Junior Dolphins Team for 2026 JNR Pan Pacs

DISTANCE prodigy Lincoln Wearing and backstroke trailblazer Henry Allan headline the Australian Junior Dolphins team that has been selected to compete at the 2026 World Junior Championships in Vancouver, Canada from the 17th – 20th August.

Announced on pool deck tonight at the Gold Coast Aquatic Centre at the conclusion of the Australian Age Championships, Wearing and Allan were named alongside prolific national champions Amelie Smith and Heidi Shumack.

Teen Dolphin Sienna Toohey, already a World Championship silver medallist, was also named but is a likely temporary inclusion given she has expressed her intention to race at selection trials for Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific Championships.

Held every two years between charter nations of USA, Japan, Australia and Canada, Junior Pan Pacs were last held in 2024 at the Australian Institute of Sport, a meet that saw Milla Jansen, Hannah Casey and Toohey deliver standout performances and graduate into senior Dolphins.

Tonight’s team of athletes and coaches were selected from their outstanding results at the Australian Age and Championships that featured 18 national records over eight days of racing.

Team head coach and National Youth Coach Simon Cusack said it was pleasing to see so many wonderful performances and a spread of medals across the clubs and an increased depth in events.

“We’ve had great success with our Next Gen camps. For example, we had terrific progress in the boys 400IM where we had top three go under qualifying time and that shows increasing depth and return on investment,” Cusack said.

“And while not eligible yet for the national junior team, we are really excited about the13-14 years age group. And it’s also a relief that our young swimmers have come out of the COVID years and seem unaffected.

“The success of Molly Young (seven individual gold) and Nash Hawkins (broke Zac Stubblety-Cook’s 13-years 200m breaststroke record) in this age show that we have recovered from this period.”

Cusack said Wearing, 16, in particular had impressed with four gold (1500m, 800m, 400m and 200m), two bronze and a national age record. In the 800m freestyle, Wearing lowered his own national age record to 7:56.04.

In the 1500m freestyle, Wearing’s 15:10.44 was the fourth fastest time ever for his age group, behind Kieren Perkins (14:58.08), Grant Hackett (15:03.67) and Mack Horton (15:04.87). He also won two bronze in the 200m butterfly and 400m individual medley.

A team of 32 athletes was selected; the youngest Ava Hogan, 15, from Chandler, the eldest is Tristen Waugh, 18, and the most experienced is Rocky City’s Smith.

“Another highlight has been the emergence of Chandler in the distance swimming events under Tsuyoshi Kimura. Lincoln Wearing has been a stand out performer, he has been world-class,” Cusack said.

“His coach Tsuyoshi (Kimura) has had such huge impact and you can also see that with Ava (Hogan) who has made great gains since moving into the program.”

Led by Cusack, team and coaches selected for the tour are:

SELECTED ATHLETES

SELECTED COACHES

• Chris Urqhart – Somerset GC
• Steve Miller – Newmarket Racers
• Tsuyoshi Kimura – Chandler
• Stewart Melton – Nudgee College
• Steve Goodier – Knox Pymble
• Justin Rothwell – Manly

In the all-important club point score, Carlile (2421 points)  – a name that has been at the forefront of swimming since 1946 thanks to founders Forbes and Ursula – won on point score ahead of Knox Pymble (2389) and St Peters Western (2272).

Aus Age Champs standouts include:

Amelie Smith (Rocky City): 7 Golds, 1 Silver

The girl they call “Smiley” just north of the Tropic of Capricorn, swept the pool in the 17 years age group.

Not only did Smith win gold in all of distance freestyle events (1500m, 800m & 400m), she claimed the 200m-400m IM double AND won 200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke gold. Smith also picked up silver in the 100m breaststroke. Now that is something to smile about.

Henry Allan (Bendigo East) : 5 Golds, 3 National Age Records, 3 All-Comers Record

The ridiculously talented backstroker started his campaign smashing Mitch Larkin‘s old national age record from 2011 in the 17-year boys’ 200m backstroke heats (1:57.56). Later that day in the finals, Allan went even quicker (1:57.00) and broke USA Olympian Aaron Peirsol’s all-comers old mark that had stood for almost 26 years. The boy from Bendigo also clocked an all-comers record in the 50m backstroke heats (24.84) before taking Isaac Cooper’s Australian age record to win gold (24.51). In all, Allan claimed the backstroke three-peat (50m, 100m & 200m) as well as won the 200m free and 50m free to be the most successful swimmer in his 17-year boys’ age group.

Leny Grigor (Somerset GC): 4 Golds, 3 National Age Records, 1 All-Comers Record

Leny Grigor shot out of the blocks from his first final when he smashed Mitch Larkin’s 400 IM national age record to set a new mark of 4:16.15. The Somerset GC athlete went on to set an all-comers record of 2:12.48 in the 200m breaststroke and break the 200 IM national age record (2:00.53). Grigor closed out his campaign in with a sizzling 1:01.40 in the 100m breaststroke to claim his fourth gold and third national age record.

Lucy Ma (MLC Aquatic): 7 Golds, 1 Silver 

A jack of all trades, Lucy Ma won eight medals in nine contested individual events – seven of which were gold. The MLC Aquatic athlete claimed the 14-year girls’ 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke, the 100-200m backstroke double and the 200-400m IM double. She also won silver in the 200m freestyle.

Ishaaq Ismail (Surrey Park): 4 Golds, 3 Silver, 1 Bronze, 1 National Age Record

Surrey Park’s Ishaaq Ismail quickly turned heads when he set a national age record of 24.80 for 14-year boys’ 50m butterfly. In total, Ismail won the 50m fly, 100m freestyle, 100m butterfly, 50m backstroke – and celebrated in style. He also claimed three silver: 50m free, 200m freestyle and 200m IM and a bronze on closing night in the 200m butterfly.

Molly Young (Carlile): 7 Golds

This Young gun could not be stopped sweeping up seven golds across her 13-year girls’ age group. Molly Young from Carlile tallied up a whopping 268 points for her club who finished on top of the club point score. Young swept the distance events from 1500m through to 200m freestyle and claimed the 100-200 butterfly double and the 400m individual medley.

Notable mention goes to thirteen-year-old Lewis Jewell from City of Sydney. Jewell claimed gold in all the butterfly events (50m, 100m, 200m) as well as gold in the 100m and 200m freestyle. He also picked up 50m freestyle bronze.

See full results here: https://liveresults.swimming.org.au/sal/2026Age/