McIntosh Becomes 5th Fastest Kiwi Women’s 1500 Freestyler

NEW ZEALAND NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS (NZL)

• April 5th – April 10th
• Prelims at 11:10am local/Finals at 7:10pm local
• Sir Owen Glenn National Aquatic Centre
• Olympic Games Selection Policy
• Not a one-shot qualification meet
• Results
• Live Stream

The 2021 New Zealand National Championships kicked off today in Auckland with just the men’s 800m free and women’s 1500m free on the docket.

21-year-old Zac Reid got it done for gold in the first event, clocking an 8free time of 8:00.34 to win by nearly 8 seconds. The Aquabladz swimmer actually owns the national record with his 7:53.50 performance put up just last December. That outing qualified Reid for this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, dipping under the FINA ‘A’ cut of 7:54.31.

For tonight’s women’s race, Phoenix Aquatics’ Hayley McIntosh stepped up to take the top prize, getting to the wall in a time of 16:35.11. Her result represents a big-time new lifetime best, surpassing her previous PB of 16:39.12 from the 2019 Queensland Championships in Australia.

McIntosh’s 16:35.11 outing now checks the 22-year-old in as New Zealand’s 5th fastest performer all-time in this event.