Outward Bound Camp 2014

A group of young New Zealand swimmers recently spent a week at Outward Bound Camp in Anakiwa, Picton where they had the opportunity to challenge themselves and push themselves to their limits.

The top seven male and top seven female swimmers with the highest FINA point’s performances in Olympic events were selected for the camp at the New Zealand Age Group Championships.

The overall aim of the camp for the swimmers, aged 16 to 18 years, was to encourage them to learn about themselves from both success and failure and take their confidence and motivation to a new level.

Over the week long course, held from 11 to 17 May, the swimmers experienced all the outdoor elements and adventure activities Outward Bound has to offer like sailing, kayaking, bush craft, rock climbing and navigation.

Capital swimmer Maggie Burns was one of the 14 young athletes to attend the camp and said it was a great experience that was challenging but taught her some valuable lessons that she can apply to her “swimming, school work and life in general”.

She said the most important lesson she took away from the camp was “that I have the ability to achieve whatever I want to as long as I stay positive and believe in myself.

“I was pushed to my physical and mental limits and trying to get past them and carry on with whatever challenge we were doing” was the hardest part Burns said.

The 16 year old also said it was a great chance to meet some new swimmers from other parts of the country.

“I enjoyed the people that I met and got to know and I enjoyed the experiences and different opportunities that I was faced with over the course of the week.”

The swimmers that attended the camp were: Rebekah Bradley (United, Auckland), Maggie Burns (Capital), Abi Chapman (Pukekohe), Wilrich Coetzee (North Shore), Carter Edgecombe (Fairfield), Josie Kozyniak (Capital), Ebony Maikuku (Jasi, Canterbury West Coast), Bayley Main (Howick Pakuranga), Jo-Mari Meyer (Greendale, Hawkes Bay), Dominic Mildon (Howick Pakuranga), Max Polianski (United), Rachel Smith (Coast, Auckland), Andrew Trembath (Neptune, Otago), Julian Weir (Aquabladz, Tauranga).