Swimming: Six NZers advance at PanPacs [audio report]

Six New Zealand swimmers have qualified for finals on the first day of the Pan Pacific championships in Canada today.

Liz Coster and Hannah McLean led the way in the 100m backstroke, where they will come up against world champion and record-holder Natalie Coughlin from the United States in the A final.

Coster of North Shore showed the benefit of recent training focus on backstroke than her butterfly stroke when she qualified eighth fastest in the heats at Victoria this morning.

She clocked one minute 02.04 seconds for the eighth fastest time, nearly one second off her previous best to nudge clubmate and Commonwealth record holder McLean.

McLean, who had a long break after the Commonwealth Games and has been based in Europe, clocked 1min 02.13sec but was outside her best of 1min 00.83sec set in Melbourne.

Melissa Ingram reached the B final after clocking the 18th fastest time in the heats.

Commonwealth Games gold medalist Moss Burmester will swim in the B final of his favoured 200m butterfly in today's finals after clocking the 12th fastest time in the morning heats. He has also had time out of the pool after Melbourne and was below his Commonwealth record of 1min 56.64sec.

Burmester lined up alongside Olympic champion Michael Phelps in the final heat, clocking 1min 59.73sec in his heat while Phelps topped qualifiers, 4sec faster than the New Zealander.

Helen Norfolk and Lauren Boyle were 18th and 20th fastest respecitvely in the women's 200m freestyle heats but that was enough to reach the B final.

Southland swimmer Bryn Murphy, now based at the Waves club in Dunedin, set a personal best to be third fastest of the slower group in the 800m freestyle.

Murphy, in his first taste of major international competition, clocked 8min 11.52sec, more than 5sec off his previous best in a superb effort, with the fastest eight qualifiers to swim in today's finals.

Other personal bests in the morning heats were recorded by Robert Voss (North Shore), Michael Jack (West Auckland Aquatics) and Ben Pickersgill-Brown (Aquagym, Chch) in their heats of the 200m freestyle along with John Zulch (North Shore) in the 100m backstroke.

The championship continues until Monday (NZ time).

New Zealand results, first day heats:

Men:

200m freestyle: Robert Voss 1:51.42 26, Michael Jack 1:52.34 28, Ben Pickersgill-Brown 1:53.44 34, Andrew McMillan 1:54.68 35, Cameron Gibson 1:55.29 36, Dean Kent 1:56.39 37, Bryn Murphy1:57.40 39.

800m freestyle: Murphy 8:11.52 3 (B qualifiers).

100m backstroke: John Zulch 58.07 27, Kent 58.86 28.

200m butterfly: Moss Burmester 1:59.73 12th.

Women:

200m freestyle: Helen Norfolk 2min 01.54sec 18, Lauren Boyle 2:01.67 20, Alison Fitch 2:04.87 35.

100m backstroke: Liz Coster 1:02.04 8th Hannah McLean 1:02.13 9, Melissa Ingram 1:02.90 18.

- NZPA