KEY POINTS:
Head coach Jan Cameron was all smiles after five New Zealand swimmers reached finals on the first day of the world short course championships in Manchester.
National records were set by Glenn Snyders, Zoe Baker, Helen Norfolk, Moss Burmester and Corney Swanepoel on a day when three world records also fell.
Norfolk led the way as the first New Zealand finalist, finishing sixth in the final of the 400m individual medley won in a new world record by Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry.
Norfolk went under her own national record in qualifying third fastest in the heats, clocking 4m 34.05s, 0.04s inside her previous mark.
She was not able to improve on that in the final in 4m 34.36s, managing a solid sixth place.
The others to win through to finals today include Baker in the 50m breaststroke, Snyders in the 100m breaststroke and Swanepoel and Burmester in the 100m butterfly.
"It was a fantastic start for us and very encouraging," Cameron said.
"I thought all the swimmers got to grips with the championships and we saw some big improvements.
"We are looking for Corney and Moss to pick up again tomorrow and Glenn learned a lot from his semifinal experiences and we think he will improve also.
"Zoe was excellent and will press for a medal tomorrow ... Overall we are very happy with that start."
Baker, sixth in the world short course final in Shanghai two years ago and a bronze medallist in 2002, took 0.01s off her New Zealand record in qualifying second fastest for today's final.
The Christchurch swimmer was fifth fastest in the morning heats in 30.82s but improved to win the second semifinal in 30.27s, second only to Russian Yuliya Elomova.
Burmester, silver medallist in the 200m butterfly at Shanghai, set the tone with an outstanding 51.37s to top qualifiers in the heats of the 100m butterfly, breaking his teammate Swanepoel's New Zealand record by 0.3s in the process.
Swanepoel was 11th fastest in heats but improved in the semifinal, finishing third fastest overall with a brilliant 50.94s, the first New Zealander under the 51s barrier.
Burmester also went faster in a personal best 51.30s to be seventh fastest. Snyders continued his rich vein of form in the heats where he was fastest qualifier.
He clocked 58.67s, which was more than a second inside the record he set last December.
He was slow off the blocks in his semifinal but recovered well to be just 0.23s slower than his morning swim and seventh fastest.
Liz Coster qualified second fastest in her heat of the 100m backstroke behind the remarkable Coventry after setting a big personal best of58.71s.
She made a slow start in her semifinal but also came home strongly to lower her personal best again to 58.63s but it was a fingertip away from making the final.
Her teammate and 200m back-stroke specialist Melissa Ingram was three places back, 12th fastest in the semifinals with a significant personal best of 59.39s.
West Auckland teenager Daniel Bell qualified for the semifinal in the 100m backstroke in his first major open international meet.
Earlier, Andrew McMillan and Robert Voss did not progress beyond the 200m freestyle heats.
- NZPA
