Leslie Wins Silver in Singapore
- dale493
- 52 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Day Four Wrap – 2025 World Para Swimming Championships
Cameron Leslie (Whangarei) was the sole Kiwi in action on the fourth day of the 2025 World Para Swimming Championships. Leslie doubled the New Zealand medal tally in Singapore as he added another accolade to his already illustrious career credentials.
The reigning champion in the men’s 50m backstroke S4 looked strong in his heat, comfortably booking his spot in the final as the second fastest qualifier (43.50).
In the final, the 35-year-old swam from lane five and had an explosive start to be away swiftly. He surfaced quickly and got into his high stroke rate to be well placed through the first 15m. The early leaders were in lanes two and three, with Arnost Petracek (Czech Republic) and Matz Topkin (Estonia) using their underwater kicking skills to get the fast start. Leslie moved through the field at the halfway mark and it was clear that the middle lanes would be battling for the gold. Roman Zhdanov (Neutral Athletes) was alongside Leslie with 15m left to swim, before he finished strongly to get onto the wall first in a championship record time (41.47). Leslie was impressive to touch for the silver medal (42.54) with his fastest time since 2022. Petracek won the battle for the bronze to round out the podium in a close tussle at the finish (44.13).
Speaking immediately after the race, Leslie was expressed how much this performance means to him.
“Really happy with that race. This year has been all about redemption from Paris, definitely wasn’t happy with how I did in Paris, particularly in the 50m back which was my last race there and I know I’m a better swimmer than what I did there. I feel like I’ve redeemed myself in that race and can move forward, and probably let go of a bit of baggage from last year which is nice.”
Leslie was thrilled with the improvement achieved between heat and final.
“I’m really stoked with that outcome, changing a whole second from heat to final is really good in the 50m back and shows the insights we got from our analysis. We executed what we’ve been doing in training and at the gym.”
Leslie’s coach Tom Onley was delighted with his execution in the final.
“Super stoked with Cam’s performance tonight. He followed the race plan well and executed it with confidence. Since returning to training post-Paris, we’ve been focusing on stroke length, and it’s great to see that work paying off. He finished strong, swimming faster in the final and putting real pressure on first place. Looking forward to seeing what he brings in the 50m freestyle.”
Leslie will return for his third and final event of the championships on day five in the men’s 50m freestyle S4.
Congratulations to Leslie, his coach Tom Onley and his support team for his silver medal.
New Zealand now have two silver medals at the championships so far, after Gaby Smith (Vikings & University of Queensland) won silver in the women’s 100m breaststroke SB9 on the opening day.
Day Five Preview
Leslie will be joined by the debutants on day five of competition, with Rylee Sayer (Matamata) competing in the women’s 50m butterfly S7 and Asher Smith-Franklin (North Shore) in the men’s 200m individual medley SM14.
Heats each day commence at 1pm NZST and the finals each day from 9.30pm NZST. You can find the detailed daily schedule and results for our team below.
You can stay up-to-date with the action by following our social media channels for live updates and our website for wraps of the action taking place each day.
You can watch the livestream for free, live or on demand, on the Paralympics YouTube channel.
Daily Schedule
*Start times are subject to change, while finals are subject to athlete progression
Thursday 25 September
Day Five Heats - from 1pm NZST
Men's 50m freestyle S4 (Leslie)
Women's 50m butterfly S7 (Sayer)
Men's 200m individual medley SM14 (Smith-Franklin)
Day Five Finals - from 9.30pm NZST
Men's 50m freestyle S4 (Leslie*)
Women's 50m butterfly S7 (Sayer*)
Men's 200m individual medley SM14 (Smith-Franklin*)
Friday 26 September
Day Six Heats - from 1pm NZST
Women's 50m freestyle S7 (Sayer)
Day Six Finals - from 9.30pm NZST
Women's 50m freestyle S7 (Sayer*)
Saturday 27 September
Day Seven Heats - from 1pm NZST
Men's 100m breaststroke SB8 (Willmer)
Women's 100m freestyle S7 (Sayer)
Men's 100m butterfly S14 (Smith-Franklin)
Day Seven Final - from 9.30pm NZST
Men's 100m breaststroke SB8 (Willmer*)
Women's 100m freestyle S7 (Sayer*)
Men's 100m butterfly S14 (Smith-Franklin*)
Swimmer Results
Cameron Leslie
Men's 100m freestyle S4 (result: 1:30.78 in final = 6th overall, 1:34.43 in heat)
Men's 50m backstroke S4 (result: 42.54 in final = Silver, 43.50 in heat)
Men's 50m freestyle S4 (entry time: 37.24)
Rylee Sayer
Women's 100m breaststroke SB7 (result: 1:46.33 - 6th overall)
Women's 50m butterfly S7 (entry time: 37.36)
Women's 50m freestyle S7 (entry time: 34.34)
Women's 100m freestyle S7 (entry time: 1:18.73)
Gaby Smith
Women's 100m breaststroke SB9 (result: 1:19.56 = Silver & PB)
Women's 200m individual medley SM10 (result: 2:40.00 = 8th overall)
Asher Smith-Franklin
Men's 100m breaststroke SB14 (result: 1:12.24)
Men's 200m individual medley SM14 (entry time: 2:16.06)
Men's 100m butterfly S14 (entry time: 58.87)
Josh Willmer
Men's 100m breaststroke SB8 (entry time: 1:12.52)
Selected Team
The swimmers selected to represent New Zealand:
Name | Aquablack Number | Club | Coach |
Cameron Leslie | 272 | Whangarei | Tom Onley |
Rylee Sayer | Debutant | Matamata | Graeme Laing |
Gaby Smith | 274 | Vikings & University of Queensland | David Heyden |
Asher Smith-Franklin | Debutant | North Shore | Graham Hill |
Josh Willmer | 275 | Coast | Michael Weston |
The coaches and support staff selected to guide our Aquablacks are:
Name | Organisation | Role |
Simon Mayne | Swimming NZ | Head Coach |
Tom Onley | Whangarei | Assistant Coach |
Elliot Snedden | HPSNZ | Performance Analyst |
Amanda White | Swimming NZ | Team Manager |
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