DORSET champion Kayla van der Merwe is Britain’s fastest under-16 100m breaststroker of all time after smashing the record twice in a day.
The 15-year-old from Bournemouth Collegiate School made her mark in the same Manchester pool where her coach Zoe Baker broke the 50m breaststroke world record at the Commonwealth Games in 2002 – the year van der Merwe was born.
The British age group champion was in the form of her life at the short-course Manchester International, winning two gold medals and a bronze and breaking six Dorset records in three days.
The 100m was the pick of the bunch as van der Merwe won the junior heats in 1:08.14 and the final by more than two seconds in 1:07.21.
Both times broke Commonwealth Games star Freya Anderson’s British junior record from 2015 and the Dorset senior and junior records.
Youngster van der Merwe’s winning time won her the meet’s top junior girl award and took her to fifth in the British women’s rankings and 20th on the GB all-time list.
She also won the junior 200m breaststroke, breaking her Dorset junior record in heat and final with 2:29.46 and 2:28.91.
She won bronze in the 50m breaststroke in 33.06 and was first in the 200m individual medley heats in 2:16.13 – 0.1sec short of the Dorset junior record – before withdrawing from the final to focus on the breaststroke.
Baker, who had to watch online following back surgery, said: “It’s not often you get to see your swimmer break their first national record in the same pool and even the same lane in which you broke a world record.
“Kayla was very motivated to do it. I told her it was my lucky lane four.”
Team-mate Christian Tai twice made the podium after setting personal bests throughout the meet.
He won silver in the junior 50m and 100m butterfly in 25.82 and 55.68 and was fourth, fifth and seventh in the 100m breaststroke, 200m IM and 200m fly, respectively.
Jacob Peters broke two Dorset records to lead Poole’s 52-medal haul in the TYR Super Series at Millfield.
The Commonwealth Games triple finalist clocked 23.74 and 52.86 in the men’s 50m and 100m butterfly and took to five his personal gold tally in the 50m freestyle, 100m backstroke and 200m fly.
The 50m fly time ranks him second in Britain to world champion Ben Proud.
Luca Sartorius struck gold three times – in the 11yrs 50m fly, 100m freestyle and 100m IM.
Oli Fairman won at least one medal of each colour – gold in the 16yrs 50m and 100m fly, silver in the 200m fly and bronze in the 50m breaststroke.
Robbie Hemmings won gold in the 14yrs 800m freestyle, silver in the 400m free and bronze in the 200m free and 50m breaststroke.
The 1500m freestyle produced gold for Zoe Steele, 12, Holly Harris, 15, and Thea O’Keefe, 16.
Gold also went to Arron Hopkins in the 11yrs 100m fly, Sheila Monera in the 13yrs 50m freestyle and Zack Studley in the 12yrs 200m backstroke.
Other Poole medals: 11yrs Arron Hopkins silver 100m fly; Xavi Jebb bronze 200m breast. 12yrs Max Looker silver 50m & 100m back, 1500m free, bronze 50m free; Zack Studley silver 400m free; Xavier West bronze 200m fly; Betsy Vavasour bronze 50m free. 13yrs Alex Chiriac silver 50m fly, bronze 100m fly; Sheila Monera silver 50m fly; Molly Goddard silver 200m free; Ryan Openshaw bronze 400m IM. 14yrs Aimie Quarrie silver 1500m freestyle; Lucy Steele bronze 1500m freestyle. 15yrs Ella McNamara silver 100m fly; Liam Openshaw bronze 1500m free; Miles Ward bronze 800m free. 16yrs Thea O’Keefe silver 400m free; Alex Bryant bronze 50m back; Izzy Hepburn bronze 200m fly; Abbie Quarrie bronze 200m breast. 17yrs Jazz McCrea silver 200m fly, bronze 50m breast; Teagan-Mae Graham silver 1500m free.
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