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.
Abbotsleigh Head Coach Awarded Gold Licence
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:
- Personal and Professional welfare and management
- Race modelling and preparation
- Scientific principles of elite swimming performance
- The swimming Australia sports model
- Assessors and presenters course
- 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!
Jimbo and Brandon conquer the world in Mexico
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.
President’s AGM report
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
Club sets new pizza eating record
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.
SMNE Junior Sprint Meet photos
Many thanks to Jo Cox for these fantastic photos of our team enjoying themselves at sopac on Saturday.
Noosa Day 7
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!
Noosa Day 6
One of the highlights for the team at Camp Coffs was watching a documentary on the late Murray Rose. So it was special for the swimmers of Camp Noosa to meet Murray’s team-mate and friend, Olympic gold medallist John Konrads. John, who now coaches adult swimmers and lives just over the hill from the pool at Sunshine Beach, told the team about breaking world records and competing against (and beating) Murray Rose. John was very generous with his time and enjoyed chatting with the next generation of Aussie stars.
It’s the business end of the week and team points are there to be grabbed – from pool relays, room inspections, to poems about camp life. (Check out the winning words on this page from Team Amigos and Team Bandits. Brilliant creations in just 15 mins.)
Friday night and the managers threw down their oven gloves and tea towels for a dinner with Leanne, Brandon and Raf and the team at Sunshine Beach Surf Club. The swimmers scrubbed up beautifully and were a pleasure to take out on the town!
Noosa Day 5
Another great day on Thursday. Abb swimmers trained twice (including a testing jump in/jump out session that combined pool swimming and dryland sets), with a group surfing lesson off Noosa Beach sandwiched in between. But talk to the swimmers and it was all about the food. Which makes sense when you’re working hard! Nicole and Liz’s Pancake Thursday went down just as well as last year at Camp Coffs, and is now an annual event by demand. 150 tasty pancakes were cooked up on the BBQ and served to hungry swimmers as they rushed in the door for breakfast – including gluten-free, dairy-free and lactose-free varieties. Movie night in HQ followed hamburger dinner – but when the lights went up at the end of ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ at 9pm, only a few stayers were left. Sleep is precious at Camp Noosa!
Noosa Day 4
Many of the team woke up with butterflies on Wednesday, as the morning of the much anticipated Ocean Swim dawned hot and sunny. Very few had experienced surf racing, but as former ironman champ Graeme Brewer had kindly invited the Abb swimmers to participate in his weekly splash off Noosa Main Beach, it was a great chance to learn from the best – especially as the water was choppy with a strong current. Graeme not only took the whole team under his wing but led the swim after imparting some valuable tips. His top 5: always swim with a buddy of the same speed; hug the shoreline so you can stand up if necessary; keep your head down; don’t let your legs sink or the current will carry you away; and always wear a cap as well as goggles. As Graeme expertly guided the group around the point and back over 1.6 km, water safety was at a premium as they were also watched over by Jordy, Genevieve and Riley, experienced members of Noosa SLSC, on their surf skis.
Then, for the girls, armed with phones and money, it was the hustle and bustle of Eumundi Markets, with many fabulous wardrobe purchases – “only $10!” – showed off on return. A big big thank you to ever-patient Brandon, who waited in the heat for two hours under a tree until it was time to drive the chicks home again in the bus.
With no pool swimming today, it was still a a busy afternoon, with the boys off on kayaking safari and the girls heading back down to the beach for a surf with Leanne, followed by ice cream.
Team activity after dinner (tacos and apple crumble) was Trivia, with all groups showing off their creativity via themed dress ups. With point scores climbing, the competition is hotting up!
