WAIS Open Water Swimmer Brooke Wilson Wins Silver
Australia has started the 2010 Oceania Swimming Championships with a double-double, winning gold and silver in both the men’s and women’s 5km open water swim in Apia, Samoa today.
Jarrod Killey from Newcastle won the opening gold medal of the meet with a controlled performance in the men’s 5km, while Victorian Belinda Bennett took gold in the women’s race in what was an ideal start for the Aussies.
WAIS athlete and City of Perth swimmer Brooke Wilson secured silver in the women’s 5km behind Bennett in a great swim from the Baldivis resident.
Finishing in a time of 58 minutes and 14 seconds, it was 19-year-old Killey who swam a controlled race all the way, sticking with Queenslander Codey Grimsey who finished second before out sprinting him with less than 50m to go.
Grimsey was just a second behind Killey as they crossed the line, while 19-year-old Phillip Ryan from Auckland finished third in 58 minutes and 18 seconds.
For Killey, who finished fifth in both the 5 and 10km open water events at the Australian Championships in February, the win was a great way to start what will be a busy week for the Engineering Student.
“Codey beat me at Trials so I was expecting him to set the pace which he did and I was just lucky to hang on. I thought I lost him for a bit, but I was able to get back in front and win the race,” said Killey.
“I’m pretty confident when it comes to my speed, I can change pace really well and I knew that if I could sit behind him I would then be able to pull out in the last 100m or so.”
Killey will swim in the 50, 100, 200m and 1500m freestyle events as well as the 200 and 400m IM later in the week.
“My speed at the end showed that I’ve still got it and hopefully I can back myself in those events later on in the week.”
For Year 12 student Belinda Bennett the win was her second international gold medal for Australia having won the 10km at last year’s Junior Pan Pacs in Guam, which will see her start as hot favourite for Thursday’s race.
Bennett was the fifth across the line overall, having started with the men and dominated the women’s race from the outset finishing in one hour and 14 seconds, just two minutes behind the winning men’s time from Killey.
West Australian Brooke Wilson was a clear second in 1:03:14 with the duo set to continue their dominance in the women’s 10km on Thursday.
“I’m really happy with that and wasn’t expecting to win at all. I just wanted to go out there and challenge myself and I think I did that which was good,” said Bennett.
“We went off with the boys which meant we got to swim with them a lot of the way which really pushed me as well.”
“It gave me a challenge, I was swimming behind one of the guys and it gave me extra motivation to go when I saw him get ahead.”
The 23-swimmer Australian team will all be in action tomorrow in the pool on Day 2 of competition with finals to be swum in the men’s and women’s 50m butterfly, 200m freestyle and fly and men’s 1500m freestyle.
The Oceania Swimming Championships are being held in Apia, Samoa from Monday 21 June to Saturday 26 June.
The following countries are competing: Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Guam, Hawaii, Marshall Island, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, and Tonga.
– Swimming Australia