Saturday. If you can help in any way (you do not need to have any qualifications to assist the instructors in the water) even for only some of the sessions we would appreciate your help. Please speak to Peter Johnston if you are able to assist.

Relay Competition

The Relay Competition is underway. Remember that the relay team needs to complete the weekly form nominating the 4 team members who will swim that week. Complete the form here.

Lions Club Award

Nominations are open for any member to recognise the service of other members.

Each month the Committee considers all nominations received during the previous month and votes on these. Voting is secret and the votes are tallied over the season, with the Lions Club Award made at the Annual Presentation.

We would like to recognise the members who we received nominations for in October:

Alison Johnston

Carlos Vergara

Christine Liepins

Danielle Vicic

Denise Assi

Graham Edwards

Ian Johnston

Leanne Tovkach

Luke Hannan

Margaret Edwards

Peter Johnston

William Johnston

Thank you to everyone above for your dedication and help during the month. Your efforts are greatly appreciated.

Nominate a club member for the month online here.

Membership Cards

Remember to download a copy of your membership card from Swim Central to show to the pool staff if requested when entering the swimming centre. Instructions are here.

Technical Officials

To be able to run club races and have the times accepted by Swimming NSW we need to ensure that we have qualified technical officials. This includes various roles around the pool deck, including timekeeping. Training for most roles is conducted online and we encourage you to start by obtaining your timekeeping qualification. See https://nswtraining.swimming.org.au for more information and ask Graham any questions you may have about becoming a technical official.

At this week’s Area Delegates Meeting we were presented with a report in relation to abuse of officials at recent SMSW meets. Incidents of abuse of officials occurred at both the Long Course Championships (SOPAC) and Open Water Championships (SIRC). The Area Technical Convenor reported that the incidents were all dealt with, however any future incidents will not be tolerated and action will be taken to ban anyone involved in abusing officials from the sport of swimming.

It is inappropriate for a parent or swimmer to be abusive to any Official. The Code of Conduct agreed to by everyone when joining a swimming club sets out clear guidelines on appropriate behaviour.

None of the recent incidents involved our club and we thank all of our swimmers, parents & coaches for the example they continue to set at swim meets.

Upcoming Meet Calendar

Check the website for the full list of upcoming meets, closing dates, programs and qualifying times.

Sponsors

Thank you to our major sponsors who provide fantastic support to our club. If you know of a business or organisation that may be interested in providing sponsorship or support to our club please speak to Graham Edwards.

Congratulations to Matthew Vicic on breaking the 15 Years Boys 100m Freestyle record today.

Matt swam a time of 1:02.67, slicing 0.07 off the previous record, which 2 swimmers had jointly held.

Troy Tomkinson set the previous record of 1:02.74 in the 2003/04 season, which Anthony Ventra then equalled in 2008/09.

Well done Matt!

See Also

• Championship Records

Congratulations to Leo Zhu on setting a new record in the 13 Years Boys 100m Breaststroke today.

Leo took 0.49 off the previous record, finishing in 1:25.47.

The previous record of 1:25.96 had been held by Todd Jenkin since the 2001/02 season.

This is Leo's first club record - well done!

See Also

• Championship Records