The National Reporter Olympic Preview: Part 1
It tends to be the biannual apex of Wray sporting activity and achievement: The Olympic Games, held this time, at short-notice, in Aeropag, Paripana, is Wray's fourth, and whilst the Green-and-White has experienced substantial success in each of the three previous editions (each time outdoing the previous effort), we are always cautious of overhyping the delegation.
A 386-strong delegation travels to Aeropag this time round, having qualified through a combination of qualifying events in Wray, meeting OSS (Olympic Standard Scores) in private meetings, and achieving direct qualification based on previous Olympic and International performance. It's a young delegation, with an unprecedented number of athletes qualifying through collegiate or youth programmes - the youngest, just 18, is 400m runner Emily Dale. It is a testament to the true quality of Wray's athletic programmes that it is capable of producing such quality at such young ages. A significant portion of Wray's old guard has moved on - none more prominent than the indomitable Brendan Matthews, holder of 7 Olympic medals, but the quality coming through in his wake promises to be equally as exciting as medal-potent.
Through five editions across five days, we'll preview the delegation, it's strengths and weaknesses, and it's chances for medals. We have 7 journalists covering over 100 events in 28 sports in what will be your essential guide to Wray's chances this summer.
Part 1: Diving to Archeryby The National Reporter Swimming Corespondent Adam WarrickDiving has been the latest recipient of a hefty grant from the Government Sports and Recreation Board (GSRB), which has put a significant amount of cash into the development of a Centre for National Excellence in Highwood outside Cartersburg, as well as the improvement of regional centres, as well as the training of coaches and athletes.
So what has it produced? Currently, we can label two athletes who have a shot at a medal.
Cameron Gallard, 22, from Turisee, SET, goes in the Men's 10m Platform. He's currently the national champion in the event, having taken the gold in May, and has risen from relative regional obscurity at alarming speed to book himself an Olympic spot. He's got flair, and he's brave - he won't shirk away from those tough dives in order to grab a few extra points when needs be. He's probably the strongest candidate, if any, to achieve a medal off the board -
Kirstine Magnussen, 28, from Nelson's Bay, SET, is a decent prospect too - she's been to two games previously, and led the diving delegation on both those previous occasions. She goes in the Women's 10m Platform, as well as the Synchronised 10m Platform, with
Alice Kennion, although the Nelsonite's strengths lie firmly in the individual event. 23 year old
Will Sands, of Kirega, WP, is a young talent, albeit a bit more raw than Gallard - this will serve as a formulative experience in the 3m Springboard.
Swimming is virtually impossible to write a review for - frankly, it deserves it's own supplement in this paper, but the editors have requested it be 'sharp and succint'. I'll have a go. Essentially, owing to the nature of Wray Swimming's rigorous qualification and training programmes, virtually every entrant, at their peak, is capable of making an Olympic final. Requisite qualifying times for Wray's delegation are significantly above regular OSS compared to other sports, meaning potential athletes must achieve times which would see them do well in Olympic qualifying,
just to get into the Olympics for Wray. Starting with the men,
Tom Symonds and
Fraser Kain, both of whom have drawn (rather unoriginal) comparisons to Brendan Matthews, go in the short freestyle events. Kain is more of an unknown quantity - he qualified through a regional event in Cartersburg as opposed to through the national trials, which the majority of entrants achieve qualification from. But his times were good enough - a 47.89 for the 100m Freestyle was near Olympic final-standard - and WS scouts said he was the real deal. He's young - 23 - so will be a fixture in Wray swimming for years to come. Symonds is a more recognisable name, and will have to take on the mantle of chief male freestyler now that Matthews has retired and
Richard Campbell has been restricted to just the 200m event. In the 100m and 200m is the long-suffering
Bryce Deering, perennially in the shadow of Matthews but now given the chance to shine - he could do some damage if he gets going. The Long-Distance events have never seen a lot of success for Wray - this time
Stiaan Trasiac goes in the 1500m, an event notoriously difficult to predict, but he's got the stamina and the national pedigree behind him - a shiny set of club, regional and national gold medals this season.
