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Western News: August 17, 2023

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Thursday <strong>August</strong> <strong>17</strong> <strong>2023</strong> 9<br />

Lifestyle leads to world champs<br />

• By Jaime Cunningham<br />

FOR BROOKE Bennett,<br />

swimming has always been a<br />

lifestyle.<br />

Before she started to swim<br />

competitively, Bennett can<br />

remember going down to the<br />

pool often with her family<br />

members.<br />

“It’s always been in the family.<br />

“My nana used to always<br />

take me down to the pool, but<br />

I mainly got into it because<br />

my sister used to swim<br />

competitively,” she said.<br />

Just six years after starting<br />

to swim competitively, the<br />

year 12 student at Villa Maria<br />

College is off to the junior world<br />

championships in Israel next<br />

month.<br />

She managed to reach what<br />

Swimming New Zealand calls<br />

a “silver” time in the 1500m<br />

freestyle event at the national<br />

age group championships in<br />

April to qualify for next month’s<br />

meet.<br />

The 16-year-old is the only<br />

South Island-based swimmer<br />

selected in the seven-strong<br />

team, and is “really excited” to<br />

represent New Zealand for the<br />

first time.<br />

“I really want to do well in my<br />

swims, and hopefully get some<br />

personal bests – but mainly I<br />

just want to enjoy the<br />

ENDURANCE: Brooke Bennett specialises in long-course freestyle events. ​<br />

experience,” the Vikings<br />

swimmer said.<br />

Bennett will race in the<br />

200m, 800m and 1500m freestyle<br />

events at the six-day meet.<br />

She goes into the meet<br />

following a successful<br />

New Zealand short course<br />

championships in Hastings<br />

last week where Bennett claimed<br />

gold in the 16 years<br />

200m, 400m and 1500m<br />

freestyle.<br />

Although Bennett’s specialist<br />

races are the longer-course<br />

freestyle events, she admits<br />

she “likes to do some<br />

breaststroke every now and<br />

then.”<br />

The junior team will travel to<br />

Dubai on Sunday for a two-week<br />

camp before the meet begins on<br />

September 4.<br />

It will be Bennett’s first time<br />

travelling further than Australia<br />

to compete, as well as the<br />

biggest meet she has ever<br />

competed in.<br />

Bennett will also represent<br />

New Zealand in the Queensland<br />

State Championships in<br />

December before heading to<br />

Sydney for the New South<br />

Wales open water<br />

championships.<br />

Although Bennett wants<br />

to wear the fern again after<br />

this year, she is focused on her<br />

short-term goals rather than<br />

the pinnacle events like the<br />

Commonwealth or<br />

Olympic Games.<br />

“I mean it’s definitely a<br />

possibility, but I don’t want to<br />

put that pressure on me. I just try<br />

to be my best.<br />

“And if that means I go to<br />

the Commonwealth Games or<br />

Olympics, that’s how it is.”<br />

SUCCESS: Brooke Bennett<br />

claimed three gold medals<br />

at the New Zealand short<br />

course championships in<br />

Hastings last week.<br />

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