NZ Record Shattered in Historic Butterfly Race

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Day Three Wrap - 2025 Apollo Projects NZ Swimming Championships

Aquablack Hazel Ouwehand (Phoenix Aquatics) has stormed home to shatter her New Zealand record in the 50m butterfly.

Competing at the 2025 Apollo Projects New Zealand Swimming Championships in Auckland, the 25-year-old powered across the pool to post a time of 25.43s and obliterate her own NZ record by 0.45 of a second.

Ouwehand was stoked with her performance.

“That felt phenomenal, absolutely phenomenal! That was the goal going into it tonight, was to break my NZ record, I’ve been really close to it the last few months and I knew that I had it in me. I was thinking 25.66s, but to go 25.43s, I’m beyond happy.”

As well as breaking the national record the time has again qualified Ouwehand for the 2025 World Aquatics Championships.

The swim was historic with two other athletes also going under the qualification time for the World Aquatics Championships. 18-year-old Zoe Pedersen (Coast) continued her strong meet, achieving her first qualifying time for a senior team whilst placing second in 26.15s. The time marked a new 18 years NZ age record, improving on her record-breaking performance from the morning.

Pedersen was thrilled with the result.

"I'm so happy! I knew I could do it but I was a bit nervous before so I'm really happy that I could work on what I had to work on."

32-year-old Laura Quilter (Coast) capped off her comeback from retirement, placing third in 26.22s. It is the first time New Zealand has ever had three butterfly athletes swim a World Champs qualification time.

In the 17-18 years age group Pedersen was first, followed by Amelia Bray (North Shore) in second and Chloe Peters (Hamilton Aquatics & RPC Waikato) in third.

Earlier in the evening Aquablacks Erika Fairweather (North Shore), Eve Thomas (Coast) and Caitlin Deans (Neptune & Swim Dunedin) delivered an exciting 400m freestyle final to all swim under the qualification time for the 2025 World Aquatics Championships.

Fairweather built a healthy lead as she maintained a good pace throughout her favoured race. The 21-year-old swimmer touched the wall in 4:03.06s, more than seven seconds under the World Champs qualification time.

Deans and Thomas were again locked in a battle for second place, swimming neck and neck for the entire race. Thomas took a slight lead into the last 50m, which she held to finish in 4:08.05, just ahead of Deans in 4:08.81s.

The times saw all three of the swimmers qualify for the 400m freestyle at the World Championships to be held in Singapore in July.

The race also saw a great swim from 17-year-old Alyssa Tapper (St Peter's) who clocked 4:15.76s to again go under the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships qualification time. The result saw her take first in the 17-18 years age group, followed by Brooke Bennett (Jasi) and Sophie Hay (Hamilton Aquatics & RPC Waikato).

The women’s 100m backstroke was another remarkable race with two athletes tying for first place. Milan Glintmeyer (Coast) and Amber George (Coast) were unable to be separated, both finishing in exactly 1:00.84s to share the national title, with the time seeing Glintmeyer again qualify for the event at the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships. Tess Whineray (North Shore) finished in third.

Hanna Abdou (Wharenui) took out the 17-18 years age group with teammate Rylee McBride (Wharenui) placing second and Danielle Asiata (Howick Pakuranga) third.

Kane Follows (Neptune & Swim Dunedin) added another national title to his name in the 100m backstroke, but he was made to work for it by Zac Dell (Club 37). Dell got off to a strong start to take the lead at the halfway mark but a well-timed second 50m from Follows saw him power home to take the win in 55.23s. Dell placed second and Jasper Cornish (Coast) third.

Ariel Muchirahondo (Swim Rotorua) also had a great swim in the 100m backstroke, setting a 16 years New Zealand age record in 56.58s. The result saw him again swim under the qualification time for the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships.

In the 17-18 years age group Cornish won in 55.95s, ahead of Daniel Williams (SwimZone Racing) in second and Brandon Holder (Phoenix Aquatics) in third.

Rylee Sayer again swam under the qualification time for the World Para Swimming Championships. Competing in the 50m butterfly multi-class, the S7 swimmer clocked a time of 37.36s for the win. Gaby Smith (Vikings - S10) took second and Lili-Fox Mason (Wharenui - S10) third.

Three-time Paralympic gold medallist Cameron Leslie (Whangarei - S4) also qualified for the World Para Swimming Championships in the 50m backstroke multi-class, placing second in a time of 43.53s. Jole Watkins (S19) took the win in the 50m backstroke, with the Pukekohe swimmer clocking an impressive 32.92s with Lance Dustow (Central Hawke's Bay - S19) in third.

