Nine young swimmers are set to represent New Zealand at the 2025 World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships in Otopeni, Romania, from 19 to 24 August.

Four of them, along with their head coach, have strong ties to the Hibiscus Coast.

• Zoe Pedersen
• Milan Glintmeyer
• Igor Russanov
• James Leigh

The NZ team is led by Head Coach John Gatfield, supported by coach Aidan Withington, and team manager Amanda White.

New Zealand has won medals at every Junior World Championships since the event began in 2006, and the squad will be aiming to keep that streak alive.

For Coasties, it’s a proud moment to see local swimmers competing on the world stage, showing that talent nurtured here can shine anywhere.

Swimming NZ will share updates through its website and social media. Go team!

Know something local worth sharing?

Send it to [email protected] — we’ll help spread the word.