Since it's inception in 1917, it has been a key part of our school's culture. We hope to have everyone there involved in the festivities.

See attached below some Swim Carnival History to get yourself both pumped up, and accustomed to the importance of the event.

A few key details for this week.

ATTENDANCE.

Permission form is now live on COMPASS. It is a free event, but all attendees will need permission done, otherwise we can't legally take you to the Pool.

There will be no classes or activities running at school. Everyone will attend the Pool.

HOW TO SIGN UP TO RACE.

We want as many entrants as possible in our races. The more we get, the better the day is.

There are a few ways to enter.

House Meetings - Friday (7th February) in Homeroom. Each House will meet in a certain area, and Entry Forms will be there for you put your name down. You can sign up for 1 race, or some, or all.

Tell Me - You can see me around school, email me, or ask your Homeroom teacher to email me. Many have already done this.

We are trying to make Friday 7th the Deadline to sign up. Last year we had swimmers approach the Results Table on the day to sign up to race. We did allow this, but it creates a lot of chaos for the Marshalls and results table doing it that way.

Sign up well before the day of the event please.

EVENTS.

50m Freestyle

50m Breaststroke

50m Backstroke

50m Butterfly

4 x 50m Relay

AGE GROUP CHAMPIONS.

Medals are awarded to the best Boy and best Girl for each of the 6 Age Groups. Most overall individual points, wins the medal.

Points are awarded to all swimmers according to their place in each race, as follows:

1st place = 8 points

2nd = 6 points

3rd = 5 points

4th = 4 points

5th = 3 points

6th - 8th = 1 point

These medals are extremely prestigious. They have been awarded for 109 years, and we have a complete Honour Board which will soon be added to our school website.

OVERALL HOUSE CHAMPION.

All points also contribute to the Overall House Champion.

King House (410 points) won in 2024, by just 2 points from Merriwa (408), with Wareena (397) and Ovens (354) not far away.

In 2023, it was Merriwa (493) winning easily from with Ovens 2nd (448), Wareena 3rd (398) and King 4th (367). That made it 2 in a row for Merrriwa.

Incredibly, there was a draw in 2021 between Wareena and King. It is the only draw in over 100 years.

Ovens won in 2020, meaning all 4 Houses have won in the last 5 years.

House Champions are engraved on our Perpetual Shield, and all 12 House Captains for the winning House will accept the Shield at our Presentations in the school PAC immediately after the Carnival. The Senior House Captains (Year 12s) for that House will be the ones who hold the trophy aloft for the special photograph.

Since 1953, which was when our 4th House (Wareena) was introduced, the overall tally stands as follows

King - 23

Merriwa - 15

Wareena - 13

Ovens - 7

HOUSE CAPTAINS.

Reminder that the Deadline for nominations is the end of the day Wednesday (February 5th). Don't miss your chance to become a Leader and add yourself to our all time House Captain Honour Board.

A number of Year 7s have noticed their parents and even grandparents on the list. Tremendous stuff.

HOUSES FOR YEAR 7s.

Year 7s have been assigned a House according to our draft system which aims to ensure each House gets given a fair amount taken each year.

We do this by each year rotating the SEAL classes, and also rotating which House gets 2 of the 5 Year 7 groups. Ovens and King both had the lowest numbers of participants last year, so they have been allocated some extra help this year.

This year, the Houses are as follows:

7A - Merriwa - Yellow

7B - Wareena - Red

7C - Ovens - Blue

7D - Ovens - Blue

7E - King - Green

Right now, Year 7s will notice on Compass their Houses will read different to the list above. That will change very soon.

DRESSING IN HOUSE COLOURS.

Now is the time to start thinking about your attire for the day. It is tradition that everyone attends wearing their House colours.

PARENTS + FAMILIES.

Families are more than welcome to come and watch their child race. There will be School Leadership at the side gate to let you in/out. The day's Race Schedule will be published to everyone a few days beforehand.

We will post more details in the coming days, including History, All Time Records etc, to get you inspired as we count down.

Juddy

Sport Coordinator.

AGE GROUP CHAMPION BATTLES

A look at the swimmers that can make history this Friday

For 108 years, Age Group Champion medals have been awarded at our annual Swimming Carnival.

Let's take a look at the key battles that this Friday will shape our All Time Honour Boards, and the many swimmers who have a chance to make history.

