JX Program kicks off with open water clinic in Western Australia
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The Pho3nix Junior Excellence (JX) Program kicked off 2024 with its first open water clinic, held in regional Western Australia alongside the Open Water Swimming Festival in Busselton.
Twenty-seven swimmers came down not only from the Busselton region but also from Perth City and Esperance to learn tips, techniques and tactics to tackle the unique challenges of open water swimming.
After a Q&A session with open water athletes Alex McKenzie Hicks, Kate Wallington (fresh from her 5K win in Sorrento at Round 6 of the Open Water Series two weeks ago), Lucy Skea, Meg Hopkins and Suzie Ryan, the young athletes took on practical exercises at the Busselton Pier with specialist open water facilitator Jason Evans.
Swimmers learned how to spot, turn, and navigate congested fields then formed teams to compete in a relay swim with a beach sprint finish. With some of them experiencing open water swimming for the first time, many afterwards asked how to get into it more meaningfully.
The Pho3nix Foundation’s work through the JX Program is part of its commitment to supporting programs which encourage participation in sport among the youth. Pho3nix JX is seen to play a key role in developing swimmers on the green and gold runway to the 2026 Commonwealth Games Victoria and the 2032 Olympic Games Brisbane.
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