NORTHCLIFFE TAKES OUT AUSTRALIAN POOL RESCUE CHAMPIONSHIPS
June 7: Melbourne - Northcliffe Surf Life Saving Club has taken out the 2010 Australian Pool Rescue Championships following an action packed final day of competition at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre.
Outstanding performances from Dev Lahey and Kristyl Smith led the Gold Coast club to the overall title, with Cronulla and Maroochydore rounding out the top three. Lahey and Smith each took home six medals over the two days of competition.
Northcliffe's Shannon Eckstein was full of praise for his team mates and how they performed throughout the championships.
"The whole team really put in this weekend and we're happy to walk away with the trophy. Dev and Kristyl were fantastic, as were our younger athletes - Lachlan Feather and Jordan Harrison in the under 15's were particular impressive."
The championships provided all competitors with a final opportunity to impress Australian selectors as they deliberate over the makeup of the Australian team for the World Life Saving Championship (Rescue 2010) in Egypt later this year.
Eckstein, the former Australian team captain, said the championships were ideal preparation for Rescue 2010 in October and was hopeful of securing a place on the Australian team.
"I'm happy with how I've gone this weekend and hopefully I've done enough to convince the selectors, but only time will tell," said the defending World Ironman champion, who won three medals over the weekend.
"There are some great youngsters coming through and the competition for places is pretty intense, which is a great indication of how the sport is progressing."
Fellow Gold Coast athlete, Stephanie Ballantine, produced several outstanding individual performances over the weekend, ensuring her name will be raised at the selection table. Ballantine, 19, of Surfers Paradise SLSC won two gold and two silver individual medals and impressed all those in attendance.
Australian Head Coach, Brett Dowker, heaped praise on the next generation of athletes coming through, and believes the future is looking bright for Australian lifesaving competition.
"This weekend we have seen a number of the younger competitors perform well, particularly in the under 15 and 17 age groups. We're really pleased with the depth of talent on display this weekend."
Selectors will meet over the coming weeks to finalise the team for Rescue 2010, with Australia looking to defend their world number one ranking.
Region Specific Information
Queensland Country
The championships have also proved highly successful for the Queensland Country High Performance squad, made up of elite lifesavers from regional centres across Queensland. Surf Life Saving Queensland Regional Manager, Craig Holden, was delighted with the performance of his team throughout the championships.
"I've been blown away with the results posted by our team. We've won quite a few medals, but more importantly, most of our athletes have set personal best times, so it's great to see the progress that has been made.
"This squad has been together for the past 12 months and a number of our athletes are now pushing for Australian team selection, in particular Luke Heery from Picnic Bay and 14 year old Jeremy Rethamel from Bundaberg."
NSW/Illawarra
Bulli SLSC produced some impressive displays with former Australian representative, Downie Langthorne, taking home three silver medals, further cementing his position as one of Australia's premier pool rescue athletes.
Bulli team manager, Keith Caldwell, predicted Langthorne will be pushing for Australian selection once again after his impressive displays over the weekend. Caldwell also praised the performances of Sean White and Mitchell Fagerstrom, and believes they will have big futures in the sport.
Sunshine Coast Region
Sunshine Coast competitors once again showed their dominance in the pool rescue events, with the Maroochydore SLSC, finishing third in the overall club pointscore on the back of outstanding individual performances from Pamela Hendry, Sam Bell and Miranda Bell. Maroochydore club member and Australian team coach, Danny Short, was impressed with the performances of the entire Maroochydore team, and believes several members have the potential to make Australian representative teams.
"The entire squad has performed exceptionally over the weekend - Pamela, Sam and Miranda in particular have produced some fantastic results and I think we'll see them in contention for places on the Australian team.
"This team has been together for 12 months and the progress they've made has been great to see. Maroochydore has a great history in pool rescue competition and this generation of athletes has the potential to go a long way."
Ends.
For further information please contact SLSA Media Executive Matt Myers on 0402 850 988.