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<\/p>\n
“She made the finals the previous year, so it was good to see her back it up and make finals again this year,” Jordan said.<\/p>\n
Jordan said as a squad member, Fong-Sutton would have access to elite training sessions, both in and out of the pool, and plenty of high-level coaching.<\/p>\n
“Azia has some really good opportunities ahead of her,” he said.<\/p>\n
“As she moves towards senior high school, there are obviously more challenges around school commitments, et cetera.<\/p>\n
“But if she is prepared to out in the work, then there are some opportunities for some of our female freestylers.<\/p>\n
“There is no reason why she shouldn’t try and get onto some Australian youth performance camps, or even push some the national selections.<\/p>\n
“We (Bendigo East) have consistently pout swimmers on national junior teams over the last 10 or so years.<\/p>\n
“It’s got a good culture and people enjoy being around the club and that creates an environment conducive to swimmers being able to do well and get the best of themselves.”<\/p>\n
Fong-Sutton’s Marlins squad selection followed that of star clubmate Henry Allan’s in the Australian Junior Dolphins team to compete at the 2026 Junior Pan Pacific Championships in Vancouver, Canada.<\/p>\n
Allan’s selection was all-but guaranteed following his outstanding performances at the Australian Age Championships last month.<\/p>\n
The 17-year-old dominated by breaking three national age records and three all-comers records and claiming an incredible five gold medals.<\/p>\n
Whether Allan gets to the Pan Pacific Championships (17-20 August) remains to be seen, with the teenager in strong contention to be picked in the Australian team for the Glasgow Commonwealth Games (23 July to 2 August).<\/p>\n
The Australian Swimming Trials will be held at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre from 8-13 June.<\/p>\n
“The expectation is that Henry will have a really strong chance of getting on the Comm Games team,” Jordan said.<\/p>\n
“And if he does, he might not do the Junior Pans.<\/p>\n
“There is no reason why he can’t do well in any of those top competitions.”<\/p>\n
More sport from page 27.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BENDIGO East Swimming Club young gun Azia Fong-Sutton will take another exciting step in her development after being named in the Victorian State Marlins Squad. The 15-year-old was one of 38 youngsters picked in Swimming Victoria’s high-performance squad, which was announced this month. Her selection came hot on the heels of her bright performances at […]<\/p>\n