Masters Games' youngest competitor looks forward to friendly rivalry at Whanganui Splash Centre

The Masters Games' youngest competitor Shannon Schimanski was looking forward to some friendly rivalry in the Splash Centre pool. Photo / Bevan Conley

Twenty-year-old Shannon Schimanski is the youngest competitor in the Downer New Zealand Masters Games in Whanganui this year.

She was to compete in the 50m and 100m breaststroke and freestyle events at the Splash Centre on Tuesday night.

A former national champion, Schimanski won a silver medal in the Victoria State Age Group Championships in Melbourne as a 13-year-old in 2013 and won two national titles for breaststroke at the National Short Course Championship meet in Auckland in 2015.

Competitive swimming has taken a back seat in recent years while Schimanski has been studying at Victoria University Wellington - Te Herenga Waka, although she still enjoys recreational swimming and has been working as a surf lifesaver in Whanganui over summer.

On Tuesday night Schimanski was to compete against a group of young swimmers who she trained with under the guidance of coach Andy McLay at the Whanganui Swim Club.

"I have always admired the Masters and I'm really happy to be old enough to compete this year," Schimanski said.

"I will be competing against my sister Jaimee and I think that will be fun."

Neil Forlong, former swim team manager for the Whanganui Swim Club, is organising the Masters competitions and said there would be some interesting friendly rivalry amongst the swimmers competing in the 20 to 25 years age group.

"They are old friends who competed together when they were younger so it will be fun for them to compete against each other as adults.

"It is hard to come back to competitions when they have been away from their training regimes for a few years."

One of Schimanski's old teammates is Forlong's daughter Elena who excelled in the butterfly at the national competitions in Auckland in 2015.

"Jacob Smith was another really good swimmer from that group who is competing in the Masters," Forlong said.

"There is bound to be some good banter and they will enjoy catching up with each other I'm sure."

Forlong said he believes the oldest swimming competitor in the Masters Games this year is 89.