Big finish caps successful season

PETER DRURY/Waikato Times

BIG SPLASH: Sam Perry returned home with a haul of six medals from the recent New Zealand Age-Group Swimming Championships.

Relevant offers

A final burst of power from Sam Perry saw him end his swimming season on a high note.

The 14-year-old secured a gold medal in a tight finish in his final race at the recent New Zealand Age-Group Swimming Championships in Christchurch, touching just one fifth of a second ahead of the second placegetter in the 14-years boys' 100 metres butterfly.

Along with his gold medal, the St Peter's School year 10 student secured two silvers (200m individual medley and 200m freestyle) and three bronzes (50m freestyle, 50m butterfly and 400m freestyle) to complete a remarkable haul.

"It was a bit unexpected to get so many," said Perry, who competed in eight individual races and a handful of relays.

Last year he secured four medals, including two golds, but this time round he said a highlight for him was picking up three freestyle medals, as a podium finish in that stroke eluded him last time.

However, he believes his main stroke is butterfly, and that the key to winning was a big effort in the final stages.

"The guy who got second won the 50-metre butterfly and he was out ahead by three-quarters of a second at the halfway mark and I just pulled him back in the last 10 metres, got my head in front and touched before him.

"I was pretty relieved, it was the last race of the meet. I had to get my gold somewhere."

Perry qualified for the Australian Age-Group Championships next month, but won't get the chance to go because there aren't enough swimmers to put a Waikato team together.

So now he's having a break but will still be training and competing in smaller competitions, before his next big meet – the national short course event in September.

The training keeps him busy and up until the national age-groups it took up five nights and three mornings, including a Saturday, each week.

"I don't really get much homework in, but enough to keep the teachers happy," Perry said.

Having learned to swim at a very young age, Perry joined a club and began to get serious around the age of 12.

Previously with the Ace Swimming Club, Perry is now with the St Peter's Swimming Academy – where there are 12 swimmers in the top squad, as well as a lower squad and senior and junior learn-to-swim programmes.

"It's more convenient," Perry said of having the academy at the school.

"It's one of the reasons I changed clubs."

Former Czech Republic swimmer Tomas Fronek coaches the top squad and Perry was pleased to be able to learn from him.

"He sees what we're doing wrong and sees what we're doing right and stops us and tells us," he said.

Another that Perry has learned from is world dominator Michael Phelps, who he says shows how low you should be in the water when doing butterfly.

Top Kiwi Moss Burmester is his other idol and he wants to emulate him by competing at the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics. "But short-term I just want to represent New Zealand somewhere."

- © Fairfax NZ News