Congratulations to Kylee Murray, who smashed the record in the 400m Freestyle Championships this morning.

Kylee set a new record in the Veterans 400m Freestyle, finishing in a time of 6:11.45, just 0.06 outside her all-time personal best set at the World Championships in August.

What makes this even more impressive is that Kylee shattered her own previous record from 2023 by a massive 14.31 seconds. This marks the fourth time Kylee has broken this record since first claiming it 10 years ago in 2015. She has lowered the time by over 25 seconds over that period - a true testament to her consistency, dedication, and passion for the sport.

Head Coach Alison Johnston was glowing in her praise of Kylee's performance: "While we don't talk about a lady's age, I am so impressed and proud of Kylee's result. To break her previous records as a Masters swimmer is a great achievement, and to continue to PB over such a long period says a lot about her consistency at training here at Merrylands, with the dedicated support of her coaches."

Kylee’s achievement is not just about numbers; it’s about perseverance and excellence over a decade of competition. Congratulations, Kylee—you continue to inspire us all!

See Also

• Championship Records

Merrylands' team of 2 had amazing results at the NSW Youth Metropolitan Championships this weekend.

This was the first time that Coralie Havea and Jay Shrestha qualified for this event, and qualifying is a great achievement in itself! 

On Day 1, Coralie competed in the 50m Freestyle and had a wonderful performance where she achieved a new personal best time of 30.47. Coralie was just outside the top 10, coming 11th out of a field of 70! Coralie's time also qualified her for the NSW Senior State Age Championships for the first time.

Coralie then swam the 50m Butterfly and further reduced her mark with a new best by over half a second, finishing in 36.27.

On Day 2, Jay had a fantastic race in the 50m Breaststroke and took over half a second off his previous best to finish in 40.08. Jay's swim also qualified him for the NSW Senior State Age Championships for the first time.

Our coaching team is so proud of the growth of these two swimmers and seeing their application of skills developed at training executed in a representative meet. Jay started in our Club's Learn to Swim Program, and Coralie started in our Novice Squad program, and the Club is very proud of their progress.

Coralie and Jay will now compete at the NSW Senior State Age Championships in 2 weeks. Congratulations, Coralie and Jay!

This weekend, two of Merrylands' rising stars will take to the pool at the NSW Metropolitan Youth Championships, competing against some of the best young swimmers in Sydney.

Coralie Havea and Jay Shrestha have both qualified for their first Metropolitan Championships—a fantastic achievement that reflects their hard work and dedication. Coralie and Jay will represent Merrylands in three individual entries across the weekend.

Coralie Havea

• Session 1 – 50m Freestyle - approx. 11:33am Saturday
• Session 2 – 50m Butterfly - approx. 2:18pm Saturday

Jay Shrestha

• Session 4 – 50m Breaststroke - approx. 2:42pm Sunday

Head Coach Alison Johnston congratulated both swimmers, saying:
“Qualifying for the NSW Metropolitan Championships is a great achievement. I’m very proud of the progress Coralie and Jay have made, and I look forward to seeing them race.”

The Championships are being held at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre on 29-30 November, 2025.

Good luck Coralie and Jay and may the Whale be with you!

See Also

• 2025/2026 NSW Metropolitan Youth Championships

Our last training session for 2025 will be held on Thursday, 18th December, while our last week of club races will be held on Saturday, 20th December.

Club Races will resume on Saturday, 3rd January, 2026 with Training resuming on Monday, 5th January.

Our Christmas Party will be held on Saturday, 20th December in conjunction with the Club Races from 7am to 9:30am. All squad members are encouraged to attend the club races and novelty events. We would love to see you there. Enter online here.

Do you need to put your enrolment on hold?

if you are going to miss a full calendar month of training you can put your enrolment on hold for that month. To put your enrolment on hold for a full calendar month, submit the form below by the last day of the previous month. If the form is not submitted by then, you will be charged for the next month.

Training Break Form

If you are going to miss a small number of sessions, you can submit your absences through the Swim School System.

The Committee and Coaching Staff hope you have enjoyed the first part of the season. Have a Merry Christmas and keep training hard as school carnivals and the Merrylands SwimFest approaches.

See Also

• Training Break Form
• Training Schedule
• Club Races - Online Entries

Congratulations to Leo Zhu on setting a new record in the 100m Backstroke Championship this morning.

Leo set a new record in the 16yrs 100m Backstroke in a time of 1:12.10, taking 3.4 seconds off the record held by Robert Griffey since 2000.

Congratulations to Leo on his swim.

See Also

• Championship Records

I am so proud of our team of 42 swimmers not only their performance in the pool but also their display of camaraderie and teamwork. While we weren't able to win back the cup this year against a team of 81, there were amazing results across all age groups. 

We had several new families compete for the first time and it was pleasing to see the support from our more experienced swimmers.

Thank you to our new Club Captains for 2025/26, Lisa and Matthew, with support from Niushka for assisting with the event numbering which is always an exciting way to start the meet. 

Our activation went well with all our younger squad swimmers knowing their routine and it was great to see our Adult team joining in too! With a pep talk and promise of ice cream (regardless of the result!) our swimmers were ready for their pool warm up.

Majority of our squad swimmers had been practising the pre-race warm up throughout the week so went through their paces and our mini swimmers swam a shortened version. Then it was time for the meet to begin!