Year 11 Merlin Tzaros is gunning for his 5th straight, and if he wins, will sit equal 12th all-time, alongside 11 others including last year’s Dux Kalika Miliankos-King who also won 5. Only 11 have won all 6 years.

Tom Ford, in his Year 12 year, is going for his 4th in the toughest age group - one with 5 boys who have won an Age Group medal before.

Eucalyptus Boonzayer has 2 medals after winning outright in Year 7, and then drawing with Tom in Year 8. Alec Armstrong drew with Tom in 2023. Jye Laxton won it in 2024, over the top of all 3 of them. And then there is Ned O’Kane, who, slightly older than the others and this year in the same age group for the 1st time, who won his own age group in 2023. It will be one hell of a 5-way battle between a mega-talented bunch of boys.

There is extra incentive for Ford, Laxton and O’Kane too. They all are in rare group of kids ever, to have won an Age Group Medal at both an Athletics and Swimming carnival. We have 38 on record as ever achieving that.

On that list, Ford sits equal top All Time. With 4 Athletics medals and 3 Swimming, his total of 7 puts him alongside 3 others - Brianna Archer (5 Athletics, 2 Swimming), Xanthea Dewez (6 Athletics, 1 Swimming) and Rowan Barrow (2 Athletics, 5 Swimming). Winning this Friday, or at our Athletics Carnival in August, would put him outright leader.

Winning both in 2025 would make him the 2nd person to do it 3 times, ever. Only Matt Scott (2001, 2002, 2003) has done it. Rowan Barrow (1992, 1994) and Tom (2022, 2023) are the only others do achieve it twice. Either achievement would provide him a reasonable claim as being our Great Athlete of all time.

A win for either Laxton and O’Kane (both currently boasting 1 of each) would slide them up that list, where just 15 ever, will have more total medals.

The next most important battle, history-wise, will be the 17 Girls, where Milly O’Kane and Stevie Driscoll will be. Both girls are on that elite list, having won both Carnivals. In fact, they have both won 2 of each. Each boasting 4 total, they are equal 10th All-Time. Stevie (Year 11) has 4 Carnivals to come, and Milly (Year 10) has 6 left. One, or both of them, will move up this Leaderboard in the next 2-3 years,

The 15 Girls will be the best opportunity for someone to join this illustrious list. Ruby O’Kane, who has won the last 2, will miss the Carnival due to holidaying in Sri Lanka, which opens the door for her nearest rivals to claim the Title. Last year’s runner-up happens to be her great mate, Inanay Gilson, who with 2-straight Athletics Age Group medals, could etch her name to the list. She’d be sitting pretty on 3 total at equal 16th All-Time, with only 6 girls in history above her, 7 Carnivals remaining.

Ruby's Sri Lanka holiday also means the O'Kane's miss the chance to become the 1st family ever, to have 3 siblings win Age Group at the same Swim meet.

Year 10 Lillian Hooper is shooting for her 4th straight. Like Merlin, she could end up one of the rare 6-time Champions in history. The return of strong swimmer Isabelle Christison, who missed the 2024 Carnival due to living in Canada, and Jada Ryan’s presence, will make this one a great battle. Christison and Ryan, both 1-time Athletics Age GroupChampions, could join the list too. Hooper, so close to winning the Athletics the past 3 years, is a good chance to join it as well at some stage.

The 18 Girls will also be fascinating. With winner of past 3 years, Tara Genn, exiting school, it’s now wide open. Isabelle Hooper went back-to-back in Years 7 and 8. Can she wind back the clock and win her 3rd? Or is Claire Christison, after missing 2024 being in Canada strong enough to win her 1st, to go with her 3 Athletics wins, and shoot to near the top of the “Both Carnivals” board?

The most open field may be the 16 Boys. They have had 3 seperate winners in 3 years - Archer Wilson (2022) who is not racing, Billy Hiskins (2023) who has left, and Sam Morey (2024) who has only signed up for one race. Unless Wilsonand Morey change their entry status, someone new will surely win this one.

The 15 Boys will be another open field. Andrew Fraser won in Year 7, while Oskar McGahan got is last year. Can one of them become a 2-time winner? Or will one of the others in a strong and athletic cohort surprise them?

Can the two Year 7 winners of 2024 win again? Angus Fraser joined with Hanesh Govinda-Samy, who is no longer with us, so perhaps will have an easier run this year. Can Aroha Wadell hold off the super fit and competitive Paige-Lee Dummett?

One way or another, history will be made, and legends will grow on Friday.

Juddy

Sport Coordinator

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