The squad arrived in Brisbane on the 26th of July and travelled down to the Gold Coast for the competition. The Fiji Schools team had their photoshoot on the 27th at the pool. The competition began on the 28th of July and is held at the Gold Coast Aquatic Centre. There were 51 swimmers and 7 officials/managers (including our coach). 

The swimmers competed in their various events with some making it to the finals and others making new personal best times; Roxanne for example made it to the 100m breaststroke finals. After completing day one, we headed to the Gold Coast Leisure Center for the opening ceremony. 

Day two began with various events in which the athletes participated. There were new personal best times also made that day, with unfortunately no one making it to the finals. The 4×50 Medley Relay was also held in which Fiji participated in all age groups (13-14, 15-16, and 17-19). The teams/states in attendance were: Northern Territory, Western Australia, Southern Australia,  Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory, The Cook Islands, and Fiji. 

It was wonderful to have fellow students from International School Suva (ISS) selected to the national squad, to be able to bond with the rest of the squad, and to represent ISS & Fiji.

Faith Tudreu