NSW STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS: Lani Pallister “Wants In” On the Australian 4x200m Freestyle Relay Action
It comes as no surprise that Australian freestyle star Lani Pallister “wants in” for the Dolphins 4x200m freestyle relay team – not an easy assignment in an era described by Olympic gold medal coach Michael Bohl as the greatest freestyle relay depth in the history of the sport in Australia.
Pallister has made every post a winner after the bitter disappointment of missing the Tokyo Olympic team in 2021 – including her four-gold medals at the 2022 World Short Course Championships in Melbourne.
A haul that included the 400, 800 and 1500m freestyles and the 4 x200m freestyle relay alongside Mollie O’Callaghan, Madi Wilson and Leah Neale.
HAPPY DAYS: Australia’s victorious 4x200m freestyle relay, 2022 World SC Championships, Melbourne.(L-R) Lani Palliter, Leah Neale, Mollie O’Callaghan and Maid Wilson. Photo Courtesy: Giorgio Scala / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto
Fast forward 12 months to the 2023 Fukuoka Long Course World’s where the St Peters Western awesome foursome of Shayna Jack, Brianna Throssell, Ariarne Titmus and world champion O’Callaghan won gold in world record time.
And at the 2024 World’s in Doha just this year, it was another Dean Boxall fab four – Jack, Throssell, Abbey Harkin and Kiah Melverton who fought doggedly for bronze behind Olympic champions China and the USA.
But an Olympic relay the Australian girls have not won since Beijing in 2008.
Pallister is just one of a host of Australia’s biggest names including Emma McKeon, Kaylee McKeown, Kyle Chalmers, Titmus and O’Callaghan who will line up in the three-day NSW State Championship “Mini Trials” meet starting tomorrow (Friday) at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre – the 2000 Olympic venue.
And Sunday’s 200m freestyle will provide a good indication of just how some of the main players are tracking as the countdown to Australia’s Olympic Trials (Brisbane June 10-15) hots up.
Led by O’Callaghan, Titmus and Pallister, the field also includes the multi-talented McKeown as well as Brittany Castelluzzo (Tea Tree Gully, SA) Jamie Perkins (St Peters Western, QLD)) and Abbey Webb (Cruiz, ACT).
And a 4x200m group that is now without relay mainstay Wilson (albeit temporarily she says) who will miss 2024 due to her pregnancy with fiancé, Australian cricket star Matt Short.
Bohl couldn’t be happier with Pallister’s season so far as she heads towards the June Trials.
“Lani is coming off a good block actually, her last month has been as good as I’ve seen from her, she’s swimming well, “ said Bohl after the end of his Griffith University team’s weeklong camp in Cairns, before trekking to Sydney yesterday.
“I was very happy with her recent swims at the Victorian State Championships in Melbourne and I thought she was one of the stand outs of the group.
TOP COACH: Michael Bohl with Lani Pallister.Photo Courtesy Con Chronis (Swimming Victoria)
“Her 4:03.03 in the 400m freestyle and the 200m in 1:56.63, only about half-a-second off her best, a second off her best (4:02.07) in the 400m free.
“With the 200/1500m free double (15:54.52) on the last day really good – she is swimming well and has been swimming quite consistent here (in Cairns).
“Lani is certainly looking forward to Trials where she really wants to be part of the 4x200m freestyle in Paris – that’s a good one for her. With the 800 and 1500m being her priority.
“But she really wants to be part of that 4x200m freestyle relay which means her endurance has got to be good and her speed’s got to be good.
“So she is looking forward to the challengers of being fast enough to do the 200 and also to be in good enough shape to do the 1500….it’s going to be very competitive…
“Our relay depth particularly around the 4x100m in Athens, 2004, with Jodie Henry, Libby Trickett, Alice Mills and Petria Thomas has long been the benchmark but I believe the depth of our girls in the 4×100 and the 4×200 is far and away the best we’ve seen.”
The 2023-24 season 200m freestyle Australian Top 10
- 1:54.36 Mollie O’Callaghan (St Peters Western, QLD)
- 1:55.99 Ariarne Titmus (St Peters Western, QLD)
- 1:56.00 Brianna Throssell (St Peters Western, QLD)
- 1:56.14 Kaylee McKeown (Griffith University, QLD)
- 1:56.31 Lani Pallister (Griffith University, QLD)
- 1:56.80 Shayna Jack (St Peters Western, QLD)
- 1:57.56 Meg Harris (St Peters Western, QLD)
- 1:58.69 Abbey Webb (Cruiz, ACT)
- 1:58.76 Kiah Melverton (St Peters Western, QLD)
- 1:58.89 Brittany Castelluzzo (Tea Tree Gully, SA)
2024 NSW STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW, Start Lists, Programs, Live Results
Friday’s opening night will feature the women’s 100m freestyle in the first of the battle royals with defending Olympic champion McKeon (Griffith University, QLD) up against 2022 World Champion O’Callaghan.
A field that also includes the likes of 2015 World Champion and Olympic relay golden girl Bronte Campbell(Cruiz, ACT) her teammate Webb and youngsters like Milla Jansen (Bond, QLD) and Jamie De Lutiis (Wests Illawarra, NSW) who will also want in on the finals action.
Bronte thriving in her split coaching environment between Sydney and Canberra under the direction of Olympic gold medal coach Shannon Rollason at the Swimming NSW ACT Performance Hub.
While Olympic champion Titmus will also swim the 100m, she adds the 800m freestyle on night one; the 400m on Saturday night and the 200m on Sunday.
Rio Olympic 100m freestyle gold medallist and 2022 world champion Chalmers (Marion, SA) will start his campaign when he steps out to defend his pet event on the opening night.
FLYING THE FLAG FOR THE BLUES: Will Yang (SOPAC Swim Club) gets set for a swift 50m freestyle at the Victorian Championships, now for the NSW State Championships. Photo Courtesy Con Chronis (Swimming Victoria)
Amongst a red-hot field will be the other three members of the 2022 Commonwealth Games 4x100m freestyle relay gold medal team, Zac Incerti (USC Spartans, QLD), Flynn Southam (Bond, QLD) and Will Yang (SOPAC Swim Club, NSW).
Sydney’s Yang only returned to competition last month, winning the men’s 100m freestyle final at the Victorian State Championships in an encouraging 48.52 – after undergoing successful back surgery last year to a remove a benign tumour located on his spine.
Twelve months ago, doctors discovered a “decent-sized benign tumour” in Yang’s spinal canal that was and pinching his spinal cords and causing excruciating pain – but after surgery and quite the post-operative journey, Yang, who won the 2022 Australian Trials (in Chalmers absence), has clawed his way back into Games contention under coach Adam Kable at SOPAC.
Yang had swum a personal best in the semi-finals at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games of 48.38, going on to finish fifth in the final in 48.55 – before joining Chalmers, Incerti and teenager flyer Southam to the relay gold.
While world backstroking queen McKeown (Griffith University, QLD) will also be in action – entering the 50, 100 and 200m backstrokes as well as the 200 IM, 200m freestyle and 100m butterfly.
With coach Bohl confirming that while his super-charge had done everything asked for her in a training camp in Cairns this week, they would not confirm her final racing schedule until the team arrives in Sydney.
Hopefully we’re in for some exciting races and times!