Relay swim team makes qualifying mark for Beijing Olympics
Thursday 3 July 2008, 6:44PM
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The New Zealand Olympic Committee has added the men’s relay swim team for the Beijing Olympic Games 2008.
The team of Cameron Gibson (North Shore), William Benson (North Shore), Mark Herring (West Auckland Aquatics) and Orinoco Faamausili-Banse (Laser Mt Eden) today officially qualified for the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay.
They have been confirmed by the world body FINA as one of the four fastest counties to fill the remaining four places in the 16-strong relay for Beijing when the qualifying period finished yesterday.
The 12 fastest nations from the world championships automatically qualified for Beijing with the four fastest non-qualifiers until June 30 making up the remaining places.
The New Zealand quartet produced a New Zealand record of 3:17.45 at the Olympic trials with Russia, Netherlands and China going faster from the non-qualified nations. The kiwis were nearly one second faster than the next fastest Croatia to be 16th overall. The 12 countries automatically through to Beijing are world champions USA, Italy, France, South Africa, Australia, Sweden, Canada, Brazil, Great Britain, Germany, Switzerland and Japan.
This brings the New Zealand swim team to 15 with seven swimmers in individual events along with the women’s 4x200m freestyle relay and men’s 4x100m freestyle and medley relays.