Tourism Tropical North Queensland (TTNQ) Director of Business and Tourism Events Rosie Douglas said the seven swimmers from the Chuo University Swimming Team included an Olympic qualifying swimmer, two international swimmers and national Japanese swimmers.
“The squad’s coach Toru Moriya was introduced to TTNQ Sales and Marketing Manager for Japan Sam Sakamoto by Tokai University head coach Tsuyoshi Kato who brought a team to train in Cairns in 2016 in the lead-up to the Rio Olympics,” she said.
“Rie Kaneto, who won the female 200m breaststroke gold medal at Rio, trained in Cairns as part of that team. Both teams chose Cairns as a training destination for the widely-documented benefit of heat training in our tropical climate.
“The Chuo University squad, which includes individual medley, butterfly and breaststroke swimmers, is accompanied by two coaches and a masseuse and they will be swimming 7-9km most mornings and afternoons.
“After arriving on March 2 and completing an easy training session of 6km at Tobruk Memorial Pool the squad visited the Great Barrier Reef with Sunlover Cruises.
“Their training regime includes sessions at World Gym Cairns and Edge Hill Japanese restaurant Haruka will provide their nutritionally-managed meals.”
“The squad will have rest days which they will use to explore Tropical North Queensland and have asked if they can cuddle a koala and try adrenalin activities such as sky diving before they leave on March 24.
Their coach, Mr Toru, will give three special training sessions to 30 young Cairns swimmers which is an incredible opportunity for some of the city’s aspiring champions.
“TTNQ has been working with Cairns Regional Council to position our destination as a sports training hub and it is great to see teams of this calibre using our facilities in a bid to acclimatise to training in warmer conditions.”
Cairns Mayor Bob Manning said the upgrading of the Tobruk Memorial Pool complex had increased the city’s ability to host elite squads.
“The FINA-accredited main pool is suitable for top-level competitive swimming and is an ideal venue for international training camps,” Cr Manning said.
“With our conveniently located international airport, quality accommodation, tropical climate and excellent sporting infrastructure, Cairns is quickly becoming a go-to destination for sports tourism.”
Mr Toru said the international-standard Tobruk Pool was highly acclaimed by his swimmers and the staff were very accommodating by working in with their schedule and providing equipment for training.
ENDS
For more information, contact:
Communications Consultant Liz Inglis
M: 0419 643 494 | E: [email protected]