Welcome to December

Whales Challenge - Today

Parramatta Inter-Club Cup – Saturday 24th November, 2018

Club Uniform

Swimming Metro South West – Senior Long Course Championships

50th Anniversary Celebrations

• Merrylands 50s - Saturday, 5th January, 2019
• Dive In Movie - Saturday, 19th January, 2019
• 50th Anniversary Dinner - Saturday, 6th April, 2019

More details for these and other events can be found in the 50th Anniversary section.

Merrylands SwimFest – Saturday 23rd February, 2019

Are you a member of Club Merrylands?

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.

Thank you to our sponsors for their support of our club

Club Captains

Whales Challenge - Today

Parramatta Inter-Club Cup – Saturday 24th November, 2018

Club Uniform

Swimming Metro South West – Senior Long Course Championships

50th Anniversary – Back to Merrylands Day

Fundraising

Cole Classic Charity Swim – Sunday 3rd February, 2019

Merrylands SwimFest – Saturday 23rd February, 2019

Timekeepers

• After each race has started, check that your watch has started. If it hasn’t notify the Chief Timekeeper
• Check your watch is running throughout the race. If you bump one of the buttons and it stops, press the button again and the watch will resume from where it should be up to
• If you miss the finish and stop your watch early or late, or have any other problem – notify the Chief Timekeeper
• Leave phones aside during the races so that you can concentrate on the swimmer in your lane
• There is Tea and Coffee available in the club room for timekeepers after the races

Are you a member of Club Merrylands?

Pool Entry Information

• wait to be served at the front entrance before entering the centre;
• have your current 2018/19 club membership card with you - you may be asked to produce your card for proof of club membership;
• have completed your details on your membership card - Name, Club & Membership Number.

1. When attending Club Races:
   • Children 4yrs & Under
     • No Charge - must be advised to pool staff on entry;
   • Club Members must either
     • pay the Club Member entry fee of $4.20, or
     • use a Club 20 Entry Pass ($46 for 20 entries - equivalent of $2.30 per entry - 1 pass can be used by multiple people), or
     • use a Centre Member Pass (1, 3, 6 and 12 month passes are available for a single named Club Member - each member requires their own pass)
   • Non-Club Member Spectators must either
     • pay the Spectator Fee of $3.80, or
     • use a Spectator 20 Entry Pass ($72 for 20 entries - equivalent of $3.60 per entry - 1 pass can be used by multiple people)
   • Non-Club Member Swimmers
     • must pay the normal pool entry fees
   • Officials (Timekeepers etc.)
     • No Charge - must sign the book at the entrance and assist with the running of the races.
2. When attending Training & Learn to Swim:
   • Children 4yrs & Under
     • No Charge - must be advised to pool staff on entry;
   • Club Members must either
     • pay the Club Member entry fee: $4.20, or
     • use a Club 20 Entry Pass ($46 for 20 entries - equivalent of $2.30 per entry - 1 pass can be used by multiple people), or
     • use a Centre Member Pass (1, 3, 6 and 12 month passes are available for a single named Club Member - each member requires their own pass)
   • Spectators
     • No Charge - must be advised to pool staff on entry
   • Swimmers not in the Squad or Learn to Swim
     • must pay the normal pool entry fees

Member Profile

Thank you to our sponsors for their support of our club

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.

50th Anniversary – Back to Merrylands Day

We hope you enjoyed the Back to Merrylands Day celebrations last Saturday.

Thank you to everyone who attended the day including our Life Members, past and current members, families & friends. Unfortunately Ms Julia Finn MP for Granville was unable to attend and had sent her apologies for this. Thanks also to Jann Fathers who visited and helped out refereeing club races.

The celebrations and events held on the day were organised by the club and they could not have happened without a big effort by the Committee members. Thank you to everyone who helped on the day with activities such as cooking the bbq breakfast, running the pool activities, organising and picking up the cake and taking photos.

The club hired an inflatable for the day and it was enjoyed by everyone who attempted to become a Merrylands Ninja Warrior. Additional life guards to man the inflatable during the day were provided by council. It was great to host a special visit by Yampu, the Optus Junior Dolphin, I hear Yampu made a great impression on all the kids, young and not so young!