Asher Smith-Franklin (North Shore) was impressive in the men's 50m butterfly multi-class, blitzing the field as he broke his S14 New Zealand record twice in the one day (26.86s and 26.45s). Finn Russ (Selwyn) and Jole Watkins (Pukekohe) rounded out the podium.

Chloe Gladwin (Whakatane - S19) was impressive to win the women’s 400m freestyle multi-class in 5:01.42s. Lili-Fox Mason (S10) placed second and Melissa Donoghue (Hamilton Aquatics - S18) third.

Tate Pichon (Club 37 - S19) swam well in the men’s 400m freestyle multi-class, clocking a time of 5:08.52s for the win. Joseph Blake (Hamilton Aquatics - S18) finished second and Jonty Howland (Dannevirke - S6) third.

In the women’s 50m backstroke multi-class Chloe Gladwin (S19) was back in action and set an S19 New Zealand record to place first with a fast time of 37.71s. Melissa Donoghue (S18) finished second with Camilla Witt (Denmark) taking the visitor bronze and Rylee Sayer in third.

Cameron Gray (Coast) added another national title to his name in the men’s 50m butterfly final. Gray touched the wall in 23.83s ahead of Jack Hendy (Club 37) who broke set two personal bests in the day to win silver in second and Caleb Carlisle (Napier Aquahawks) in third.

In the 17-18 years age group Jasper Cornish took the win in 24.85s, Hamish Inwood (Triton) placed second and Neo Urlich (St Paul's) third.

Monique Wieruszowski (North Shore) won her second national title of the championships. Competing in the 200m breaststroke, the 17-year-old was in second place heading into the final lap but used her renowned shorter distance speed to take the win in 2:31.92s. The result saw Wieruszowski go under the World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships qualification time. Zyleika Pratt-Smith (Coast) placed second and Melissa Cowen (North Shore) third.

Wieruszowski’s time also placed her first in the 17-18 years age group, ahead of Jasmine Lyles (Phoenix Aquatics) and Grace Jeromson (North Shore).

Hara Hughes (Coast) produced a dominant swim in men’s 200m breaststroke final to comfortably take the national title. The 19-year-old dug deep to post a time of 2:16.23s ahead of Jacob Story (Mt Eden) who took the visitor silver with Blair Helms (North Shore) winning the Kiwi silver and Kevin Zhang (Roskill) the bronze.

Zhang’s time of 2:19.45s saw him take the win in the 17-18 years age group, ahead of Nicholas Cowen (North Shore) in second and Joseph Reiher (Porirua City Aquatics) in third.

The men’s 400m freestyle saw a battle between Brendan Visser (Coast) and Louis Clark (North Shore). Visser was just ahead of Clark heading into the final 50m. Clark attempted to reel Visser in but the Coast swimmer found a burst of speed to hang on to the top spot and claim the win in 3:54.88s. Clark placed second and Larn Hamblyn-Ough (Coast) third.

In the 17-18 years age group, James Leigh (Coast) took the win in 4:00.54s, ahead of Fraser Walker (United) in second and Alfie Weatherston Harvey (Kiwi) in third.

The evening was rounded out with the 4 x 200m freestyle relays. North Shore took the win in the women’s event, with Coast winning the men’s.

Other notable performances across the day included Te Paki (Northwave) twice breaking his 14 years New Zealand age record in the 100m backstroke, taking big chunks in the heats (58.00s) and C final (57.34s). Josh Willmer (Coast) swam huge SB8 New Zealand records in the 200m breaststroke heats (2:43.74s) before going faster in the C final (2:42.53s). Matthew Kofoed (Aquagym) collected two S18 New Zealand records across the 50m backstroke heats (51.08s) and 50m butterfly multi-class final (47.98s). Aimee Van Aardt (Pukekohe - 54.34s) and Charlotte Murphy (Aquagym - 53.43s) both collected New Zealand records in the 50m butterfly during the day in their respective S18 and S6 classifications.

More top action is set for day four with the women's 200m freestyle the highlight, with Olympians Erika Fairweather, Caitlin Deans, Eve Thomas and 100m freestyle national champion Milana Tapper back in the pool, in what’s sure to be a hotly contested battle.

Day Four Preview - Saturday 24 May

Our legends kick off the night on day four before rounding out the night with the must watch 200m freestyle. The list of events in order are:

Legends Relay - 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay
200m butterfly
50m breaststroke multi-class
100m breaststroke
100m freestyle multi-class
200m freestyle
Mixed 4 x 100m medley relay

NZ Age Record holder Ariel Muchirahondo is the fastest entry in the 200m butterfly as he will try to go under the two minute mark for the first time in his career, having already achieved the qualifying time for Romania. Neve Tassicker (Nga Tai Tuatea a Taraika) and Esme Paterson (Neptune & Swim Dunedin) are the fastest seeds for the women.

