Rotorua pair make most of Swimming New Zealand training camp

Swim Rotorua athletes Nikita Pola (left) and Lina Stahlhut attended the Swimming New Zealand Distance Camp. Photo / Stephen Parker

Swimming is a sport which takes great discipline, especially for those who race long distances. They must be willing to spend hour upon hour staring at the black stripe, perfecting their craft - something one Rotorua pair are well accustomed to.

Last month, Swim Rotorua 14-year-olds Lina Stahlhut and Nikita Pola had the opportunity to spice up their training when selected for a Swimming New Zealand Distance Camp in Auckland.

The pair are already proven performers, impressing at the New Zealand Age Group Swimming Championships in Wellington in May.

Lina had a stand out meet with medals in the 13-year-old girls' 800m and 1500m freestyle. She won silver in the 800m and bronze in the 1500m. In the same age group, Nikita made a sparkling national debut with silver in the 1500m freestyle and fourth in the 800m freestyle.

Nikita said the week-long camp involved "heaps of training" and some team activities.

"It was way harder than what we do, there was a lot more of it and it went a lot longer. I think I learned what distance training is and what other people do - a lot of people there had done sets I'd never done.

"I learned how to actually distance swim, how to pace yourself, and worked on improving my turns."

She said it was good for her motivation to get a different perspective on things and she had returned to Rotorua eager to work on her weaknesses.

"I've been swimming since I was 8, I started at school in the school pool and then joined Swim Rotorua. I started competing about two years ago and I enjoy the competitions. It's a lot of fun catching up with people.

Nikita Pola (left), 14, and Lina Stahlhut, 14, won medals at the New Zealand Age Group Swimming Championships in May. Photo / Supplied

"[Swimming NZ] want us to get into open water swimming now as well and there's heaps of open water events to compete in. I've been too scared to do any yet but I would like to do it, we're going to start looking into it."

Nikita trains seven times a week in the lead-up to a competition. She hopes to make another distance camp next year from which a New Zealand team will be selected to compete in New South Wales.

Lina said the camp was "really good and a lot of fun", but also got the most out of each swimmer.

"I liked how they pushed us really hard so we could see our limits - how to push yourself in a really hard set and not give up. That will be good for racing.

"It was really cool meeting new people and especially the coaches. It was good to have a new coach giving you new tips."

I liked how they pushed us really hard so we could see our limits - how to push yourself in a really hard set and not give up. That will be good for racing.

She has been swimming since she was about 5 and has been racing for the last three years.

"I like that you can do a variety of strokes and distances. I don't really have a favourite, I like to do a lot of different ones.

"I usually train seven times a week, my parents and coach help keep me motivated but i enjoy training. I love it. Now my goal is to step up a level and represent New Zealand one day - I definitely have to train more."

Swim Rotorua head coach Alastair Johnson said the training camp was "very valuable" for the girls to attend.

"We always encourage them to extend themselves, to learn and get out of their comfort zone. It's the first national camp they've been on and they would've picked up some good skills around taking ownership and trying some new training sets.

"They've been a bit more switched on and working a bit harder [since going on the camp]. I knew they would make the most of the camp because they're both really good attendees, they come to all the trainings they're supposed to come to and they like to push themselves quite hard.

"They are both reliable, hard working switched on athletes."