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Otago Daily Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
Artistic swimming success sees young club dive into spotlight
Since its launch in 2022, athletes from Selwyn Artistic Swimming have impressed as the club continues to grow. Head coach Chantelle Murray is expecting bigger and better things from her young team. Sam Coughlan reports New Zealand's youngest artistic swimming club, Selwyn, was founded just three years ago. It began with just five athletes who followed coach Chantelle Murray from her former club Canterbury. Today, the club boasts more than 40 swimmers and recently claimed five gold medals at the South Island Championships, held at the Selwyn Aquatic Centre. Murray said it took a lot of hard work to get to this point. 'In the first year, I think I grew about five (members) and then lost a few. Then it wasn't until the second year, 2023, we grew to about 30, which was like 'wow, this is really big'.' Keen to start her own club in 2022 after moving to Rolleston the year before, Murray said it was a natural fit to be based in the region. 'I thought, 'I want to have it just at one pool, I want to build the relationship with the aquatic centre and the community out here and be able to offer things just to Selwyn.' 'So when I moved out here, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to start.' With a strong artistic swimming background and more than a decade of coaching – including 11 years at Canterbury and six with national development squads – Murray brought plenty of experience to the venture. The jewel in Murray's crown at Selwyn is Kristina Stepchenko, 15, who joined in July last year after moving from Russia with her family. A competitive swimmer since the age of six, Kristina has quickly risen to become the club's top performer. She earned three gold medals at the South Islands and another at last year's national championships in Hamilton. 'We work together really well,' Kristina said of her teammates . 'I feel like I've known them for my whole life, even though it's almost a year.' She normally trains 18 hours a week, a combination of working on her routines, regular swim training, and on-land stretching and going through the movements of her routines. But even for such a dedicated athlete, balancing school and training isn't always easy. 'I need to focus on my time management,' the Rolleston College student said. 'The temptation is sometimes just to stay on my phone, but I think it (swimming) lets me grow as a person, so I'm really glad I have that.' Murray praised Kristina's ability and drive to improve herself. While focusing on the highest-performing athletes is important, Murray is passionate about growing Selwyn Artistic Swimming and attracting new members. She offers sessions for local schools where kids get the opportunity to give the sport a go and see if it sparks their interest. One such recruit is 12-year-old Matthew Hamilton-Cross, who visited the club late last year with his classmates at West Rolleston Primary School and stuck with the sport. His decision has already paid off – Matthew won gold in the mixed aquarina duet alongside partner Kelicia Purcell at the South Island Championships. ' I'm getting way better than I was when I started,' he said. Like Kristina, he has a busy schedule, training Wednesday mornings and afternoons as well as Sundays – but he does not mind the workload. ' If I was able to, I would definitely train more,' he said. The club is now preparing for its next major challenge – the national championships in Wellington at the end of September. Seventeen Selwyn athletes will be competing in the event, including Kristina and Matthew. ' I'm just hoping to do my best and do the cleanest swim I can do,' Kristina said. Said Matthew: 'I definitely (want) to at least get a medal at nationals.' Murray is optimistic about her team's chances. ' I feel like this year I think we're going to make a pretty good mark on nationals,' she said. 'As well having Kristina and Scarlett (Hardy, Kristina's duet partner) to look up to, we've got a quite decent chunk of athletes. 'There's some duets I really think that could do well. I think most could make the podium.' A strong showing in Wellington would cement Selwyn's status as one of New Zealand's rising forces in the sport.
Otago Daily Times
12-05-2025
- General
- Otago Daily Times
Award for keen, ambitious triallist behind host Earnscleugh Station
Central Otago dog triallist Alistair Campbell is the first recipient of a merit award from the North Otago dog trial centre. The award, which was endorsed by the New Zealand Sheep Dog Trial Association, was presented to Mr Campbell at the centre championships at the Patearoa Collie Club trial grounds last week. At the presentation a certificate was presented, which included a summary of Mr Campbell's dog trialling history written by fellow Omakau Earnscleugh Collie Club dog triallist Paul McCarthy, of Alexandra. It said Mr Campbell's interest in dog trialling began in the late 1960s. Brought up on Beaumont Station, he had plenty of chances to advance that passion. The intensity of that interest only grew when John Bartlett joined the shepherding staff. Mr Bartlett not only brought some new bloodlines of both heading and huntaway dogs to the area, but also more structured and intense training methods, some of which were still used by Mr Campbell. In 1970, he qualified his first dog, a huntaway, for the New Zealand championships at Mararoa, near Te Anau. A keen and ambitious farmer, it was not long before he went farming on his own account. In 1972, he shifted to Locharber in the Canterbury high country. In 1977, he was on the move again, this time to Te Akatarawa Station in the Waitaki Valley, and in 1981 he managed to acquire Earnscleugh Station, which was no mean feat, and a testament to his ambition and drive, Mr McCarthy wrote. ''Through these years of rapid progress Alistair understandably didn't trial as much as he does today but always had dogs that could compete and took a keen interest in bloodlines. He was also a strong member of the Omakau Collie Club.'' In 2015 due to a property sale, the Omakau club had to move and Mr Campbell offered Earnscleugh Station to use as its new grounds. The first trial was held in 2016 with very little in the way of facilities but was a success, and the Omakau Earnscleugh Collie Club went about building all the necessary infrastructure required with the aim to be able to run a major championship. In 2022, the club hosted a very successful South Island Championships. ''It is without doubt that none of this could have been without the unwavering and wholehearted support from Alistair and his family,'' Mr McCarthy said. — APL
