Swimming: Melita Raravula in NZ team

Northwave swimmer Melita Raravula, 16, has been selected for the NZ Youth Team to compete in the transtasman Series in Australia next month.

The series will be held in Canberra, Wagga Wagga and Melbourne over seven days and the kiwis will be racing two Australian teams to gain the highest points.

Coach Monica Cooper said Melita followed two previous Northwave squad members who competed for New Zealand in the same series: Kushla Chapman in 1996 and Mark Cooper 2003.

This follows a successful season for Melita who won six medals at the National Age Group Short Course Championships in September then followed that up with another six medals at the National Age Group Long Course Championships held in Wellington in March.

Gold medals in the 50, 100 and 200m butterfly, silver in the 50 and 100m breaststroke and bronze in the 200m individual medley.

She broke 14 Northland records during the meet and has broken many other records during the season.

At NZ Opens/Olympic Trials held in Waitakere at the end of March Melita placed 8th in the Women's Final of 50m Breaststroke and made the B Final of the Women's 50m, 100m and 200m butterfly.

Melita was also selected for a Swimming New Zealand Age Group Camp and the National breaststroke camp in January held at the Millennium Centre, run by New Zealand Head Coach Mark Regan.

Freyah Ruri, 13, Northwave Club, has also had an excellent season.

In November Freyah gained medals in nine events at the Auckland Junior Championships.

At the Northland Age Group Championships held at Dargaville in January Freyah won eleven gold medals and broke the race record in all events.

At the New Zealand Age Group Championships she competed in 10 events, gained bronze medals in the 50 and 100m butterfly missed a third bronze by .07 of a second placing 4th in the 400m freestyle and also 4th in the 200m individual medley, 5th 100 and 200m free style and a total of nine final placings.

Freyah broke nine Northland records during the meet and like Melita has continually broken Northland records during the season.

She also qualified to compete at the NZ Open Championships in the Women's 200m backstroke and 200m individual medley and was within half a second of qualifying in six other events.

A very good achievement for someone so young.

Freyah has now been invited by Swimming NZ to attend the North Island Age Group Camp to be held in Rotorua this weekend.