The 2023-24 Aqua Technics Junior State Championships were held from March 22-24 at HBF Stadium, with over 400 swimmers from 45 clubs spanning from Broome to Albany participating. The Championships were proudly supported by Aqua Technics, who provided new signage and gave the stadium a refreshed new look and feel.
During the opening ceremony, SWIM Coaches & Teachers Australia - WA (SCTAWA), in conjunction with Swimming WA, announced the winners of our inaugural 2024 Age Nationals Scholarships for two developing coaches. These scholarships were presented by SCTAWA Branch President Ralph McManis. Congratulations to Kaila Warner from Scarborough Beach Swimming Club and Angus Clouston from Breakers Swim Club, who will each receive a scholarship to assist with air travel, accommodation, and expenses for attending the 2024 Australian Age and Open Championships in Queensland next month.
In the boys' 11-13 400m freestyle, there were significant drops in time. Aaden Kettle (Guildford & Kalamunda) obliterated his entry time by 10.44 seconds, clocking in at 4:46.98. The 12-year-old dominated the competition, participating in eight events and securing gold medals in each. Buddy Andrews (South Shore) dropped 13.96 seconds from his previous time, touching at 4:33.93, and secured gold in the event, among five other gold medals.
Another highlight for Andrews was the 200m IM, where he shaved 7.30 seconds from his entry time, finishing at 2:27.25, ahead of Westside Christchurch’s Quinn Bewsher (2:29.33), who also improved his time by 8.46 seconds. Third place was secured by UWA West Coast’s Alex Eagar (2:30.60).
In the boys' 10 years 200m IM, Max Wicks (Rockingham) dropped a massive over 13 seconds, finishing at 2:55.03. Wicks earned gold medals in five out of the six events he entered.
In the boys' 50m backstroke, Quinn Bewsher (Westside Christ Church) finished under the 30-second mark, with a time of 29.88, ahead of South Lake Dolphins’ Aldrich Frederic (31.21) and Australind’s Jay Pfoeffer (31.34).
In the girls' 100m backstroke, Mia-Maria Gstaettner (Rockingham) won gold in the 12 years category, finishing at 1:13.48, shaving over two seconds from her entry time. Gstaettner has always been an all-rounded swimmer, especially in distance events, and she secured six gold medals at the competition.
In the girls' 11-year 100m backstroke, Madison Lewis (Fenix) dropped over three seconds off her previous time, securing gold in her age group. Lewis took home six gold medals from the competition. Kadance Power Kahika-Lewis (Kwinana) also shaved over three seconds off her 100m backstroke time, securing gold among her other races. She took home seven gold medals overall, including a gold in the girls' 200m IM, where she shaved a whopping 12 seconds off her time, finishing at 3:02.50.
Bethany Jurkans (UWA West Coast) took off over four seconds from her entry time in the 200m IM, finishing at 2:38.76, ahead of Gstaettner (2:40.38) and Westside Christchurch’s Sophie Dean (2:44.13). The 12-year-old won gold in her age group, along with four other gold medals across the event.
In the multi-class events, Elijah Rowles S10 (UWA West Coast) won four gold medals. His most outstanding performance was in the mixed 50m butterfly multi-class event where he improved his previous time by 8.61 seconds, finishing ahead of Australind's Tahlee Cam S19. Lottie Armstrong S14 (Geographe Bay) won three gold medals. The 11-year-old's standout event was the girls' 50m freestyle multi-class in which she improved her entry time by 2.77 seconds.
The top clubs, scoring the most medals at the Championships, were UWA West Coast with a total of 39 medals, and 66% of their swimmers achieved personal best times. Breakers (32 medals), Scarborough Beach (29 medals) and Westside Christ Church (29 medals) weren't far behind for total medals achieved. Albany, Bunbury, Hedland, Moora, and Wongan Hills saw all their swimmers achieve personal best times in all their events.
Exercise Physiologist Shaun Abbott from the University of Sydney attended the Championships to further research the Project H2GrOw initiative, which focuses on understanding adolescence and its impact on growth and maturation in swimmers, crucial for performance development. It was fantastic to see 100 athletes participating in this initiative.
From the team at Aqua Technics
For 8 years, Aqua Technics Pools has supported Swimming WA and this year was no different with the 2024 Junior State Championships.
We want to thank Swimming WA for allowing us to be a part of such a fantastic organisation and event. We love having the opportunity to contribute, and our commitment to supporting both the Association and the vibrant WA swimming community remains unwavering.
We hope you all had a great day and joined in the camaraderie and spirited competition. We can’t wait for another year of competition and continued growth of Australia’s favourite sport.
Congratulations everyone!
