Swim star’s medal haul

By Marc McGowan
CASEY TigerSharks star Craig Watson continued his blistering form with four medals at the inaugural State Teams Age Short Course Championships in Canberra over the past week.
The 16-year-old was one of five TigerSharks to contribute to Victoria’s third-place finish behind swimming powerhouses Queensland and New South Wales.
All six states and the Northern Territory descended on the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra for the competition that ran from last Saturday to Monday.
The 50m races were run with a ‘skins’ format over four rounds, with entrants whittled down to six then four and ultimately the final two to decide the winner.
Casey’s Australian junior team member Aleysha Tokai, 16, was also selected, but is still recovering from glandular fever.
Tests have indicated that Tokai is in the recovery phase, so she is only completing five one-hour training sessions per week.
Watson swam the backstroke leg in Victoria’s gold medal-winning 4 x 100m medley relay team and picked up silver medals in the 100m and 200m backstroke and the 4 x 100m freestyle relay.
Watson had 11 swims over the three days, with fourth-placed showings in the 50m backstroke and 400m individual medley his next best results.
TigerShark Dylan Warren, 16, also won a bronze medal in the 4 x 200m freestyle relay.
The other three Casey representatives, Stephanie Demestichas, 15, Tyrone Dobrunz, 15, and Josh Beaver, 16, all managed top-five placings in individual events.
TigerSharks head coach Ben Hiddlestone, who was an assistant on the Victorian staff, praised the new concept.
“The reason Australian swimming is doing it is to recognise the top talent in age-group swimming,” he said.
“Craig, Aleysha and Josh were all in the trans-Tasman junior Australian team this year and this is below it, but it’s almost a step above the national age championships in summer.
“Anyone can go in that if they qualify, whereas for this you have to be selected with your state team.
“The kids adapted to it really well once they saw how the first session worked – get out, race and slam it until you can’t go anymore.”
Hiddlestone believes the competition for spots in the state team will be even fiercer next year after the success of its first installment.
He has given Watson, Warren, Demestichas, Dobrunz and Beaver the rest of the week off before beginning their preparation for January’s Victorian Long Course Championships.
Open-level swimmer Brad York is still struggling with tendonitis in his right shoulder that has not allowed him to complete a solid training block in roughly six months.
Hiddlestone is confident York can overcome the injury and is tipping newcomers Mitch Pratt and Matson Lawson to enjoy strong seasons.
Demestichas has also caught the eye of Australian open-water coach Greg Towle, who is keen to see if her ability to maintain her pace over long distances will translate to the 5km and 10km events.
She will compete in next month’s state championships and possibly the Australian Open Water Championships in Nagambie Lake in late February.