Star Casey Tiger Shark Matthew Charlesworth enjoyed a stellar two weekends in the pool at this month’s Victorian Short Course Age Championships.By Marc McGowan
AGE is no barrier for Narre Warren swimming prospect Matthew Charlesworth.
The Casey Tiger Sharks star only turned 11 on Saturday, but leaves most of his rivals – who are often almost 12 months his senior – in his wake.
Charlesworth, who trains five times a week, began this month’s Victorian Short Course Age Championships as a 10-year-old and claimed a silver and two bronze medals on day one.
When the championships continued last weekend, the grade five Narre Warren North Primary School student picked up where he left off and added another silver and bronze to his burgeoning collection.
The impressive aspect of Charlesworth’s feats is the fact he was competing in the 11 and under category and will still qualify for the same age group next year.
Charlesworth has dreams of competing at the Olympic Games for Australia and is well-known for his determination in the pool.
“I really love the racing and I like seeing what I get after all the hard work I’ve done,” the youngster said.
And he has a huge fan in Tiger Sharks head coach Ben Hiddlestone, who envisions a bright future for his charge.
“Matt is very athletic and powers through the water … there is no wasted movement – he has a good sense of efficiency and power,” the coach said.
“He’s starting to train with the older kids and can now appreciate the professionalism of it while still having fun.
“When he trains with kids his own age – who are not at the same level of training quality – he gets a little impatient now!”
Charlesworth is also a talented Australian Rules footballer for the Narre North Foxes and played in the club’s under-11 premier division grand final defeat last month.
But swimming is his preference, so his mother Kim looks set to have much to be proud of over the next few years.
“He just keeps on surprising us – he’s amazing, especially when he got a hamstring injury the day before (the start of the championships),” she said.
“We were all ready to fill out the withdrawal forms for him, but he’s amazing and still went out and got four PBs (personal best) the next day.
“We do worry about burnout and that sort of thing because he is so young.
“But we asked him whether he wants to be an 11-year-old champion or an 18-year-old champion and he just said to us that he wants to be both!”
Charlesworth also achieved success in June, when he won a silver medal in the 11 and under 50m backstroke at the Australian Primary Schools Championships, among three other top-10 finishes.