We still have a number of other events planned to celebrate our 50th Anniversary over the rest of the season. These include:

• Merrylands 50s - Saturday, 5th January, 2019
• Dive In Movie - Saturday, 19th January, 2019
• 50th Anniversary Dinner - Saturday, 6th April, 2019

More details for these and other events can be found in the 50th Anniversary section of the website.

Club Captains

We will be announcing our Club Captains for the 2018/2019 season this morning.

Fundraising

Thank you to those who have taken and sold chocolates for our recent fundraising activity. Please return funds to Vicki & Hayley Baker by the end of week 8, Saturday 24th November 2018.

100 metre Backstroke Championship –Saturday 24th November, 2018

The postponed 100 metre Backstroke Championship races will be held next Saturday (24th November, 2018) in addition to the 200 metre Individual Medley Open Championship. The 400 metre event has been removed from the program to provide time for the two championship events to be held. More details are available on the club website (online entries).

Parramatta Inter-Club Cup – Saturday 24th November, 2018

The Parramatta Inter-Club Cup will be held at Granville Pool next Saturday (24th November, 2018). The Competition Committee will advise all swimmers who have been selected to represent our club at this meet. Cost for each swimmer is $10 which includes pool entry, event entries and a sausage sandwich. Entry to the pool for spectators is free.

Warm-up commences at 3.00pm, with the meet commencing at 3.30pm. So make sure you are at the pool and stretched ready to enter the water at 3.00pm for your warm-up.

We will need to provide timekeepers on the day so we ask all parents to be available to assist during the meet.

If you need to purchase club uniform items before this meet please see the club Property Officer (Margaret Edwards) & the club website to place an order.

Did you know?

Do you know who your office bearers and committee members for this season are?

In addition these members hold a number of other positions and perform roles that ensure the smooth running of our club. Thank you to these members for volunteering for these roles and the time they provide to the club. 7 of these members are life members of the club and they have dedicated many years of service to the club.

There are lots of jobs that need to be done on a Saturday morning. Are you interested in learning how to do any of the following: Chief Time Keeper, Marshal, Starter, Recorder, Timing System Operator, Computer Operator? If so, please speak to Graham.

The more people involved in these roles the smoother club races can run and also cover times when our officials are not available.

As you can see we do have a couple of positions vacant on the committee and we are looking to fill these roles. Previous experience in roles and committee positions are not required. We would love to have a broad cross section of our members volunteering to help steer the direction of the club as we enter the next 50 years.

To learn more about the club and it’s activities club members can log on to the club website and read the latest Annual Report (2017/2018 season).

Timekeepers

Thank you to everyone who helps with timekeeping the club races each week. Your help is invaluable in providing 2 timekeepers per lane so we have accurate timing for the swimmers. A few things to remember when you are timekeeping:

• After each race has started, check that your watch has started. If it hasn’t notify the Chief Timekeeper
• Check your watch is running throughout the race. If you bump one of the buttons and it stops, press the button again and the watch will resume from where it should be up to
• If you miss the finish and stop your watch early or late, or have any other problem – notify the Chief Timekeeper
• Leave phones aside during the races so that you can concentrate on the swimmer in your lane
• There is Tea and Coffee available in the club room for timekeepers after the races

Swimming Metro South West – Open Water Championships

Congratulations to Matthew Vicic on his first open water swim in the 2.5k race last Sunday. Great effort Matthew and with a big smile at the finish.

Swimming Metro South West – Senior Long Course Championships

Good luck to Michael Evans, Steven Nguyen, Alison Sakurovs & Reece Tomkinson who are competing at the Area Championships being held at SOPAC this weekend. May the whale be with you all.

Are you a member of Club Merrylands?

Club Merrylands are developing a program to reward local community clubs such as our club. To do this Club Merrylands would like to identify memberships held by our club members and group them together. If you would like to participate in this program and help our club obtain additional support from Club Merrylands let Graham know you are a member. We will provide more details of this program as Club Merrylands implement the reward program.

