New swimming records set at Bank Windhoek, NASFED Long Course Gala. The Bank Windhoek, Namibia Aquatic Sports Federation’s (NASFED) third Long Course Gala, held over the past weekend set new swimming records as over 200 athletes competed in 41 swimming events. The Gala was hosted simultaneously in three towns: at Olympia Swimming Pool in Windhoek, The Water Cube Swimming Pool in Swakopmund, and Sand Sharks Swimming Pool in Oranjemund from Friday, 24 January to Saturday, 25 January 2025.
Luke Beukes from Aqua Swimming and Fitness Club set a record for the 15-16 Men’s 50 Butterfly Category with a time of 25.6 seconds. “It feels amazing to set a record; it has always been a dream of mine since I began swimming about four years ago. Another goal of mine is to qualify for the Olympics in 2028,” he said.
Oliver Durand from Dolphins Swimming Club set a record for the 17-18 Men’s 50 Butterfly Category with a time of 25.5 seconds. “This is great. I was not expecting to break any records this weekend because I took this event as a preparation gala for the Nationals and other competitions in South Africa,” he said.
Bank Windhoek’s Head of Stakeholder Engagement, Corporate Social Responsibility and Sponsorships, Bronwyn Moody, said the performance of swimmers over the weekend was impressive in all three towns. “We are excited to see them qualify for the Namibian National team and how they perform in the Levels 2 and 3 Swimming competitions, including the South Africa Junior Swimming Championships and South African Senior Swimming Championships,” she said.
The following new individual and team relay records were set over the weekend:
- Women 45 and Over 100 Backstroke1:23.01 ** Lucy Louw (Swakopmund on 24 January 2025), Swakopmund Swimming Club
- Men 15-16 50 Butterfly25.66 ** Luke Beukes (Windhoek on 24 January 2025), Aqua Swimming and Fitness Club
- Men 17-18 50 Butterfly25.51 ** Oliver B. Durand (Windhoek on 24 January 2025), Dolphins Swimming Club
- Men 11-12 400 Medley Relay5:30.69 ** A. Diehl, D. Badenhorst, P. Durand, J. Erni (24 January 2025) Dolphins Swimming Club
This Gala enabled swimmers to set new personal best times to qualify for the approaching National Championship to take place 20 – 24 February 2025 and for upcoming tours to South Africa.