ROOKIES IGNITE THE POOL AS DOLPHINS ROLL OUT FOR ROME

Sydney, March 22: The future of Australian swimming announced itself in stunning style on the final night of the Telstra Australian Swimming Championships as Ryan Napoleon and Matthew Abood ignited the pool to take maiden National championships at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre.

On a night when a 41-strong Telstra Dolphins team was announced to contest the 13th FINA World Championships in Rome in July/August, Napoleon (St Peters Western) won the men's 1500m freestyle in sensational fashion, blowing the field away to take gold from lane eight in 15.01.99.

Matthew Abood (Kingscliff, NSW) flew off the blocks to win the men's 50m freestyle on the touch, hitting the wall in 21.93 to overcome world record holder and second place finisher Eamon Sullivan (SOPAC, NSW - 21.96).

Stephanie Rice (St Peters Western) and Jessicah Schipper (Commercial, QLD) also clocked world-class times to win the women's 400m IM and women's 200m butterfly respectively, with both women recording the second fastest times this year in their events.

Napoleon's time was a PB by an incredible 34 seconds in what was only his second ever 1500m swim, and places the 18-year-old as the sixth fastest Australian all-time behind Grant Hackett, Kieren Perkins, Craig Stevens, Daniel Kowalski and Glen Housman.

Here is a summary of tonight's action:

MEN'S 1500M FREESTYLE: Ryan Napoleon (St Peters Western) won the men's 1500m freestyle with an incredible swim from lane eight, blowing the field away to take gold from a 34 second PB of 15.01.99.

The 18-year-old had to perform a time trial just to gain a berth in the final.

Establishing a four body length lead at the 600m mark, Napoleon was never troubled, while behind him a close battle for second ensued between 800m freestyle champion Theo Pasialis (SOPAC, NSW) and 400m freestyle champion Robert Hurley (Wests Illawarra Aquatic, NSW).

At the 1100m metre mark the AIS-based Hurley made his move, and came home second in 15.18.53 to win the silver.

Pasialis settled for the bronze with a time of 15.20.33.

"It's a shock, it's my second 1500 ever," Napoleon said. "This one felt a lot better.

"It's incredible really. In the next three years leading up to London it would be great to strive to get to the top. 

"As soon as I went under eight minutes in the 800m at the 2009 Junior Pan Pacs (meet record of 7.58.66) I thought I should be able to go close to breaking 15 minutes. Maybe I'll do it in my third one!"

WOMEN'S 400M IM: Stephanie Rice (St Peters Western) had to call on all her strength to win the women's 400m IM, touching the wall to take gold in a stellar time of 4.36.71.

The swim came just 45 minutes after Rice set a new PB in the final of the women's 200m butterfly (2.07.85), and the triple Olympic gold medallist was exhausted at the end.

Silver went to fellow Olympian Samantha Hamill (Kawana Waters, QLD) in 4.40.80, the 18-year-old also backing up impressively after a silver medal in the 200m butterfly (2.07.73). 

The time establishes Hamill as the third fastest Australian of all time behind Rice and dual Olympian Jennifer Reilly. 

The bronze medal went to 2009 Junior Pan Pac silver medallist Ellen Fullerton (Pro-Ma Miami) in 4.42.84.

"I pushed so hard to get the individual and just missed it in the 200 fly so that hurt me a lot for the 400 IM, but a 4.36 after a 200 fly, I'm pretty happy with that," Rice said.

"It's always hard having the 400 IM on the last day because it's on your mind the whole meet. It's hard to keep yourself going and up and motivated for the last night. I'm extremely relieved it's all over now."

Rice said her tough training regime was what got her through the two finals in one night.

"The way we train at St Peters with (coach) Michael Bohl is obviously a very tough program. We back up session after session, morning and afternoon, so that's the reason I got through tonight, all the hard work I do in the pool. 

"Bohly always says it's ten percent mental and 90 percent fitness during training and the other way around when it comes to racing. I think the reason I got through the week as well as I did was just being mentally tough enough."

MEN'S 50M FREESTYLE: Sydney's NSWIS-based Matthew Abood (Kingscliff, NSW) flew off the blocks to win the men's 50m freestyle on the touch and firmly establish himself as a future star of Australian swimming, hitting the wall in 21.93.Right behind Abood was training mate and world record holder Eamon Sullivan (SOPAC, NSW) who finished in 21.96 to take silver book himself a swim in the event in Rome.

Triple Olympian Ashley Callus couldn't quite match his semi-final time of 21.75, and finished up third in 22.05 to collect the bronze.