Shoosh For Kids

Shoosh for Kids is a collaboration between the Office of Sport and Swimming NSW to promote positive behaviour to clubs, members and spectators. For more information visit https://sport.nsw.gov.au/clubs/ryc/fairplay/ShooshforKids

Member Profile

See Graham to provide your profile information for inclusion in future editions of the Whales Tales.

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.

Thank you to our sponsors for their support of our club

Upcoming Events

50th Anniversary – Back to Merrylands Day

Today we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Merrylands Swimming Centre and Merrylands Amateur Swimming Club.

We would like to extend a warm welcome to our current and past members including our life members, families, friends, community members and Ms Julia Finn MP for Granville. Our club has a rich history serving the community, with many members of the local community having participated in activities such as club races, squad training and learn to swim lessons.

The swimming centre was officially opened on Saturday 9th November, 1968 by the Mayor of Holroyd, Alderman Devlin. The pool cost $365,000 to construct (approx $4,500,000 in 2018 value).

Merrylands Amateur Swimming Club was formed in the same year and originally ran club races on a Friday night during December, January & February. The club had over 250 members registered in the first season – one of the largest in NSW at the time (last season we had 187 members registered – still in the top 10% of clubs in the state). The club’s logo comes from the model whale which was originally the centre-piece of the babies pool.

Pool Opening in 1968

Club Photo 1968/69

Whale centre-piece

Club Captains

We are holding voting this morning for the positions of Male and Female Club Captains. The nominations received for these positions are:

We have two returning officers who will accept votes from our First Claim members up to 9.30am.

100 metre Backstroke Championship –Saturday 24th November, 2018

The postponed 100 metre Backstroke Championship races will be held on Saturday 24th November, 2018, in addition to the 200 metre Individual Medley Open Championship. The 400 metre event has been removed from the program to provide time for the two championship events to be held. More details are available on the club website (online entries).

Parramatta InterClub Cup – Saturday 24th November, 2018

The Parramatta InterClub Cup will be held at Granville Pool on Saturday 24th November, 2018. The Competition Committee will advise all swimmers who have been selected to represent our club at this meet. If you need to purchase club uniform items before this meet please see the club Property Officer (Margaret Edwards) & the club website to place an order.

Member Profile

To celebrate our 50th anniversary today we have a member profile for one of our first club members:

Glad, together with her husband, Jim, were founding members of our club. Not only is Glad a Life Member of Merrylands Amateur Swimming Club (awarded in 1986), she is also a Life Member of Mt Pritchard and Blacktown City Swimming Clubs, Metro South West Area (formerly the Cumberland District), CHS (Combined High Schools Sports Association) and Swimming NSW (awarded in 2016).

In 2006, Glad's service to our club was formally recognised with the naming of the Club Room at Merrylands Swimming Centre after Glad and her husband Jim. The Club Room was officially named the "Glad and Jim Pye Club Room" by the Mayor of Holroyd, Councillor Dr John Brodie, at a special ceremony on Saturday, 9th December, 2006.

Glad has dedicated a lifetime to swimming and she has received numerous awards and recognition for her service. We would like to thank Glad for her dedication to our club and sport.

See Graham to provide your profile information for inclusion in future editions of the Whales Tales.

Important Information about Race Entries

Entries for races can be lodged online up to 8.00pm on the Thursday before Saturday races.

If you need to change a race entry already lodged please email race.secretary@merrylandsasc.asn.au

To be eligible to enter championships the swimmer must be financial in this season. The swimmer must have swum the same stroke and same distance during the current season (check the program and plan your swims carefully).

Remember there are limits to the number of swims you can do on a Saturday.

If there is a championship for your age (whether you are swimming in it or not) you can swim:

• your Age championship
• the Open championship (subject to having swum in your age championship)
• 2 other events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If there is NO championship for your age you can swim:

• 3 events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If you enter too many events your entries for the extra event/s will be withdrawn when the program is prepared for the day.

