Beating Olympic demons

Kelly Stubbins broke the women’s 200m freestyle state record at last week’s Victorian Open Championships. 16623 Picture: Stewart Chambers

By Marc McGowan
KELLY Stubbins took another step towards exorcising her Olympic demons with a sensational performance at last week’s Victorian Open Championships.
The Commonwealth Games gold medallist and reigning Australian 200m short course champion won three silver medals and set four personal bests.
Stubbins’ silver-medal winning effort in the women’s 200m freestyle – behind Australian Institute of Sport scholarship-holder Felicity Galvez – also established a new Victorian record.
The 24-year-old Haileybury Waterlions star, who missed Olympic selection, will chase a spot in the national squad for the second time at the Australian Swimming Championships in March.
The event doubles as the selection trials for the World Championships in Italy in July.
Stubbins’ swims were even more impressive considering she is still in heavy training.
Waterlions head coach Wayne Lawes admitted he was “really excited” about his charge’s prospects.
“Kel still hasn’t, I believe, reached anywhere near her full potential,” he said.
“She’s really excited and I’m really excited about it and we’ve just got to get up and do it on race day, but we’re going in the right direction.”
Teenagers Roy Pearce, 18, and Sam Wilkins, 14, also excelled at the state meet.
Pearce claimed gold in the men’s 400m individual medley in 4:30.32 – nine seconds better than his personal best before the Victorian Age Championships two weeks ago.
He also won bronze in the 400m freestyle and was just outside the placings in the 200m butterfly and 200m individual medley.
“I’ve been waiting for Roy to do a swim like that for a long time,” Lawes said.
“That was a great, great swim and for him to step up like that, especially after his VCE year, has just given him a cornerstone.”
Wilkins, who snared nine medals at the Victorian Age Championships, stunned her much older rivals to finish fourth in the women’s 200m butterfly.
She also reached finals in her other four individual swims.
“Sam was unbelievable … that 100m fly swim against three Olympians was phenomenal and she wasn’t fazed one bit,” Lawes said.
Lawes recently tipped Wilkins as a contender for national selection within four years, but said he may need to rethink that prediction.
“The way she’s going, it could be a lot sooner,” he said.
“When you get to that level it’s a whole new mindset and I just want her to enjoy the sport, particularly over the next couple of years, because more and more is going to be expected of her.
“It’s great to say you’ve represented Australia at an early age, but it’s also about being competitive at international level and not just making an Australian team.”
Other top performers for Haileybury were women’s 200m backstroke silver medallist Ally Woodlock, David Mummery, Indra Grant, Thomas Moreton, Jennifer Veres and Kody Davidson.