Category: News

Many thanks to Jo Cox for these fantastic photos. Great work by Jo, Rose and Chris on the BBQ. Awesome costumes everyone. I hope the santa swimwear is FINA approved!

Katie Strachan has today been selected as a finalist for the prestigious News Local, Junior Sports Star award. She joins the best from each area and sport at a gala dinner at Homebush next February where the winner will be announced. This is Katie’s second time as a finalist in three years.

The gala dinner will be themed “Decade of Stars” and will include entertainment, dinner and the presentation of the 2014 awards. Host for the evening will be Fox Sports presenter Adam Peacock.

Go Katie!

Waterproof face paint and Hugh Jackman look-a-likes were mandatory features on Sunday when Abbotsleigh enjoyed the SMNE Fancy Dress meet at Knox on Sunday. Photos courtesy of Jo Cox.

Abbotsleigh competed at North Sydney Pool, home to 86 world records through the 50s, 60s and 70s, at the SMNE Skins meet on Saturday night. With $3,000 in prize money to be won, a free BBQ, DJ Mint Dealers, and 100m World Champion James Magnussen, there was plenty to entertain.

We are proud to announce that our very own head coach, Leanne Speechley, has just been awarded her Gold Licence in coaching from the Australian Swimming Coaches and Teachers Association (ASCTA).

In order to achieve this elite coaching standard you must first coach a swimmer or swimmers to an international level. Leanne coached an athlete to the World Championships LC in 2011, World Championships SC 2010, Junior Commonwealth Games in 2011 and Junior Pan Pacific Championships 2010 &2012. As well as 4 athletes to the Youth Olympics in 2012.

Following this you must apply to Swimming Australia and ASCTA to undertake the process of earning your Gold Licence. Australia only take on 8 coaches per year and often only ½ graduate.

The gruelling process includes completing the following 6 units:

1. Personal and Professional welfare and management
2. Race modelling and preparation
3. Scientific principles of elite swimming performance
4. The swimming Australia sports model
5. Assessors and presenters course
6. Individual project based task. To be presented at the Australia swim coaches conference and submitted as a paper in a publishable manner. (Leanne completed a project on Kick training regimes)

 
It is interesting to note that there are only 36 swimming coaches across Australia that have their Gold Licence. Leanne makes number 11 female coach at this level in the country.

Congratulations Leanne – it is great to know the Abbotsleigh Swim Team is in your very capable coaching hands!

Australia have won the Down Syndrome International Swimming Organization’s world championships in Mexico. Congratulations to our very own Jimbo (swimmer) and Brandon (coach) on the team. We look forward to hearing all the stories upon their return. Full results here.

Hi All,

We held our AGM on Wednesday night and I would like to thank all those who came along. I am happy to report that all positions were filled and we have a full compliment on the committee.

I have attached my annual report for your review. Please have a read as we have made some great progress this year.

A summary of the committee appointments
President – Chris Fydler
Secretary – Lexie Young
Treasurer – Ben Ramsden
Registrar – Darryn Booth
Race Secretary – Liz Booth
Other members
Fiona de Salis
Nicole Dunlop
Geoff Bird
Erin Buckley

Thanks to everyone for their support last year and I’m sure we will make this year even better!

Regards

Chris Fydler

Abbotsleigh Swim Club tonight devoured 40 pizzas and cake in less 10 minutes. A spokesperson for Dominos commented “I have never seen so much eaten by so few so fast”.

130 energetic swimmers, parents and coaches were joined by Mrs Poole, Abbotsleigh Headmistress, and Mrs Wheatley, Abbotsleigh Aquatic Centre Manager for our Annual Presentation Night. Club achievements were recognised and celebrated, and praise given to everyone who had contributed.

Special guest Lara Davenport, Swimming Olympic Gold Medallist, delivered a fantastic talk about striving to achieve elite goals and bouncing back from set backs. Her story and message captivated swimmers and parents alike. Despite many hungry stomachs, the room was entirely still whilst she described the downs of missing Olympic selection by 1/100th of a second, the ups of going on to win an Olympic Gold Medal, and her tactics to achieve this dramatic performance turnaround.

So popular was the event that it took an hour for the crowd to disperse after the end of the official ceremony.

Many thanks to Jo Cox for these fantastic photos of our team enjoying themselves at sopac on Saturday.

 

Mixed emotions on the final day – sad to leave the beauty of Noosa, campers will be glad to rest their exhausted bodies after an 11 session week. And that wasn’t counting the last drops of energy wrung out during the Olympic Games style team competition, Beach Wars.  Representing Amigos, Bandits, T.O.S.I, Kiwis and Pandas, the swimmers wore bandannas and chanted war cries as they built sand creations, played Captainball and hid in dugouts while pelting tennis balls at the other teams (and occasionally Lea, Brandon and Raf when they ‘got in the way’.) Held on Noosa’s Main Beach, it was a fantastic finale to the camp.  Congratulations to the Amazing Amigos who came out on top in the final tally.

For the swimmers, it has been a huge week – a learning curve of drawing together and making new friends, and supporting each other through thick and thin. In her speech at the presentation ceremony, Leanne told the squad how proud she was of their camaraderie and how she hopes the team spirit will stay strong back in Sydney, where there are more distractions at home and school. She wants them to take responsibility to get up when the alarm rings and come to training. The goal is to turn up to every session possible and train together – now that we know how important it is (and how much fun it is!) to swim with friends.

Hope everyone is resting up at home – see you next year!