Shoosh For Kids

Shoosh for Kids is a collaboration between the Office of Sport and Swimming NSW to promote positive behaviour to clubs, members and spectators. See the attached brochure and posters in the club room for more information or visit https://sport.nsw.gov.au/clubs/ryc/fairplay/ShooshforKids

Play By The Rules

Play by the Rules provides information, resources, tools and free online training to increase the capacity and capability of administrators, coaches, officials, players, parents and spectators to assist them in preventing and dealing with discrimination, harassment, child safety, inclusion and integrity issues in sport. For more information and resources see www.playbytherules.net.au

Safe Sport Framework

The safety of children and young people in our sport is paramount. We want swimming to be fun, enjoyable and safe for all. The Swimming Australia Safe Sport Framework confirms the shared responsibility we all have for keeping each other safe in swimming - children and adults alike.

A copy of the Safe Sport Framework is available on the noticeboard in the club room or can be downloaded at www.swimming.org.au/Home/Officials-Volunteers/Safe-sport-(1).aspx

Upcoming Events

Thank you to our sponsors for their support of our club

Are you a member of Club Merrylands?

Club Merrylands are developing a program to reward local community clubs such as our club. To do this Club Merrylands would like to identify memberships held by our club members and group them together. If you would like to participate in this program and help our club obtain additional support from Club Merrylands let Graham know you are a member. We will provide more details of this program as Club Merrylands implement the reward program.

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.

100 metre Backstroke Championship – Saturday 24th November, 2018

The postponed 100 metre Backstroke Championship races will be held on Saturday 24th November, 2018, in addition to the 200 metre Individual Medley Open Championship. The 400 metre event has been removed from the program to provide time for the two championship events to be held.

The order of events for the day will be:

• 200 metre Individual Medley Championship (Open)
• 50 metres Individual Medley
• Butterfly – all distances
• Breaststroke – all distances
• Freestyle – all distances
• 100 metre Backstroke Championships
• Backstroke (50 metre, 25 metre & 33 metre only)
• 200 metres choice
• Relay
• Senior Handicap
• 15 metre

See the table below to confirm what events you can enter on the day:

Club Captains

InterClub Cup

The InterClub Cup will be held at Granville Pool on Saturday 24th November, 2018. This is a short meet where every swimmer (young and not so young) from our club competes. The Race Committee will be advising swimmers of the events they have been selected to compete in.
If you need to purchase club uniform items before this meet please see the club Property Officer (Margaret Edwards) & the uniform page to place an order.

50th Anniversary – Back to Merrylands Day Saturday 10th November, 2018

Learn to Swim

Did you know?

The original blocks in 1973

2018 version

Important Information for Age Championships

With changes this season to the Swimming NSW calendar some of our club Age Championships will be held on different dates, depending on the age group. Swimmers need to check the Championships page for more information.

In particular Boys aged 13 years and Girls aged 12 years on 1st October, 2018 and who age up (have a birthday) before the MSW Area Championships on 17th November, 2018 may be affected with a clash in dates for the Age 200 metres Individual Medley championship (being held on 17th November, 2018). If this is the case you may apply to have your Age Championship race moved to another date. See the club website for more details.

Important Information about Race Entries

Entries for races can be lodged online up to 8.00pm on the Thursday before Saturday races.

If you need to change a race entry already lodged please email race.secretary@merrylandsasc.asn.au

To be eligible to enter championships the swimmer must be financial in this season. The swimmer must have swum the same stroke and same distance during the current season (check the program and plan your swims carefully).

Remember there are limits to the number of swims you can do on a Saturday.

If there is a championship for your age (whether you are swimming in it or not) you can swim:

• your Age championship
• the Open championship (subject to having swum in your age championship)
• 2 other events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If there is NO championship for your age you can swim:

• 3 events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If you enter too many events your entries for the extra event/s will be withdrawn when the program is prepared for the day.

Member Profile

See Graham to provide your profile information for inclusion in future editions of the Whales Tales.

Upcoming Events

Entries for the MSW Area Long Course Age & Open Championships (12 Years & Over) being held on Saturday 17th November, 2018 & Sunday 18th November, 2018 close at midnight this Tuesday (6th November, 2018). So make sure you lodge your entries before the closing time.

Fundraising

Our chocolate fundraising activity is underway. Thank you to those who have taken and sold chocolates. Please return funds to Vicki & Hayley Baker as we would like to wrap this up by the end of this month.

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.

