Aussie World Champs Team Report; Klim to Test Ankle Injury

(This is the third edition of THE DOLPHIN DAILY,
newsletter of the Australian National Team – the Telstra Dolphins – at the 9th FINA World Swimming Championships, Fukuoka, Japan.)

By Ian Hanson

SINGAPORE, Thursday, July 12.

OPEN WATER TEAM HEADS OFF TO FUKUOKA
The Australian Open Water Swim Team has arrived in Fukuoka to prepare for the World Championships. They left Singapore (where they had been training for three days) last night under the watchful eyes of experienced team manager Tamara Bruce (daughter of Swim Team Coach Roger Bruce), coach Glenda Radley and support staff John "Mario Brother" Saliba and Peter "No Relation" Clark and massage therapist extra-ordinaire Joanne Yeoman-Hair.

The team wound up its preparations at the Singapore Airlines Club pool yesterday morning with Hayley Lewis, Mark Saliba, Shelley Clark, Leigh Bool, Trudee Hutchinson and rookie Herbert Ray all in good spirits. Lewis and Ray will start the ball rolling for the Aussies in the 5km event on Day One (July 16), followed by Lewis, Hutchinson, Bool and Saliba (10km on July 18) and Saliba and Clark (25km on July 20).

ELKA’S DAWNING OF A NEW ERA
Olympian Elka Graham, who will contest the 200m freestyle in Fukuoka, will have read her latest book – The Dawn Fraser story – before she arrives in Japan.
"What an incredible woman," said Graham today. "Bit of a wild one." Graham, along with Giaan Rooney, Lori Munz, Petria Thomas, Casey Giteau, Amanda Pascoe and Sarah-Jane D’Arcy, will also form the nucleus of Australia’s 4x200m freestyle relay team.

TELSTRA DOLPHINS PRESS CONFERENCE
The Telstra Dolphins Australian Swim Team will conduct their one and only official press conference in Fukuoka on July 18 at 11am at the New Otani Hotel. The athletes featured will be Ian Thorpe, Michael Klim, Grant Hackett, Geoff Huegill, Matt Welsh, Petria Thomas and Leisel Jones.

MEAT AND LIVESTOCK TO HOST TEAM WELCOME LUNCHEON
Meat and Livestock Australia will play hosts to an official welcome luncheon for the Telstra Dolphins on July 18 at 12.30pm at the New Otani Hotel, Fukuoka. The luncheon will feature a Q and A with Australian head coach Don Talbot and team nutritionist Dr Louise Burke. Australian team media director Ian Hanson will also interview Dolphins Ian Thorpe, Ashley Callus and Sarah Ryan. Meat and Livestock has joined principal sponsor, Telstra, in supporting the Dolphins in their World Championship campaign.

AUSSIE TEAM SUPPORT DAFFODIL DAY
Members of the Telstra Dolphins Australian Swim Team will support Daffodil Day, 2001 on August 24 – the NSW Cancer Council drive to raise funds for cancer research. The Dolphins have embraced the fund raising efforts and will wear the Daffodils during their World Championship campaign. In 1986 Daffodil Day raised $1500 – this year the target is $2.5 million. The theme of the 2001 campaign is "Who will you buy a Daffodil for?" The team has been presented with the official mascot of Daffodil Day "Dougal the Daffodil Day Bear."

ALL EYES ON KLIM
All indications are that injured Aussie swim star Michael Klim, will make a strong recovery from the ankle injury which threw a major scare into the Dolphins' camp last week, and will take his place on the Aussie team.

Klim will be asked to "test" the injury in a series of swims over the next couple of days in Singapore before the team leaves for Fukuoka next Monday.

The team’s medical staff, led by physiotherapist Tim Brown, has played a major part in Klim’s recovery. Apart from his 50 and 100 individual events, Klim has been an intricate part of the Australian 4x100m freestyle relay team over the past four years and there has been a lot of interest surrounding the much anticipated re-match between Australia and the USA on the opening night. Klim’s injury and the retirement of Chris Fydler has seen the scales tip towards the USA boys again.

BOVVER BOYS
Western Australian Olympic 4x2w00m freestyle gold medal winning pair William Kirby and Todd Pearson have shaved their heads in the psyche-up towards the World Championships and would not look out of place in a Bikie Gang. Along with Michael Klim’s famous bald head, the boys are a frightening sight!

POOL SHARKS
Head coach Don Talbot and head women’s coach Mark Regan took a break from swimming pool duties to sharpen up their pool table skills at the Changi Beach Sports Club yesterday. Talbot, at 68, still has a keen eye – but it wasn’t keen enough to halt the skills of Regan, who lowered the colours and those of the head coach to win the best of three series 2-0. "A case of a lucky day," said Talbot.

STAT-PACK:
GIAAN ROONEY
Nickname: G
Swims for: Miami, QLD
Height: 175cm
Weight: 62kg
Events: 50, 100m backstroke, 200, 400m freestyle
Ultimate Goal: To have no regrets and be No 1 in the world for 200m freestyle.
The person you are most inspired by and why: "Daniel Kowalski because of his attitude towards life and other people and his love of the sport."

QUOTE OF THE DAY: "Have a big goal to strive for, however, taking the tiny steps toward that goal are most important – do them brilliantly." 1996 and 2000 Olympian, 2001 World Championship team member, Sarah Ryan.

Name*

Email*

Welcome to our community. We invite you to join our discussion. Our community guidelines are simple: be respectful and constructive, keep on topic, and support your fellow commenters. Commenting signifies that you agree to our Terms of Use