By JARROD POTTER
FROM almost giving away the sport to becoming a state swimming champion, Liam Buttner’s mindset has certainly undergone a complete 180.
Buttner, 12, from Berwick, booked his spot on the School Sport Victoria (SSV) swimming team after an impressive summer in the pool … but it almost never came to fruition as he came close to quitting the sport.
Persevering with the sport is starting to reap rewards for the distance swimmer and it started in earnest last year with a silver medal in the 200m freestyle at the Swimming Victoria short course championships, representing his Casey TigerSharks club.
He backed up that achievement in the long-course meet with two freestyle medals – silver in 100m and bronze in the 200m.
“I actually wanted to quit because it was too hard to get back into it (after a holiday), but suddenly I just shot up and I was going really good,” Buttner said. “I felt like I was going nowhere and it was just training and I didn’t really want to go to training – I didn’t want to do competitions our anything.
“But I went to a couple of meets then I started getting better at meets and the competitions and I kept getting better and better – and I moved up a squad as well.”
The Beaconhills student tried out for the team and received the good news recently that he’ll be on the plane to Darwin for the national championships in September.
“I feel really happy because I’ve been swimming for quite a while and I’ve actually only been getting really good at states for a few years,” Buttner said. “I’m happy I made such a big jump – last year I tried out and didn’t make it, so I’m happy I made it this year.”
He’s got a full plate at the national schoolboys swimming championships at this stage – featuring at least in the 100m butterfly, 200m individual medley as well as 100m and 200m freestyle – and all he wants to do is push his times and keep improving.
“I’d be happy if I could make one final, would be really great if I could make two finals,” Buttner said. “I just want to swim PBs and just see what happens cause it is my first nationals.”
He’s also a keen triathlete and wants to pursue it as well as swimming, after getting his first taste for the sport in the Gatorade triathlon series.
Buttner wanted to thank his parents for supporting his swimming.