Relay Competition

Relay forms with team member names need to be lodged with the Race Secretary before today’s relay.

Thank you to our sponsors for their support of our club

100 metre Backstroke Championship – to be swum on Saturday 24th November, 2018

Following the postponement last Saturday we will now be holding the 100 metre Backstroke Championship races on Saturday 24th November, 2018. There will be 2 championships held on the day.

The order of events for the day will be:

• 200 metre Individual Medley Championship (Open)
• 50 metres Individual Medley
• Butterfly – all distances
• Breaststroke – all distances
• Freestyle – all distances
• 100 metre Backstroke Championships
• Backstroke (50 metre, 25 metre & 33 metre only)
• 200 metres choice
• Relay
• Senior Handicap
• 15 metre

Note the 400 metre event has been removed from the program to provide time for the two championship events to be held on the same day.

Entries for the 100 metre Backstroke Championship have been carried over and swimmers will not need to re-enter if they had entered by the closing date. Swimmers who did not qualify for and enter the 100 Backstroke before the 20th  October, 2018 will be ineligible to compete in the 100 Backstroke Championship.

See the table below to confirm what events you can enter on the day:

Club Captains

Nominations for the positions of Male and Female Club Captains are open and close at 9.30am today. All financial first claim members can vote for these positions at week 6 (10th November, 2018).
I encourage all of our eligible members to nominate for these positions. See Graham today to nominate.

InterClub Cup

The InterClub Cup will be held at Granville Pool on Saturday 24th November, 2018 and this is a short meet where every swimmer (young and not so young) from our club competes. If you need to purchase club uniform items before this meet please see the club Property Officer (Margaret Edwards) & the club website to place an order.

Fundraising

Our chocolate fundraising activity is underway. Thankyou to those who have taken and sold chocolates. Please return funds to Vicki & Hayley Baker.

50th Anniversary

Our first event celebrating the club’s 50th anniversary swimming season will be Back To Merrylands Day & pool party on Saturday 10th November, 2018. Emails have been sent to former and life members this week and we had a short article in The Daily Telegraph last Monday advertising the day. If you know any of our former-members please let them know about the day and encourage them to come down to club races that morning. They will have the opportunity to join in club races and relive past glories, as well as some of the older “activities” they undertook.

A celebration dinner will be held at the end of the season on Saturday 6th April, 2019 at the Holroyd Centre. More details on the 50th Anniversary page.

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

Club Merrylands – Grandparents Day

NSW Grandparents Day celebrates the role grandparents and older people play in our society.

The campaign recognizes the diversity of grandparent relationships across age groups, cultural backgrounds, and geographical locations.

It's a day to spend time with an older loved one and connect across the generations.

Celebrate it with a fun Barefoot Bowls game for grandparents and grandchildren this Sunday at Guildford Bowling Club

Technical Officials

Would you like to obtain a technical accreditation? Most roles are now available with an online module. Details can be found at https://nsw.swimming.org.au/page.php?id=217. Age is from secondary school student up. Best of all these modules are free to members of Swimming NSW. Please see Graham for more information. We are looking to hold an information and training session one afternoon at the pool whilst squads are training, so look out for information about this.

Important Information for Age Championships

With changes this season to the Swimming NSW calendar some of our club Age Championships will be held on different dates, depending on the age group. Swimmers need to check the Championships page for more information.

In particular Boys aged 13 years and Girls aged 12 years on 1st October, 2018 and who age up (have a birthday) before the MSW Area Championships on 17th November, 2018 may be affected with a clash in dates for the Age 200 metres Individual Medley championship (being held on 17th November, 2018). If this is the case you may apply to have your Age Championship race moved to another date. See the club website for more details.

Important Information about Race Entries

Entries for races can be lodged online up to 8.00pm on the Thursday before Saturday races.

If you need to change a race entry already lodged please email race.secretary@merrylandsasc.asn.au

To be eligible to enter championships the swimmer must be financial in this season. The swimmer must have swum the same stroke and same distance during the current season (check the program and plan your swims carefully).

Remember there are limits to the number of swims you can do on a Saturday.