NZ Record holder Josh Willmer returns for the 50m breaststroke multi-class as he will have competition across the classifications with ten males entered, whilst there are three women battling out the spots on the podium.

Monique Wieruszowski will be racing the clock in the 100m breaststroke, whilst Hara Hughes (Coast) and Blair Helms enter with nearly identical times for the men.

Youngster Rylee Sayer will be hoping to go faster again in the 100m freestyle multi-class after having already achieved the qualifying time for Singapore, whilst Aquablacks Gaby Smith and Lili-Fox Mason will both be hoping to follow her lead. Four-time Paralympian Cameron Leslie will be the one to watch as 15 males take part in the men's event.

Reigning World Champs silver medallist and NZ Record holder Erika Fairweather will be hoping to add the 200m freestyle event to her Singapore campaign, as will Milana Tapper who recently swam close to the qualifying time. Aquablacks Eve Thomas, Caitlin Deans, Chelsey Edwards and Summer Osborne (North Shore) will all be hoping to swim under two minutes and push their case for a relay team after the women's team made the final in Paris last year.

Louis Clark, Brendan Visser and James Leigh will meet again over the shorter 200m freestyle distance.

Coast and North Shore are neck and neck on entry times for the mixed 4 x 100m medley relay.

Key Details

Heats will be held from 9am each morning, with finals held in the evening from 6pm. Whilst there is no better place to watch the racing than live from in the grandstands, all sessions of the championships will be available live and free on the Swimming NZ YouTube channel.

Dates: 21 - 25 May

Location: Sir Owen G Glenn National Aquatic Centre

Heats Start: 8.55am (livestream), 9am (racing)

Finals Start: 5.50pm (livestream), 6pm (racing)

Programme & Results

Purchase Tickets

Livestream

Alongside the championships, the 2024 Swimming NZ Awards will be presented during the finals sessions from Thursday to Sunday. These awards will recognise outstanding achievements and service to the sport during the 2024 calendar year.

Finalists for 2024 SNZ Awards

Day Previews

Each day of competition has must watch races. An overview of each day has been provided below.

Day Four - Saturday 24 May

Our legends kick off the night on day four before rounding out the night with the must watch 200m freestyle. The list of events in order are:

Legends Relay - 4 x 50m Freestyle Relay
200m butterfly
50m breaststroke multi-class
100m breaststroke
100m freestyle multi-class
200m freestyle
Mixed 4 x 100m medley relay

Monique Wieruszowski will be racing the clock in the 100m breaststroke, whilst Hara Hughes (Coast) and Blair Helms enter with nearly identical times for the men.

Louis Clark, Brendan Visser and James Leigh will meet again over the shorter 200m freestyle distance.

Coast and North Shore are neck and neck on entry times for the mixed 4 x 100m medley relay.

Day Five - Sunday 25 May

The final day of racing promises more thrilling battles, with Aquablacks, emerging young talent and relay rivalries set to close out the championships. The list of events in order are:

200m individual medley
200m individual medley multi-class
50m backstroke
50m freestyle multi-class
Women's 1500m freestyle
Men's 800m freestyle
4 x 100m medley relay

Gina McCarthy and Sam Brown head into the 200m individual medley as the fastest seeds, whilst Aquablack Gaby Smith and Asher Smith-Franklin do for the multi-class event.

The group of developing backstroke girls resume their battle across the shortest distance, with Amber George having recently achieved the qualifying time for Singapore. Experienced Aquablacks in Laura Quilter and Hazel Ouwehand will be in the mix with Savannah-Eve Martin, Isabelle Gibson and Milan Glintmeyer.

Aquablack and Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist Andrew Jeffcoat (United) returns to the national championships as the one to beat ahead of Zac Dell, Cooper Morley and Aquablack Cameron Gray in the men's 50m backstroke.

Rylee Sayer and former World Record holder Cameron Leslie will be the ones to watch in the deep fields of the 50m freestyle multi-class.

Eve Thomas and Caitlin Deans are set for a close race after both have already achieved the qualifying time for Singapore in the 1500m freestyle.

Louis Clark and Larn Hamblyn-Ough are set to resume their long distance battles in the 800m freestyle.

Coast and North Shore will be battling for the final relay bragging rights to round out the championships on Sunday evening, this time in the 4 x 100m medley relays.