In the stroke events, there's talent in all three:
Ed Gottschalk is in the backstroke, a strong, tall and powerful swimmer, relying more on force provided by his 6ft 8" frame and 13.4ft arm-span. He's one of the more physically gifted athletes in Wray's delegation, if not the most technical. In the 100m Backstroke,
Ashton Stoddart (26, Wuckell, ET) races as a wildcard pick, having not achieved the WS proscribed time, but considering no-one else besides Gottschalk did, and Wray were afforded 2 slots, Stoddart was given it. The two breaststroke races see Central Districts pairing
Brodie Crossley and
Alex Thorne, 24 and 27 respectively, compete both for Wray and against each other - they're fierce club rivals, Thorne for Blancher Park SC and Crossley for Pitora SC. To see them lined up across from one another in an Olympic final would be a treat for all.
Jamie Giffen is another natural athlete, who could lend his considerable talents to any stroke, elects to go in the toughest physical pursuit, the butterfly, along with
Louis Massola. Together they can mount a coherent challenge for some medalware. The Individual Medley, so long the domain of Matthews, has been taken up by 24 year old
Toby Housla (pronounced 'Howler') from Chigaree Falls, ND, and
James Willmore, 27, of Torran, SET, both talented swimmers across all strokes. In the longer medley,
Zach Raymond and
Branning Carrow both have outside shots at a medal.
The women are led, as ever, by freestyle queen
Grace Spencer, who despite already having 4 Olympic Medals, is entering the prime of her career at 26 years of age. She races in the 50m, 100m, 200m, as well as the 4x100m, 4x200m and 4x100m Medley Relay. It's a tough workload, but she's got the skill to dominate. Her understudy is 22 year old
Makayla James, who's been making literal and metaphorical waves on the domestic circuit, and comes with the highest praises from the coaches at Wray Swimming. She could be primed for a breakout Games under Spencer.
Rebecca Koen is a tip for the 800m freestyle, having Olympic experience and a bevy of domestic medals. Wray has full representation in the stroke events:
Gi Porcelli, 26, from Gosforth, ND is a recently discovered talent in the backstroke, whilst
Poppy Read has been a long-term development project for WS, hoping to come good. She is shorter than her average competitor, meaning she has considerably more strokes per length, but makes up for it with exceptional stamina and physical strength. In the breaststroke
Laura Perry and
Kirstine Rivers compete, with Perry the current national record holder in both the 100m and 200m, and looking to extend that dominance in the international arena. The Butterfly sees arguably Wray's most exciting talent - despite two previous Games,
August Everett is still just 23 and itching to get an Olympic medal under her belt. She's accompanied in the 'fly by
Madison Davis, 25, of Lincoln, CD. The 4x100m Relay team of
Spencer/James/Mills/Clerwillis will be formidable as always, as well as the 4x100m Medley team. WS has put a medal target at 7, the WOA at 5-7, whilst I'm going to be no help at all and suggest 5 medals as the target for a talented roster in a crowded sport.
Water Polo has always been something that Wray should be decent at - it combines the physicality of rugby with the, er, swimming skill of swimming, but it's never received a lot of attention. The Men's side, led by 32-year old Angus Chappell, is overshadowed considerably the Women's side, headed by the Asteri twins, Chloe and Azalea. The Women's side could make a good run towards the medals, but expect the Men's side to be back on one of the first flights back to Cartersburg. Archery is a sport which doesn't have a lot visibility in Wray - for better or worse - and subsequently the six competitors don't have a lot of chance for a medal. They're talented -
Rebecca Hennessey with a recurve bow is a terrifying sight, as we learnt in a
Reporter special - but there's not a lot of funding and visibility, the athletes are all part-time and there's only limited national competition. No medals here.
Join us tomorrow for Part 2 of our Olympic Preview, looking at Athletics, Badminton, Basketball, Boxing and Canoeing.