Four-strong New Zealand Team Set for Para Pan Pacs in California
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Competition Preview – 2026 Pan Pacific Para Swimming Championships
New Zealand’s four-strong Para swimming team is preparing to take on some of the world’s best at the 2026 Pan Pacific Para Swimming Championships in Walnut, California, from 28–30 August.
Racing gets underway at 4:30am NZST on Saturday 29 August.
The championships return for the first time in eight years, having last been held in Cairns, Australia, in 2018. New Zealand enjoyed a successful campaign at the previous edition, winning 14 medals and finishing sixth on the medal table.
This year’s competition will look a little different, however, with a change to the format meaning finals will be contested as multi-class events rather than being split by classification, as they were in 2018.
Aquablack Rylee Sayer (Hamilton Aquatics) is looking forward to the challenge.
"The goal for me is always to enjoy the meet, give it my all and make some finals. The events are multi-class, which makes it so much harder to make finals, but some PBs would be nice."
A year on from her Aquablack debut, Sayer is one of the more experienced members of the team, alongside Gabriella Smith, with the pair the only swimmers in the squad to have previously competed at a major international competition.
Sayer has gone from strength to strength since making her debut at the World Para Swimming Championships in Singapore last year, most recently claiming three youth medals at the Para Swimming World Series in Fuji-Shizuoka.
2025 World Para Swimming Championships silver medallist Gabriella Smith (Wharenui / University of Queensland) brings a wealth of international experience to the team, having competed at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and multiple World Para Swimming Championships. She is also no stranger to racing in the United States, having enjoyed a successful Para Swimming World Series meet in Indianapolis in 2022, where she won a medal in the 100m breaststroke.
Jessica Johnstone (St Peter's) will be looking to build on her experience at the Para Swimming World Series in Fuji-Shizuoka earlier this year, where she won silver in the women’s multi-class 100m breaststroke and gold in the youth division of the event.
Brooke Anderson (Wharenui) rounds out the team, with the championships marking her first international competition outside New Zealand or Australia. Anderson gained her first Para Swimming World Series experience on the Gold Coast earlier this year, setting two personal bests.
The Pan Pacific Para Swimming Championships provide a valuable opportunity for high-quality international competition, with the USA, Australia, Japan and Canada among the nations sending teams to California.
The championships also offer an important stepping stone towards LA 2028, giving athletes the opportunity to gain experience in the wider Los Angeles area ahead of the Paralympic Games in two years’ time.
As part of their preparations, the team has visited Long Beach, where the Para swimming portion of the 2028 Paralympic Games will be hosted.
The championships will feature heats and finals, with a maximum of three athletes per nation able to compete in A finals. B and C finals will also be offered where there are sufficient entries.
Follow the action live
Follow Swimming NZ on Instagram (@swimming_nz) and Facebook, and keep an eye on our website, to stay up to date with all the swimming action from Walnut.
You can find the schedule and results via the link below. This competition will be streamed live via the link below.
Check out the daily schedule for championships below.
Daily schedule
*Asterisk denotes potential finalist, subject to qualification.
Day One
Heats – from 4:30am NZST, Saturday 29 August
Women's 100m freestyle (Sayer & Anderson)
Women's 50m butterfly (Sayer)
Finals (*subject to qualification) – from 12:30pm NZST
Women's 100m freestyle (Sayer* & Anderson*)
Women's 50m butterfly (Sayer*)
Day Two
Heats – from 4:30am NZST, Sunday 30 August
Women's 400m freestyle (Sayer & Anderson)
Women's 100m breaststroke (Johnstone & Smith)
Finals (*subject to qualification) – from 12:30pm NZST
Women's 400m freestyle (Sayer* & Anderson*)
Women's 100m breaststroke (Johnstone* & Smith*)
Day Three
Heats – from 4:30am NZST, Monday 31 August
Women's 100m backstroke (Anderson)
Women's 50m freestyle (Sayer & Anderson)
Women's 200m individual medley (Smith)
Women's 100m butterfly (Sayer)
Finals (*subject to qualification) – from 12:30pm NZST
Women's 100m backstroke (Anderson*)
Women's 50m freestyle (Sayer* & Anderson*)
Women's 200m individual medley (Smith*)
Women's 100m butterfly (Sayer*)
New Zealand Team
Name | Organisation | Role |
Simon Mayne | Swimming NZ | Head Coach |
Amanda White | Swimming NZ | Team Manager |
Graeme White | Team Physio |
Name | Club | Coach |
Brooke Anderson | Wharenui | Jack Ward |
Jessica Johnstone | St Peter's | Alastair Johnson |
Rylee Sayer | Hamilton Aquatics | Mat Woofe |
Gabriella Smith | Wharenui / University of Queensland | David Heyden |
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