NT swimming championships 2025: Records broken and titles claimed
Territory talent shone in the pool as some of the best rising stars in the country got big results at the NT Swimming Championships. Check out the results and photos.
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Local and interstate swimmers shone at the 2025 edition of the NT Swimming Championships, with a couple of NT Rising Stars shining in the pool.
More than 200 athletes competed in 1,791 swims, showcasing the depth of talent in the Northern Territory’s swimming scene.
Darwin Swimming Club’s Macey Sheridan, 15, dominated the pool as she continues to prove herself one of the best young swimmers in the country.
She won the Jim Gayton trophy for being the fastest NT women in the 50m freestyle with a time of 26.49 seconds.
Sheridan secured first-place finishes in multiple events, including the 50m butterfly (29.28), 50m backstroke (30.35), 100m freestyle (58.31), 100m backstroke (1:05.73), 200m freestyle (2:07.68), and 200m backstroke (2:29.80).
She was named Champion Female alongside Pippa Hunter from Casuarina Swimming Club, as well as Champion Distance Female and Swimmer of the Meet.
Event ambassador James Smith, another earmarked for potential future national squad honours from the Darwin Swimming Club excelled in the long distance events.
The 19-year-old won Champion Distance Male and Age Champion for 17 and over with wins in the 200m freestyle (1:58.68), 400m freestyle (4:07.37), 800m freestyle (8:41.20), and 1500m freestyle (16:09.38), finishing almost three minutes ahead of second place in the latter event.
Liam Brown, 15, had a record-breaking weekend, setting NT records in both the heats and finals of the 15-year-old boys’ 100m freestyle.
His final time of 53.13 seconds set new NT and All Comers records.
Brown also dominated his age group, winning the 200m freestyle (2:00.08), 50m freestyle (25.26), 50m butterfly (27.61), 50m backstroke (30.31), 50m breaststroke (33.80), 100m butterfly (1:03.12), and 200m backstroke (2:16.97).
Pippa Frey, 11, made waves with a first-place finish in the 50m freestyle (34.91) and 50m backstroke (38.34) as one of the tournaments rising stars.
She also secured podium finishes in the 100m backstroke (second, 1:27.50), 50m butterfly (third, 40.81), and 200m individual medley (third, 3:25.12).
Darwin Swimming Club took home the Keith Gabel Trophy for the highest points in form stroke events and the Relay Trophy.
However, Alice Springs Swimming Club claimed the NT Club Champion Trophy for the highest aggregate point score per swimmer.
NT Swimming chief executive Warren Dopson hailed the event as a “great success,” praising the improvement among young swimmers and welcoming competitors from South Australia, Western Australia, and Queensland.
Notably, this year’s event saw representation from Groote Eylandt for the first time.
30+ photos: NT Swimming Championships make a splash
More than 200 swimmers are set to take on the 2025 NT Swimming Championships, with more than a few Territory stars hunting gold at Parap Pool over the weekend.
The NT has produced some of the real rising stars of Australian swimming in recent years with Macey Sheridan and James Smith already making names for themselves.
Sheridan will this year be pushing for a spot on national junior teams after her recent hauls of gold medals at national level.
Meanwhile, Smith, who is the championships ambassador, has recently returned from a next gen camp for Australian swimmers looking at being involved in the LA 2028 Olympics.
The Championships got under way on Friday with more than 200 swimmers from 17 clubs, with a few interstate athletes from Queensland and South Australia have also joining the competition.
The energy at the pool was palpable during the warm-ups, setting the stage for what promises to be a weekend of thrilling races.
Music blared through the speakers as a crowd gathered under bannered shades, with the car park filled to capacity.
The much-anticipated medley race proved to be a spectacle, with deafening cheers from the sidelines as competitors powered through the water under an overcast sky.
One standout performance came from Pippa Frey of My Diabetes Strong, who progressed to the preliminaries with a joint first-place time of 39.64 seconds in the Girls 11-year-old 50m backstroke
NT Swimming chief executive Warren Dopson said the championships were for many the most important event ahead of nationals.
“This is pretty important for the NT with the Australian Championships coming in April it’s the last shot at qualifying for a lot of our kids,” Dopson said.
“We have a quite a lot who have qualified throughout the season but this is a chance for a few more to get those elusive times so they can compete in Brisbane next month.
“The mantra is we’re doing this for the kids and that’s why we’re all volunteering to give them the chance to reach their full potential is something they love doing.”
Live results are available online and via the Meet app, ensuring supporters can keep track of the action as the championships continue over the weekend.
Dopson said the talent coming out of the NT in recent years was perhaps the best he had ever experienced backing up the investment from volunteers and staff.
“Macey’s probably the best age group swimmer in the country which is rare for us up here, she’s swimming fantastically and looking to make the next step on to the national team,” Dopson said.
“James is another on the radar of Swimming Australia, he’s just come back from the next generation camp, which is the group they’re looking at for the LA 2028 Olympics.
“Then we have Liam who’s in the top three nationally in the 200m freestyle, he’s got a heap of potential and is very close on knocking on the door of national teams as well.
“The talent here lies with the kids, they’ve invested in themselves knowing it takes a lot to be a great swimmer and we’ve invested heavily in their development over the past 12-18 months.
“We’ve never had the sort of potential we have now and that’s inspiring the next generation of kids who are improving meet after meet.”
Swimming NT is set for a huge 2025 with the Australian World Championship team coming up in early July before they head to Singapore as one of the marquee events.
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Originally published as NT swimming championships 2025: Records broken and titles claimed
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