More than 200 swimmers will take part in the inaugural Lightning Swim Club open swim meet at the Northern Beaches Leisure Centre this Saturday.
Swimmers aged from five to 46 years old will compete with qualifying for state and national events up for grabs.
Townsville City Council is one of the sponsors of the event and has committed to providing $7,296 over three years to help support the swim meet through the Community Organisation Partnership Program to help grow the opportunities to participate in sport and support sporting excellence.
The grant approval was noted at March’s Ordinary Council Meeting.
Lightning Swim Club President Deb Smith thanked Council for the support and said it would go a long way to ensuring the event became an established fixture on the North Queensland swimming calendar.
“Our club was only formed in September 2022 and the commitment from Council for funding over the next three years really helps us to organise events like this,” Dr Smith said.
“The meet has 227 competitors signed up, with participants travelling from across regional Queensland including Ayr, Charters Towers, Ingham, Mackay and Collinsville.”
“Events like this are important for putting swimmers in a competitive environment as well as giving them an opportunity to get qualifying times for state and national swim meets.
“Receiving the support and being able to host events like this help to enhance the liveability of Townsville and attract more people to the region.”
The grant was one of three noted at March’s meeting.
The Rollingstone and District Community Association was also successful in securing $7,037 in funding over three years to publish their free monthly newsletter, the Rollingstone Rag, to help create an engaged community that enables residents to have a sense of belonging.
The Royal Australian Institute of Architects received $4,991 to help with hosting the 2024 North Queensland Architecture Awards Event, a celebration of architectural excellence bringing professionals from across Queensland to Townsville. The awards help to support the growth and innovation of the industry in North Queensland.
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