AUSTRALIAN SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Mr SIBBONS (Mitchell) (14:19): Can the Premier inform the house on the success of the recent Australian swimming championships?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Minister for State Development) (14:19): I had the great pleasure of attending the 2012 swimming championships—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —which were a huge success and have cemented the South Australian Aquatic and Leisure Centre as one of the best swimming venues in Australia. Indeed, everywhere I went at that event, people were coming up to me and telling me that precise thing. All of the national officials, people who are significant national officials on our Olympic Committee, and also the national swimming bodies, were falling over themselves to say what a wonderful facility this is, and the future is obviously a very exciting one for South Australian swimming.

South Australians embraced the opportunity to see top level swimming with over 33,000 tickets sold and an amazing seven consecutive sell-out nights to ensure that the Adelaide Olympic Trials will go down as one of the most successful events ever. Spectators, competitors, coaches and officials were united in their praise for the event and its high level of organisation, and I want to pay particular tribute to the General Manager of Events SA, Hitaf Rasheed.

South Australia can look forward to many more top events at this world-class venue, including the Australian Olympic Dive Trials, the Australian Age Championships, the National Masters Swimming Championships, FINA World Junior Diving Championships, the Australian University Games, and the Rescue 2012 Lifesaving World Championships. Adelaide will also host the 2013 Australian Swimming Championships, which will act as selection trials for the FINA World Championships to be held in Barcelona, Spain.

I would particularly like to acknowledge and congratulate the 68 South Australians who competed over the eight days of the trial. South Australians take great pride in the success of our athletes and I am sure that their efforts in future competitions will be watched and supported by all of us. In particular I would like to congratulate Hayden Stoeckel, who won the 100 metres backstroke and qualified for his second Olympic Games, and our very own Paralympic swimming legend Matthew Cowdrey, who won the 100 metres backstroke multiclass event, which will greatly assist in his quest to represent Australia in the London Paralympics.

The achievements of the South Australian competitors at the 2012 swimming championships is obviously a testament to their hard work. Lots of very early mornings, getting up when it is dark, doing lap after lap—that puts a lot of pressure on family and all sorts of relationships. I commend them for their commitment and thank all the volunteers and staff who did a wonderful job. They did South Australia proud.