"It's been an awesome week," said Abood. "To get up and race these guys and touch in first, I was happy to do that and it's good to get under the 22 second mark again."

WOMEN'S 200M BUTTERFLY: Jessicah Schipper (Commercial, QLD) was under world record pace on her way to winning the women's 200m butterfly in 2.05.93, the second fastest time in the world this year. After splitting in 1.00.13 and looking on course to set a new world mark, Schipper faded just slightly over the final 20 metres, but will have another opportunity to grab the record in Rome. It was a close finish for second, with Olympian Samantha Hamill (Kawana Waters, QLD) just getting home to finish in 2.07.73 to take silver ahead of Olympic IM champion Stephanie Rice (St Peters Western) who touched in 2.07.85 to win bronze.

MEN'S 200M BREASTSTROKE: Olympian Christian Sprenger (Commercial, QLD) took his first individual National title in a nail-biting men's 200m breaststroke, taking victory on the final touch in 2.12.04. Sprenger dead-heated for gold in the 100m breaststroke earlier in the week with fellow Olympian Brenton Rickard (Brothers, QLD), who took silver in 2.12.10. Rickard accelerated off the wall for the final lap and looked to have the edge on Sprenger, but the 23-year-old found something in the final metres to be right alongside Rickard going into the wall. Bronze went to AIS-based Craig Calder (Albury, NSW) in 2.12.97.

WOMEN'S 1500M FREESTYLE: Melissa Gorman (Redcliffe Leagues, QLD) won gold in the women's 1500m freestyle in 16.28.96 in a dominant performance. Luane Rowe (Willoughby, NSW) took the silver in 16.43.42, and bronze went to Nunawading's Belinda Bennett in 16.48.23.

WOMEN'S 4 x 100M MEDLEY RELAY: The Nunawading VIC team of Katie Bird, Sarah Katsoulis, Talia Goddard and Shayne Reese took gold in the women's 4 x 100m medley relay in 4.08.08. In a tight battle for second and third, Melbourne Vicentre VIC (Grace Loh, Elizabeth Archer, Marieke Guehrer and Jessica Morrison) triumphed by just 0.02 to grab silver on the touch in 4.13.23. Norwood SA (Whitney Ireland, Eve Sarris, Jessica Ash and Tiffany Papaemanouil) collected bronze in 4.13.25

MEN'S 4 x 100M MEDLEY RELAY: Commercial QLD, represented by Ben Donaldson, Christian Sprenger, Christopher Wright and Kyle Richardson took gold in the men's 4 x 100m medley relay in a new club record time of 3.37.15. Silver went to Nunawading VIC (Ashley Delaney, Nicholas Darcy-Evans, Sam Ashby and Matthew Armfield) in 3.43.03, with bronze picked up by Norwood SA (Hayden Stoeckel, Joshua Palmer, David Adamson and Declan Potts).

MEN'S 50M BUTTERFLY MULTI-DISABILITY: Craig Morgan (Kinross Wolaroi, NSW - S15) won gold in the men's 50m butterfly Multi-disability in 26.98, with Nicholas Frederiksen (Kilcoy, QLD - S8) collecting the silver with a time of 30.83 .Bronze went to Sean Russo (Revesby Workers, NSW - S13) in 28.67.

WOMEN'S 50M BUTTERFLY MULTI-DISABILITY: Paralympian Ellie Cole (Kings, VIC - S9) smashed the world record for her S9 classification by nearly half a second with a time of 32.13 to take out gold in the women's 50m butterfly Multi-disability. Madeleine Scott (Southlake Dolphins, WA - S9) took home the silver in a time of 32.55, and the bronze medal went to last night's winner of the 400m freestyle Multi-disability Nerice Holland (Chandler, QLD - S14 - 32.43).

WOMEN'S 100M FREESTYLE MULTI-DISABILITY: Nerice Holland (Chandler, QLD - S14) won gold in the women's 100m freestyle Multi-disability in 1.04.76, the twenty-year-old adding the medal to the gold she won last night in the women's 400m freestyle Multi-disability. Silver went to Nunawading's Prue Watt (S13 - 1.01.18), and bronze to Jacqueline Freney (Aqua Z, NSW - S8) in 1.09.97.

MEN'S 100M FREESTYLE MULTI-DISABILITY: Paralympic star Matthew Cowdrey (Norwood, SA) triumphed in the men's 100m freestyle Multi-disability, winning gold in 55.86. Ben Cochrane (Southern Cross, QLD - S8) took silver with a time of 1.01.54, and Brenden Hall (Redcliffe Leagues, QLD - S9) the bronze in 59.48.