The 2020 SunSmart Junior Short Course Championships took place this weekend at HBF Stadium with 459 Competitors from 39 Clubs taking to the water in Australia’s first Junior Championships in the post-COVID-19 world.
One of the brightest stars throughout the weekend was Sean Alcorn (Mandurah, c: James Hornby) who stormed out of the blocks in the Boys 13-Year-Old 400m Freestyle. Alcorn dominated the race to finish in 4:20.89, a massive 17-seconds ahead of second place. Alcorn’s form continued throughout the Championships as he went on to claim 6 Gold, 4 Silver, and 1 Bronze medal, an incredible effort by the Mandurah star.
Continuing the theme of dominant performances, Natalie Van Selm (UWA-West Coast, c: Ryan Spencer) was unstoppable in the Girls 12-Year-Old 400m Individual Medley. Van Selm utilized her versatility to lead the race from start to finish, finishing in 5:06.60. This effort see’s Van Selm as the fastest time in Australia this season by a whopping 11 seconds.
Van Selm joined her UWA-West Coast teammates, Syliva Czajko, Isabell Russell, and Ruby Bell in the final event of the Championships, the 4x50m Freestyle Relay to re-write the record books. The UWA-West Coast team obliterated the field to finish in 1:53.87, breaking the WA All Comer, All Time, and Residential record, previously held by Breakers set in 2011 with the likes of 2016 Olympian, Tamsin Cook taking part in that race. With this performance, the team of youngsters has put their names forward as ones to watch in the coming years.
With all this and much more taking place this weekend, it seems as if the COVID-19 pandemic has given some swimmers a boost in their athletic development with many Personal Best times being swum.
Attention now turns to the long course season with the action kicking off at the 2020 SunSmart Long Course Qualifying Meet #1 taking place at HBF Stadium on 17 – 18 October. The 2020/21 Open Water Swimming Series will also kick off shortly with the Yara Burrup Classic taking place on Saturday, 3 October in Karratha. It is a very exciting time to be a part of Swimming in Western Australia.
Once again, Swimming WA would like to thank our wonderful Technical Officials who work tirelessly to ensure the success of events such as this weekend. The Officiating community in Western Australia is the best in the country and without their ongoing support, Swimming WA would not be able to continue to prosper.
