Five overseas competitors to participate in swim meet

MORE than 120 competitors from Boroko and Lae swimming clubs will take part in the 2011 Theodist National Swimming championships at Sir Donald Cleland pool this weekend in Port Moresby.
Hosted by Boroko Swimming club, the competition is also attracting overseas-based swimmers such Anna-Liz Mopio Jane, (Yeronga club), Barbara Leana-Vali (Acacia club) – both from Bisbane, Tegan McCarthy from TAS in Cairns, Chanice Paraka (TSS club Gold Coast), Jocelyn Flynn (St Peters Western club) and Georgia-Leigh Vele (St Hilda’s club).
Four strokes will be contested in the 25m, 50m, 100m and 200m, over the five sessions including the 200m and 400m individual medley and the 400m and 800m freestyle.
The training venues in Boroko and Lae were alive with young athletes putting in the last touches of their preparations to compete in the event.
PNG Swimming Union president Elizabeth Wells said the tournament sponsored by Theodist was hosted earlier in the year because it would be the last opportunity for the  athletes to swim qualifying times to compete at the Arafura Games.
Athletes will need to swim three times set down by the Arafura Games organising committee.
The warm-up competition will start today  at 3.30pm with the competition starting at 5pm.
The warm-up sessions tomorrow and Sunday will start at 7am followed by the main event at 8am.
The warm-up sessions for the afternoon on both days start at 3pm with the competition starting at 4pm.
Wells said the union hoped to see many encouraging moments transpiring over the weekend, with new personal best times set and records challenged and broken as swimmers take to the water as young as six-years-old. 
In the masters event, the field will be made up of women competitors, Lola Fairhead (35-49) age category), Ali Nott (45-49) and Catherine Edmunds-levy (50-54), will be competing in their preferred strokes.
The competition will be run according to the FINA rules under the direction and guidance of PNG referees Sarenah Pini, Sue Babao and Albert Vigil.
Swimmers will have an opportunity to swim qualifying times to gain a place on the PNGSI junior, intermediate silver or gold aquatic excellence squads and the PNGSI Kundu silver or gold target aquatic excellence squad supported by the Bank South Pacific.
PNGSI will name the final squad  to the Arafura Games at the end of the championships.