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Campbell Sisters, Cusack Moving To NSW In Bid To Reboot State

Swimming superstar sisters Cate and Bronte Campbell of Australia are set to move to a new training home less than 2 years out from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Per a report in The Daily Telegraph ($)the speedy Campbell sisters, along with their long-time coach Simon Cusackare leaving Chandler in Brisbane to a new home at the New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) in Sydney.

A source quoted within The Daily Telegraph stated, “NSWIS are looking to increase their high-performance platform because at the moment they have little to nothing when it comes to swimming. They are hoping to inspire the next generation.”

We reported back in July that New South Wales has been struggling to find its swimming mojo for some time. Just 6% of the Australian roster for this summer’s Pan Pacific Championships stemmed from the state, while the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Center (SOPAC) represents the only High Performance Center in NSW.

In July, Alex Baumann, SwimAustralia’s Chief Strategist, High Performance, and a gold medalist himself, told The Gold Coast Bulletin“We’ve identified that … there needs to be some intervention in NSW. Queensland is doing very well but how do we ensure that NSW is performing as well? How do we build that sustainability in NSW?  The belief is that is NSW is performing well, then the whole nation will perform well in addition to Queensland.”

As such, reeling in the Campbell sisters, along with Cusack, may just be the infusion NSW needs to reboot swimming greatness in the area. An official statement from NSWIS is expected within days.

While Bronte (C2) has been taking a scheduled post-Commonwealth Games break to nurse nagging injuries, sister Cate (C1) blew up the pool in Tokyo at Pan Pacs. taking golds in the 50m and 100m freestyle individual events, while also crushing 50- and 51-point anchors on the gold medal-winning 4 x 100m medley and 4 x 100m free relays.

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Verram
6 years ago

Would be interesting to see who else would join the new squad.. maybe James Magnussen needs to relocate there in that new squad as well

commonwombat
Reply to  Verram
6 years ago

His current training base (Ravenswood College) is just a couple of kms down the road so it may be plausible but the reality is that Magnussen’s future as an elite competitor is far from certain. He has spent more time in “time out” than serious training in recent years and given his more recent pronouncements; it is far from certain that his mind remains “in the game”.

skip
6 years ago

NSWIS is at SOPAC. NSW is SOPAC-centric. until they fix that, this doesn’t add the real long term numbers they are looking for. northern nsw could use a high class facility. not every qld swimmer comes from chandler, now do they

Verram
Reply to  skip
6 years ago

They’re not training at SOPAC but at northern sydney Pymble I think .. so I think the idea is to grow the Sydney base first then hopefully spread throughout NSW.. but they need to get well credentialed coaches to make swimmers transfer

commonwombat
Reply to  Verram
6 years ago

They will be training at the Knox Grammar pool at Warrawee on the upper north shore (about 20km north of Sydney CBD).

CMSWIM
Reply to  commonwombat
6 years ago

They are going to be sharing between PLC and Knox. Cusack will be the head of NSWIS which means those from remote NSW who are classified as talented, instead of making the shift to QLD in the past, will now have a world-class relocation within NSW and Sydney base. The idea behind it is to take away from the SOPAC draw card.

commonwombat
Reply to  CMSWIM
6 years ago

Was just going off the fact that the primary base for the Knox Pymble club is the Knox Grammar pool but certainly the new facility at PLC (Pymble Ladies College) is very high quality; arguably as good if not better. Will be interesting to know how the deal was made between NSWIS & these 2 leading schools. Both are situated in some of the “priciest” suburbs of Sydney (Pymble is a couple of kms closer to the city centre) but both are very convenient for rail access and on the main highway running north from the city. The latter IS certainly a plus point in comparison to SOPAC.if we are talking about swimmers from areas north of Sydney

BronzedAussie
Reply to  commonwombat
5 years ago

The deal was made with Chris Fydler CEO of swimming NSW, as his daughters go to Pymble Ladies College. Enough said.

Mini bus
6 years ago

Massive respect for simon and his squad. But this plan has been done before and doesn’t address the underlying issue with nsw swimming. Good luck to all involved and to the coaches in Sydney’s northern suburbs “ say goodbye to your talented swimmers because their leaving you!

Yozhik
6 years ago

I wish Bronte take a lead and everybody would stop talking about Cate and her struggle for respect. 52.27 was brilliant and unexpected. Cate was faster only two times. I wish her healthy return. At this point I’m rooting more for Bronte than for Cate.

JimSwim22
6 years ago

I read a lot about how different the pressure is on swimmers in Australia. But how different is the income? What does C1 take home per year?

Dee
6 years ago

So the salty comments and downvoting of positive comments on CC articles begins 🙄

Robbos
Reply to  Dee
6 years ago

Yes lots of people with agendas.

ERVINFORTHEWIN
Reply to  Robbos
6 years ago

everybody has agendas for your information lol

50free
6 years ago

Oh dang I was going to make a comment but I’m not an Olympian so I better be quiet.

Caeleb Dressel Will Win 9 Gold Medals in Tokyo
Reply to  50free
6 years ago

She never said you have to be quiet. She said be kind. It’s fine to criticize, but not harshly.
1. It’s being a jerk
2. Yes, you are not an Olympian.

ERVINFORTHEWIN

he was joking …….with a slight sarcasm ( just love it )

Robbos
Reply to  50free
6 years ago

Not to worry, you would struggle to understand even if I try to explain again.

Keyboard Warrior
6 years ago

Dear Cate —
I’ve always been a fan of yours. I was rooting for you in 2016 (despite the fact that I’m American). I saw on TV that you were rooting enthusiastically for your teammates. The way you live with, get along with, and stick up for your sister shows good character. I liked the way you later described your own 100 free in Rio as the biggest choke ever. Your stroke is absolutely beautiful to watch. And I was happy to see you do so well at Pan Pacs a few weeks ago.

In your recent statement you made a great point about the nature of choking: “When you see someone choking, it’s not because they don’t care.… Read more »

About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, …

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