If there is a championship for your age (whether you are swimming in it or not) you can swim:

• your Age championship
• the Open championship (subject to having swum in your age championship)
• 2 other events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If there is NO championship for your age you can swim:

• 3 events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If you enter too many events your entries for the extra event/s will be withdrawn when the program is prepared for the day.

Upcoming Events

Tech Talk General Rules - Key things to know:

• You cannot use or wear any device that may aid your speed or buoyancy or endurance (e.g. timing devices, flippers, wet suits etc.)
• Goggles and swim caps can be worn (you can wear two caps)
• Swimsuits
  • must be in good moral taste, cannot be transparent and must be FINA approved
  • FINA release a list each year of approved swimwear for World Championships and Olympic Games http://www.fina.org/content/fina-approved-swimwear)
  • must be of a textile material and must not contain any non textile material such as polyurethane or neoprene
  • cannot have zippers or other fastening devices (e.g. linking rings), except for a waist tie
• Men’s swimsuits
  • limited to one suit
  • the most it can cover is the body surface from hips to knees (may not extend above the waist or below the knees)
• Women’s swimsuits
  • limited to one suit (this can one or two pieces)
  • design must be “open back” and “open shoulder” that may extend down to the knee (may not extend below the knees)
• The referee can exclude any swimmer whose swimsuit does not comply with the rules
• Body tape is not allowed to be worn unless approved by the referee for the meet/session. If you have a medical reason for wearing body tape you must report to the referee before the meet/session to seek approval for the wearing of the tape. Taping would not be allowed if it is considered to provide a competitive advantage, taping of fingers together is strictly prohibited. Kinesio taping is also not allowed

Member Profile

See Graham to provide your profile information for inclusion in future editions of the Whales Tales.

Thank you to our sponsors for their support of our club

100 metre Backstroke Championship Postponed

Club Captains

Swimming Results

InterClub Cup

Fundraising

50th Anniversary

Did you know?

There are a few familiar faces in this photo, see if you can spot them. Oh and remember the old blocks?

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

Important Information for Age Championships

With changes this season to the Swimming NSW calendar some of our club Age Championships will be held on different dates, depending on the age group. The season program details the date for all championships, so check this carefully to ensure you know which dates your events are being held on.

 

In particular Boys aged 13 years and Girls aged 12 years on 1st October, 2018 and who age up (have a birthday) before the MSW Area Championships on 17th November, 2018 may be affected with a clash in dates for the Age 200 metres Individual Medley championship (being held on 17th November, 2018). If this is the case you may apply to have your Age Championship race moved to another date. This must be done before the closing date (Tuesday 6th November, 2018) of the MSW Area Championships.

 

Check the Championships page for more information.

Important Information about Race Entries

Entries for races can be lodged online up to 8.00pm on the Thursday before Saturday races.

 

If you need to change a race entry already lodged please email race.secretary@merrylandsasc.asn.au

 

To be eligible to enter championships the swimmer must be financial in this season. The swimmer must have swum the same stroke and same distance during the current season (check the program and plan your swims carefully).

 

Remember there are limits to the number of swims you can do on a Saturday.

 

If there is a championship for your age (whether you are swimming in it or not) you can swim:

• your Age championship
• the Open championship (subject to having swum in your age championship)
• 2 other events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If there is NO championship for your age you can swim:

• 3 events
• Senior Handicap (if 17 and over)
• Relay (if there is one on the program for the day)

If you enter too many events your entries for the extra event/s will be withdrawn when the program is prepared for the day.

Technical Officials

Would you like to obtain a technical accreditation? Most roles are now available with an online module. Details can be found at https://nsw.swimming.org.au/page.php?id=217. Age is from secondary school student up. Best of all these modules are free to members of Swimming NSW. Please see Graham for more information.

 

Swimming Metro South West are holding a Technical Official Forum tomorrow (Sunday 21st October, 2018) at Revesby Workers Club. This forum is open to any technical official, as well as anyone interested in becoming a technical official, or anyone interested in learning more about what technical officials do. See Graham for more details.

