Golden final night in Sydney at NSW State Age Championships

It’s been a mammoth week of quality swimming in Sydney. Friday night marked the final night of Swimming NSW’s 2022/23 Senior State Age Championships, and while participants were undoubtedly feeling the fatigue that comes with seven days of being on pool deck, spirits were high, and competitors dug deep!

Regional athletes ruled the podium in the Boys 15 Years 200m Butterfly. Albury North Lavington’s well-rounded athlete Oscar Kreutzberger swam a 2:06.91. His strong back end delivered him the win ahead of Orange’s Lachlan Thompson (2:09.94) and Charlestown’s Alexander Walker (2:10.67).

Kreutzberger started and finished his session with gold, later in the evening blitzing the Boys 15 Years 800m Freestyle in 8:16.28 – a full 28 seconds ahead of competitors Alexander Clarence (AquaBlitz Toongabbie 8:44.93) and Kirana Agung Anom (SLC Aquadot 8:45.66). This performance earned Kreutzberger Swimmer of the Night!

Warringah’s Luke Higgs put up a gold medal performance in the Boys 13-14 Years 800m Freestyle, gliding into the wall body lengths ahead of his competitors in 8:30.34. Revesby Workers’ Nicholas Macher took silver in 8:42.76, ahead of Noah Maggs (Manly 8:46.69).

Manly SC was well-represented in the Girls 14 Yrs 200m Butterfly, with staunch competitors Lillie McPherson and Felisa Gonzalo representing the sky blue in the final. McPherson maintained a strong lead throughout the event, driving into the wall in 2:23.82 to take the win. Cranbrook’s Niamh Higley was not far behind, claiming second place in 2:27.28, while Gonzalo rounded out the podium in 2:29.02.

Rafaela Kopellou (SOPAC) came off the blocks ready for gold in the Girls 15 Yrs 400m IM. Kopellou used her strength in butterfly to put a healthy distance between herself and her competitors, and kept her foot on the pedal throughout her race. Rachel Allen (Ginninderra) gained ground in the breaststroke leg, but it was Kopellou who eventually claimed first place in 5:02.80, with Allen close behind (5:04.13). SOPAC teammate Mia Burdack earned third place in 5:09.80.

Last out of the water in the Boys 16 Yrs 400m IM, the second half of Warringah’s dynamic duo, Samuel Higgs had a steady start to his race. Higgs really made a move in the breaststroke leg, and kept the momentum going to touch the wall first in a comfortable 4:31.29. Brayden Woodford (Wests Illawarra Aquatic) took second place in 4:38.80, followed by Blake Faleafa (V – Swimming Auckland 4:40.26) and Thomas Pell (Kinross Wolaroi 4:55.10) in third.

Alexander Foreman (Kincumber Pacific Dolphins) swam a quick 2:02.97 in the Boys 17 Years 200m Backstroke. The fastest qualifier, Foreman pulled ahead of the pack to take 1.29 seconds off his Heats time. The podium was overflowing, with both visitors and NSW athletes making up the medalists: Adam Graham (V – Millfield School) 2:05.95 and Alfie Cornwell (Picton) 2:12.89 placed second, while Hugo Batchelor (V – Swimming Auckland) 2:10.37 and Scott Swinburn (City of Sydney) 2:15.14 shared third.

In the Boys 15 Yrs 100m Backstroke, James Biddington (Woden) executed a swift victory in 59.42. Kincumber Pacific Dolphins’ Cash Milner kept the pressure on and touched just behind Biddington in 59.73 for second place. Xander Halfen (Warringah Aquatic) secured third in 1:00.37.

The 12–13-year-old girls put on an exhilarating show in the 200m Breaststroke event. In each other’s sights for the majority of the race, Albury’s Sienna Toohey and SOPAC’s Heidi Shumack went head-to-head for the final 25m, claiming first and second place respectively in a close 2:42.43 and 2:42.49. Eliza Damian (Lane Cove) rounded out the podium in 2:50.11.

Bella Zhang (Knox Pymble) went out with Carlile’s Olivia Wunsch in the Girls 16 Yrs 100m Butterfly. Wunsch’s skillful turn gave her the upper hand at the 50m mark, allowing her to deliver a powerful final 50m and touch in 1:00.58 for the gold. Zhang will bring home the silver medal in 1:02.48, followed by Ruby Tonelli-Smith (Trinity Grammar) with the bronze in 1:03.28.

We also saw a sizzling 100m Butterfly win in the Girls 17 Years event, with Trinity Grammar’s Bella Grant clocking a 1:00.96. Always the competitor, Jaimie De Lutiis (Wests Illawarra Aquatic) challenged Grant all the way home from the turn, and earned second place in 1:01.47, ahead of Cruiz’s Bianca Fuller in lane five (1:02.25).

Congratulations to each club, coach and competitor on a week of outstanding performances and impeccable sportsmanship. Thank you to the clubs who travelled from near and far to support this meet, making it one of our biggest State Age Championships on record, with over 1700 competitors from 150 teams in attendance.