Freestyle was the first stroke to be swum and the clouds were getting darker. Our swimmers achieved 14 new personal best times and a new State Qualifying time by Event 5 and then the storm hit!

The swimmers handled themselves very well with the delay and I am very pleased how well they reset to continue racing. We finished with 20 new Freestyle personal bests.

During the Backstroke events it was great to see some beautiful starts being executed after our swimmers had been working on them for the last few weeks. There were 13 new personal bests in Backstroke. 

Breaststroke was next and our swimmers continued to demonstrate great skills, particularly in the pull-outs. 15 new bests were achieved. 

At this point some of our littlest swimmers had completed their campaign and were enjoying their well-deserved ice-cream. I would like to thank all the swimmers for listening and waiting to enjoy the ice-cream truck until after their events were completed.

With the cancellation of the relays due to the storm, Butterfly was now the last event to be swum. Our swimmers successfully achieved 9 new personal bests. 3 of those swimmers had already achieved a personal best at club races in the morning! 

Throughout the meet, our swimmers cheered and supported each other. There was a good display of friendly rivalry and our swimmers celebrated each other's success regardless of their own results. Our swimmers also had some good silly fun with their inspirational tattoos and storm related frivolity!

Congratulations to all!

Leo Zhu set a massive four new Championship records in the Club Championships this morning.

Leo set new records in the 16yrs 100m Freestyle and Open 100m Freestyle in a time of 1:00.23. The 16yrs record of 1:01.29 had been held since 2000 by Robert Griffey, while the Open record of 1:00.41 had also been held by Robert since 2003.

Later in the morning Leo set new records in the 16yrs 100m Breaststroke and Open 100m Breaststroke in a time of 1:16.36. Anthony Ventra had set the 16yrs record in 2009 in a time of 1:19.48, while Leo took 1.17 off the Open record of 1:17.53 that he had set last year.

Congratulations to Leo on his swims!

See Also

• Championship Records

The Inter-Club Cup is back for 2025, this year hosted by us at our home pool! Can we win back the cup this year? We can only do it with your help!

When: Saturday, 15th November, 2025 @ 3:00pm
Where: Merrylands Swimming Centre
Cost: $10 per swimmer (plus transaction fee), which includes race entry fees, dinner and dessert.
Pool Entry: Free for all competitors and spectators.
Entries Close: 12th November, 2025 @ 5pm
Full Program: Program

Enter the meet via Swim Central using the button below.

So what are you waiting for? Enter today!

Enter Now

See Also

• Cumberland Inter-Club Cup

Our team of 13 swimmers had wonderful results at the 2025 Metro South West Championships, with 8 Finalists, 23 Personal Bests and two new Metropolitan qualifiers.

Gabriella Assi achieved two new personal best time in both her 50m events and swam her second fastest 100m Breaststroke time ever.

Joseph Assi swam a new personal best time in his 50m Butterfly and picked up a finalist position for his 100m Breaststroke. 

Damien Chan was a finalist in both the 200m Individual Medley and the 100m Breaststroke, where he also achieved a personal best time.  Damien's 100m Freestyle was a new best at the end of a long weekend.

Marcus Chan was our last swimmer to swim on Sunday afternoon and had big impact with a new personal best and top 10 finish in the 100m Breaststroke.

Tomas Dlesk had a huge program of 6 events and had a fantastic run with 5 new personal bests, including a 50m split in his 100m Freestyle.  Tomas had a big personal best time in his 200m Individual Medley to qualify for these championships and further reduced his best by 6 seconds.

Patrick Hannan had solid swims in his 50m events, the 50m Breaststroke and Freestyle, just outside his best.

Coralie Havea swam a classy 100m Backstroke with a beautiful start and a new best time.  Coralie's new best in the 50m Freestyle has now qualified her for her first Metropolitan Championships.

William Johnston took a chunk out of his 100m Freestyle with a 5 second PB.

Alison Johnston jumped in for a 50m Freestyle in between coaching and picked up a top 10 finish.

Jay Shrestha achieved new PBs in all 4 of his events, including a top 10 finish in his 100m Breaststroke and also qualifying for his first Metropolitan Championships in the 50m Breaststroke.

Samantha Terry had a great swim in her 100m Freestyle, breaking the 1.20 barrier and taking over 5 seconds off her time.  Samantha also achieved a new best in her 50m Breaststroke.

Leo Zhu picked up top 10 finishes in both his swims: the 50m and 100m Breaststroke.

Lillian Zhu swam 4 from 4 new personal best times in her events, including a 6 second personal best in her 100m Breaststroke.

A special congratulations to Coralie Havea and Jay Shrestha, who have qualified for the Metropolitan Championships for the first time! 

Thank you to coaches Alison Johnston, Peter Johnston, and Matthew Vicic for their tireless support and guidance over the weekend.

We also thank all the parents for their unwavering support, encouragement, and dedication to the team.

Merrylands will be represented by 13 swimmers at the Metro South West Championships at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre this weekend.

Our team is competing in 37 individual events over the 2-day meet, and consists of:

Gabriella Assi
Joseph Assi
Damien Chan
Marcus Chan
Tomas Dlesk
Patrick Hannan
Coralie Havea
William Johnston
Alison Johnston
Jay Shrestha
Samantha Terry
Leo Zhu
Lillian Zhu

Congratulations to all our swimmers on qualifying. May the Whale be with you all!