Upcoming Events

MEET NAME	MEET DATE	ONLINE ENTRY CLOSING
MASC 100metre Backstroke	TBA	Closed
MASC 100metre Breaststroke	Saturday 27th October	Thursday 25th October
Nominations for Club Captains Close	Saturday 27th October
MASC 100metre Freestyle	Saturday 3rd November	Thursday 1st November
Back to Merrylands Day	Saturday 10th November
MASC 100metre Butterfly	Saturday 10th November	Thursday 8th November
MSW West Area Open Water C/ships	Sunday 11th November	Tuesday 6th November
MSW Area LC C/ships (12 Yrs & Over)	Sat 17th & Sun 18th November	Tuesday 6th November
MASC 200metre Ind Medley (Open)	Saturday 24th November	Thursday 22nd November
Whales Challenge	Saturday 24th November	Thursday 22nd November
Parramatta Inter-Club Cup	Saturday 24th November
Masters Long Distance C/ship	Sunday 25th November	Friday 16th November

Tech Talk

Breaststroke – simultaneous and separated hands at turns and finishes:

Member Profile

Here is our 2nd member profile and this is one of our club’s original members:

Name:	Glenda Wood
Age:	22+
Year Joined:	1968 (that’s 50 years this season)
Positions held: (if relevant)	Marshall/Check Starter & child minder
Favourite Stroke:	Freestyle, in my younger days it was Butterfly
Favourite thing about swimming:	Exercise and social
Favourite food:	Anything I shouldn’t eat
Favourite TV show:	Home & Away
When I grow up I want to be:	CBA Banker
Favourite Swimmer:	Shane Gould, I even raced her in our heydays

See Graham to provide your profile information for inclusion in future editions of the Whales Tales as we would like to provide a profile of our members throughout the season.

Summer

Vale Jim Earl

If you need to change a race entry already lodged please email race.secretary@merrylandsasc.asn.au To be eligible to enter championships the swimmer must be financial in this season. The swimmer must have swum the same stroke and same distance during the current season (check the program and plan your swims carefully).

Technical Officials

Would you like to obtain a technical accreditation? Most roles are now available with an online module. Details can be found at https://nsw.swimming.org.au/page.php?id=217. Age is from secondary school student up. Best of all these modules are free to members of Swimming NSW. Please see Graham for more information.

Swimming Metro South West are holding a Technical Official Forum on Sunday 21st October 2018 at Revesby Workers Club. This forum is free and open to any technical official, as well as anyone interested in becoming a technical official, or anyone interested in learning more about what technical officials do. So if you are interested in attending this forum please see Graham for more details.

Whales Tales Online

Did you know?

Your $82 swimming membership fee is distributed to 4 different organisations. Only 8% of the $82 goes to the club.

Upcoming Events

Tech Talk

• You must swim on your back throughout the race, except when executing a turn when you may turn onto the breast (see points below for more details of the turn);
• You can be completely submerged for a distance of no more than 15 metres after the start and each turn, but by that point your head must have broken the surface of the water and some part of your body must break the surface of the water throughout the race, except when executing a turn;
• When executing a turn:
  • you must touch the wall with some part of your body in your own lane;
  • during the turn your shoulders may be turned over the vertical to the breast after which an immediate continuous single arm pull or simultaneous double arm pull may be used to initiate the turn;
  • you must have returned to the position on your back upon leaving the wall;
• To finish the race you must touch the wall while on your back in your own lane and you cannot be completely submerged before or at the finish.

I'm sure we already have at least one of these!

Guess what's in the boxes?

Welcome to the 2018/2019 Season

If you need to change a race entry already lodged please email race.secretary@merrylandsasc.asn.au

To be eligible to enter championships the swimmer must be financial in this season. The swimmer must have swum the same stroke and same distance during the current season (check the program and plan your swims carefully).

Pool Entry and Volunteers Sign-On Book

Technical Officials Information

Masters Swimming NSW Coach of the Year

It gives me enormous pleasure to announce that Peter Johnston was named the Masters Swimming NSW Coach of the Year for 2017 at last weekend’s Masters NSW State Championship meet. This is the 2nd time Peter has won this award, having first won it in 2013 and he is only the 2nd coach in NSW to win this award twice.

Peter is a finalist for the Masters Australia Coach of the Year, having also been awarded this honour in 2013. This award will be announced at the Masters National Championships in April 2018.

