Tuggeranong Masters shine at 2026 MSA National Championships in Brisbane
Report by Anne Smyth, Club President and Caz Makin, Publicity Officer
Tuggeranong Masters delivered an exceptional performance at th 2026 MSA National Masters Swimming Championships in Brisbane from 28 April to 3 May 2026, capping off a week of intense competition with standout results across the board. This was the MSA 50th Anniversary Edition!
More than 800 swimmers from around Australia took part in the championships, ranging from former national representatives to first-time competitors and inspiring athletes in their 80s and 90s. The atmosphere throughout the week was a celebration of both high-performance racing and the inclusive spirit of Masters swimming.
“817 swimmers. Six days of competition. Fifty years of Masters Swimming. Thank you Brisbane — what a championship.”
One of the most memorable moments of the meet came when Cam McEvoy electrified the crowd by breaking the world record in the 25m Freestyle. In a remarkable twist, McEvoy returned to the pool just 15 minutes later as a surprise entrant in the final heat—only to break his own world record again.
For Tuggeranong Masters, the championships were not only a showcase of athletic achievement but also a testament to the club’s strong culture, camaraderie, and commitment to lifelong swimming. Swimmers recorded personal bests, podium finishes, and season-best times, reflecting months of hard training leading into the event. From 149 individual swims, we earned 3 gold, 8 silver, and 8 bronze medals. 27 club records were broken, and one was newly established.
The team … Richard Phillips, Paul Wilkinson, John Collis, Graham Clews, Erin Lockley, Caz Makin, Elizabeth Merenda, Lucy Jesiolowski, Sue Paton, Chris Campbell, Jeanette Droop, Ann Reid, Katrina Burgess, Kylie Lane, Leisa Cass, Di Adams, and Anne Smyth.
Here are some of our team’s personal reflections ….
Elizabeth’s favourite moments were watching Cam McEvoy swim the 25m in under 10 seconds and sitting in the stands watching everyone swim, particularly Di in the 400m and John in the 50m Breaststroke. Elizaveth’s favourite swim was her 200m IM.
Sue was in awe of many of the athletes at this meet and the times and ages of some, oh to still be swimming at 96. Sue blew herself away twice in the 100m Freestyle and 50m Backstroke.
Graham had a great time with a great bunch of team-mates. Nice to have a few good swims and to see others doing well.
Katrina loved swimming in the outdoor 50m pool with the crazy ski jump and so many lanes. Two highlights were watching Cam McEnroy break his 25m world record twice and being the anchor for the Tuggeranong Womens 240+ 4x50m Freestyle relay team to earn a silver medal.
Kylie’s favourite swim was the 100m Butterfly where she kicked into a new gear in the last 25m to chase bronze. It showed the training block really worked. Her memorable moment was having her dad there to watch her swims - it meant so much to share those races with him.
Lucy’s favourites were the atmosphere, her room buddy Jeanette and the encouragement from team members was amazing! She couldn’t go past taking 5 secs off her 100m Freestyle as she’s been at same time for years! Also the final event, the open water swim where she was glad to have Richard there and was very proud of them both!
Anne thought it was great catching up with lots of swimming friends from around Australia. She was very happy with her times and it was great to be part of such supportive team from Tuggeranong.
Jeanette had a thoroughly enjoyable week of swimming and socialising - great fun. She thought it was great to see our newbies to Nationals swim so well and see their training efforts being rewarded.
Since joining the club, Paul has been very heartened by the camaraderie and support members provide to new and existing members, and this was never more evident whilst competing at Nationals.
Chris thought it was fabulous to catch up with all my swimming friends from all over and that It was excellent swimming for Tuggeranong and going away with hanging out with club members. She was super happy with most of her swims with some good PBs in most of her 11 individual swims.
Caz loved sharing laughter with firends in the stands, on pool deck, and socially. She was pleased to feel strong in the water, with a negative split in the 800m Freestyle and a bronze medal, after a very disrupted 9 months including a huge interstate move and getting back to proper training 6 weeks earlier.
Ann‘s highlights were catching up again with her “annual” friends and she was really happy with her Freestyle times.
… and of course, some of the team took part in a club social dinner and the presentation evening on the final day of the pool swimming.
It was an absolutely tremendous effort from the Masters Swimming Queensland team organising and running such a slick event. We were very impressed with Greg Flanders from Brisbane Southside Masters compering on the mike for such a huge amount of time every day during our racing .... and all of the marshalling work of course, by a handful of key volunteers! Team Tuggers Vikings send their huge appreciation and thanks!
