Local Sports Star: Doonside’s natural talent in the water

Doonside’s Shayna Fernando was described as “half fish, half human” by her mother because of her passion for water.

Shayna Fernando, 9, is a natural in the water.

Doonside’s Shayna Fernando was described as “half fish, half human” by her mother because of her passion for water.

Shayna is the new Primary Schools Sports Association (PSSA) record holder for the 50m junior girls butterfly in the under-10s category.

The Quakers Hill Public School student battled it out among 10 schools to beat the record at the Blacktown PSSA District Swimming Carnival on March 1.

“I felt a bit confident, I thought I would get a personal best but I never thought I would get a record,” Shayna said.

It wasn’t until she was enveloped by her friend did she realise she had broken the record.

“They were really proud of me, they hugged me ... I heard cheering all around, I felt fantastic,” she said.

Though butterfly is Shayna’s preferred stroke the youngster is an all-rounder.

She came first in every 50m stroke in zone tournaments.

The nine-year-old was just seven when she began winning races and breaking records in the pool.

Her proud mother, Himasha Cooray, said:

“She’s loved swimming from her childhood. She has been winning swimming metro gold medals since she was seven and started squad training when she was barely seven. We came to Australia from India when she was four-year-old and since then she had loved the water.”

Shayna’s school enjoyed success in other tournaments at the PSSA, notably the girls’ 50m freestyle relay team who broke a 12-year-old record held by Hambledon Public School at Quakers Hill.