I am sure everyone in our club joins me in congratulating Peter on this award. It is fantastic recognition of the work, time and dedication Peter puts into the coaching program for our club and swimmers. We greatly appreciate Peter’s commitment to all of our swimmers and the results achieved are a testimony to his work. Thank you also to Alison & William who allow Peter the time to undertake all of this work.

Trophy Return

If you still have any perpetual trophy’s to return from last season please let Trish Johnston know so you can make arrangements to return them to her. They are needed for our Annual Presentation.

Merrylands Money

If you have Merrylands Money to spend you have today left to make purchases.

Easter Raffle – Drawn today

Thank you to everyone who has donated Easter eggs for our Easter raffle. The raffle will be drawn this morning and we are also holding a club bbq to celebrate the end of the season.

Merrylands Amateur Swimming Club – 50th Anniversary

We are announcing the winner of the Lolly Guessing competition this morning, so see Margaret if you would like to have any last minute guesses.

Swim Meets

Great results from the swim meets held last weekend. Our 12 swimmers at Masters NSW State Championships at SOPAC achieved some great results and medals. We won the Executive Trophy (for the 3rd time in 4 years) for the highest club participation rate at a State Championship and we came 2nd in our Division point score.

Our 25 swimmers at the MSW Sprint Meet at Blacktown also achieved great results with plenty of PB’s & medals won. What a great way to finish the season. Congratulations to everyone who participated in meets throughout the season.

Squad Training

Training moves to Granville Pool on Tuesday 3rd April, 2018. All swimmers who intend on continuing to train in April must complete the Training Enrolment Form by next Friday, 30th March, 2018 so that the coach can determine what time sessions will be held. Squads will also have a training break over the coming months. To complete the online Training Enrolment Form and to find out about the training breaks for your squad visit the club website.

Annual Presentation & AGM

Our Annual Presentation will be held on Saturday 2nd June, 2018 at Club Merrylands (Newman Room). Arrive at 6.00pm for presentation of trophies to commence at 6.30pm. You may wish to arrive at the club earlier to have dinner before presentation starts, or you may want to have dinner after the presentation of trophies has concluded. It is a great opportunity for us to support one of our club’s major sponsors.

The Club’s AGM will be held on Monday 4th June, 2018 commencing at 7.30pm in the club room. We want to ensure the club continues to grow and that it provides a great swimming and social experience for the whole family. To do this it takes a dedicated committee and what better way than joining the committee to help set the direction and steer the club to greater heights. You might also like to nominate a club member for recognition of their dedication and hard work over the past season.

The dates for nominations for committee positions and awards are:

• Service Excellence Award – closes 31st March, 2018
• Life Member nomination – 60 days before the AGM (Thursday 5th April, 2018)
• Committee nomination – 30 days before the AGM (Saturday 5th May, 2018)

See the club website for more information about these and how to submit a nomination. If you would like more information or have a question please see any of our current committee members.

Uniforms

Final orders for winter clothing items such as long coats & hoodies are being taken today. Please see Margaret as an order for these items will be placed at the end of March.

Visit our online store at https://shop.merrylandsasc.asn.au/ to place your order & pay for uniform items.

Active Kids Program

For more information see the noticeboard in the club room or visit the MyServiceNSW website at www.service.nsw.gov.au or Swimming NSW website at https://nsw.swimming.org.au/page.php?id=258

Swimming Continues

So what do you do with swimmer’s whilst Merrylands Pool is closed over the next few months? McCredie Park Aquatics Swimming Club run club races on a Friday night at Guildford Pool (races start at 6.30pm). Their winter season commences in April and concludes in September. There are breaks over the school holiday periods in April & July. See Graham for more information.

Season Wrap-up

As it is our last Saturday morning for the season I would like to thank all of our club members for their participation in our club events, be they in the pool, on the pool deck or social activities. It has been great to see the club continue to grow and to have so many people involved. Thank you to our hard working committee, who do a lot of work away from the pool, and everyone who has helped us run club races on a Saturday and helped out at the various meets during the season.

Merrylands Pool will re-open in October 2018 for our 50th season and we will be celebrating all season long.