LA DREAMING: Pan Pacs and Para Pan Pacs Teams Announced

The green and gold runway has hit Route 28.

With the two-year countdown to the LA Games, Swimming Australia tonight announced two teams set to represent Australia at the Pan Pacific Championships and Para Pan Pacific Championships in California.

Announced on pool deck at the conclusion of six days of racing at the Australian Swimming Trials at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre, the Dolphins are set to unleash Gen Now and Gen Next this August.

Both head coaches said their respective meets would be used as a strategic opportunity and dress rehearsal ahead of the LA Games in which the Dolphins will be the underdogs on American soil.

Head coach of the Olympic program Rohan Taylor said: “Outside of the Olympics and World Championships, the Pan Pacific Championships are one of the toughest international meets we can expose our athletes to.”

“Especially as for us – this comes on back of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, so it is a terrific test of mental and physical aptitude.

“The format is similar to the Olympic program in Irvine, California – this is a dress rehearsal of what we can expect in two years’ time at the LA Olympics.

“Unlike the Olympics and World Championships, we’re not restricted to just two swimmers advancing to semi-finals or finals – this gives us greater flexibility to provide deeper exposure for new talent like new Dolphins Matt Galea and Molly Walker.”

The 44-strong team is bookended by 17-year-old Sienna Toohey as the youngest and a fully-fit Sam Williamson, the eldest at 28 and perhaps the most grateful having to learn to walk, let alone swim again after a horrific knee injury.

Standout performances at SOPAC that firmed selection this week included:

• Sam Short, who put multiple world records on notice, swept the 200m, 400m, 800m and 1500m national titles – the first to do so since Grant Hackett in 2005. Short also broke his own 800m free Commonwealth record from 2023 in the process.
• Lani Pallister climbed the world rankings when she contested everything from the 100m to 1500m freestyle. Pallister claimed the 400m, 800m and 1500m national title and broke the 1:54 barrier in the 200m free to win silver behind Mollie O’Callaghan – the pair now boast the top two fastest times in the world this season.
• An unwell but relentless Kaylee McKeown (pictured left) claimed the backstroke trifecta of 50m, 100m and 200m. Hot on her tail throughout the meet was Iona Anderson who piped McKeown for lane four in the 100m backstroke final and set a PB in the 200m backstroke, winning silver in both behind the G.O.A.T.

For Head coach of the Paralympic program Mel Tantrum, a measure of a successful Para Pan Pac campaign would be: “Our aim is to go quicker every time we race – heats to finals. This meet will allow us to identify gaps in our performance strategy and refine and finetune our processes.”

“But this meet is also important for what we do outside of the water. Rookie swimmers will be exposed to our Australian Dolphins’ team culture and leadership as well as US specific competition demands.

“Relays will be a focus for us. We are implementing our LA Games strategy at Para Pan Pacs by targeting entries in the 20pt, 34pt and S14 relays – relays will be an important metric for us not just for LA, but in the run in to Brisbane 2032.

“Our team is a mixture of experienced and in-form campaigners like Lakeisha Patterson, Brenden Hall, Col Pearse and Tim Hodge and to help with the transition for the new Dolphins coming through to major competition.”

Beau Matthews and Liam Togher, both 17, will make their Dolphins debut in Glasgow before heading to Walnut, California.

North Queensland’s Grant ‘Scooter’ Patterson is the oldest member of the Para Pan Pacific team at 37, followed by his close friend and competitor Ahmed Kelly, 34.

Para highlights from the past six-days included:

• Rookie Montana Atkinson, 18, had a gold-medal worthy reaction to her qualifying time in the women’s 100m butterfly multi-class which saw fellow S14 athlete from USC Spartans Kael Thompson also secure her first Dolphins cap. All up, six Dolphins will make their debut at Para Pan Pacs in the team of 37.
• Five-time Paralympian Brenden Hall (pictured right) banked on his over a decade-long experience to clinch another Dolphins’ berth. The 33-year-old and father of two was pushed by Harrison Vig, 23, in a thrilling men’s 400m freestyle multi-class final that saw Hall get the touch over Vig by 0.28 of a second.
• A resurgent Maddie McTernan and Keira Stephens made their first Dolphins team since the Paris Paralympics. Both moved to train at Griffith University this year, McTernan under Rick Pendleton and Stephens under Mel Marshall. On the final day McTernan broke her own S14 women’s 100m freestyle Australian record.

Full team lists below:

2026 Pan Pacific Championships Athletes

2026 Para Pan Pacific Championships Athletes

*Rookie **Rookie going into Comm Games (month before Pan Pacs)