Macksville swim stars primed for North Coast Championships

Both the Macksville and Nambucca Heads clubs will have athletes at the meet.

These Area Championships are traditionally held in November and in the geographical middle of the Swimming North Coast Area.

On the back of large entries in 2018/19, a decision was made to cut the qualifying times - and set up two divisions (1 and 2) so that the swimmers affected by the new qualifying marks had a championships to cater for them.

It was also decided to move the Championships venue from middle to south and then north on rotation each year. This time it is the top end of the Area's turn to host the Championships, and it is being held at Oasis Pools in Banora Point (club host Twin Towns Swim Team).

A cap has also been put on the entries because of COVID restrictions.

The top clubs by weight of entries are Coffs Harbour 49, Alstonville 30, Trinity Lismore 25, and Lismore Workers and Kingscliff both with 16. Other clubs will be Port Macquarie, Forster, Macksville, Kempsey, Twin Towns, Casino, Nambucca, Sawtell, Murwillumbah, Grafton, Laurieton, Maclean, Taree, Bellingen, Gloucester, Mullumbimby, Wauchope and Woolgoolga.

National swimmers who will be swimming at these championships are: Lachlan Walker (Alstonville), Bailey Whitton (Laurieton), Declan Sutton and Leah Pickvance (Macksville), Phoebe Bentley, Mathilda King, Nathan Smith, Hayley Kable (all from Port Macquarie), Jack Hoskings, Sophie Mayes, Sylas Phillips, Millie Edwards-Bradshaw, Beth Lockwood and Isia Philips (Trinity Lismore), Lucas Kloosterhof (Taree), and Abby Yourell (Lismore Workers).

Multi Class National swimmers will be McKinley Arnison and Ben Auckram (Lismore Workers), and Samuel Gould (Twin Towns).

Swimming at these Championships is part of the criteria for the Area Development squads members for this year's squad days.

Life by the railway tracks at Nambucca Heads

Macksville Cup will go ahead, with a difference