2024 NSW Senior State Championships: 14-Yr-Old Christopher Montana Introduces Himself

2024 NSW SENIOR STATE SC CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Friday, August 23rd – Sunday, August 25th
• Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre (SOPAC)
• SCM (25m)
• Results

The 2024 New South Wales Senior State Short Course Championships concluded today at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre.

This competition was a chance for young budding stars to make their mark in the short course format, with age records at risk on both the women’s and men’s sides.

Day 1 Highlights

Day 1 of the 3-day affair became ‘The Christopher Montana Show’ as the 14-year-old wreaked havoc in both of his events to kick things off.

First in the boys’ 200m IM, Montana of Trinity Grammar Swimming Club fired off a time of 2:05.83 to beat the field by well over half a second.

Montana split 26.32/31.44/36.87/31.20 to put up the best time of his young career, erasing the 2:11.30 the teen put up just earlier this month.

His outing now ranks Montana as Australia’s 9th-fastest 14-year-old boy in history.

Later in the session, Calum Timms-trained Montana tried the boys’ 14-year-old 100m breaststroke on for size.

Montana ripped a career-quickest result of 1:02.20 to get to the wall nearly a second ahead of the pack. He opened in 28.88 and closed in 33.32 to knock just under 4 seconds off his previous PB of 1:06.38.

With his podium-topping performance, Montana obliterated the previous Australian National Age Record in this 1breast event. The former benchmark stood at the 1:03.25 Olympic champion Zac Stubblety-Cook put on the books in 2013.

Day 2 Highlights

Montana was back at it on day 2, reaping multiple medals en route to making Australian age group swimming history.

Montana raced in the boys’ 200m breaststroke event where he stopped the clock at a mighty 2:18.66. That blew his previous personal best of 2:27.19 to bits en route to posting the sole sub-2:23 time of the field.

His result checks him in as the 6th-fastest 14-year-old Aussie boy in history.

Montana then competed in the 50m breast, roaring his way to the wall in a swift 28.60. That hacked over a second off his previous PB en route to registering a new Age Record.

The previous mark stood at the 29.18 Joshua Collett notched in 2018. This means Montana is the first-ever Aussie 14-year-old to dip under the 29-second barrier.

Of note, runner-up Hudson Hegarty wasn’t too far behind Collett’s mark, hitting 29.32 for silver behind Montana.

Finally, on day 2 Montana topped the boys’ 14-year-old 100m butterfly. He posted a time of 56.53 as one of two swimmers in the 56-range.

Joining him was Ethan Haegebert who touched in 56.82 while Joshua Kang rounded out the top 3 in 57.11.

The trio each turned in new personal bests. Entering this competition, Montana had never been under the minute threshold, owning a former PB of 1:00.22 from just earlier this month. He hacked over 3 seconds off with this powerful performance.

15-year-old Lukas Dunn was another multiple-event winner on day 2. The Knox Pymble athlete rocked a time of 54.14 for a new PB in the 100m fly.

Dunn’s outing rendered him the #2 15-year-old Australian performer, sitting only behind Age Group record holder Jayden Hadler who posted 52.12 in 2008.

Dunn also turned in a time of 24.44 to take the 50m fly by over a second. He’s now the 4th-fastest Aussie 15-year-old boy ever.

Finally, Dunn scored a result of 55.59 for a big-time personal best in the 100m back. That ripped his former PB of 59.01 to shreds.

Day 3 Highlights

Montana topped the boys’ 14-year-old 200m backstroke in a time of 2:05.01, a head-turning personal best by over 7 seconds.

He also raced in the 50m back, where he settled for silver in 26.63 behind Haegebaert who handily got to the wall first.

Haegebaert hit a mark of 26.05 to lead the field and check-in as the 4th-fastest Aussie 14-year-old boy ever in the 50m back.

The same event for the 16-year-old age category saw a swift performance at the hands of Haegebaert’s Knox Pymble teammate Tristen Waugh.

Waugh wowed the crowd with a time of 24.83, producing the sole mark of the field under the 25-second barrier. The outing represents Waugh’s first-ever result under the 26-second threshold, becoming the 3rd-best 50m Aussie backstroker at his age in the process.

Jaimie De Lutiis was too quick to catch in the girls’ 17&O 100m freestyle. De Lutiis of West Iillawara Aquatic Swim Club turned in a time of 53.36 to easily overtake her previous PB of 54.71.

Once again Dunn made his presence known in more than 1 race, taking on the 100m freestyle for 15-year-olds.

Dunn registered 50.06 (24.05/26.01) to get the job done, nearly breaking the 50-second barrier as he logged another lifetime best.

He then rocked a time of 56.44 in his age category’s 100m IM, scoring the sole time of the field under a minute. Dunn completed his campaign with a victory in the 50m free, wrangling up gold in 23.45.