Two of the best age-group swimmers in the country

Bobbi and Jacques Gichard have won so many swimming medals they don't know where to put them. Bobby explains there storage dilemma.

"Mum and Dad are really proud of us so they like to display our medals in the lounge room. We have so many now they only put the important ones out like national championships. It's a bit embarrassing really."

Where are the other medals?

"In the attic," Bobby says.

The Hastings brother and sister combination are two of the best age-group swimmers in the country.

Bobbi burst onto the since in 2012 when she won a Asics Sports Award for the Central region. As a 12 year old she broke the New Zealand 50m and 200m age-group short course records, improving her mark in the 50m mark three times.

To put her prowess in perspective, Bobbi Gichard - pound for pound, weight for weight - was swimming faster than New Zealand Olympian backstroker Gareth Keane.

Bobbi might not be far from the Olympics. Recently the Napier Girls' High School student won the 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke titles at the New Zealand Open Championships in Auckland.

For the 100m backstroke, Bobbi is a second and a half away from the Olympic qualifying standard.

Are the Olympic Games a goal in 2016?

"Absolutely. It will be tough. I am really working on faster turns in the water to reduce my time, but I am training nine times a week in order to do that."

Bobbi has already been to the Junior Olympics. In Nanjing, China she won a bronze medal in the 100m backstroke. Bobbi says that taste of Olympic success has only strengthened her desire for higher honours.

"That was an awesome experience. New Zealand sent over a big team so I go to mix with hockey players and all sorts of other athletes."

Bobbi will soon be mixing with Russians. In July she will compete at the FINA World Championships in Kazan. The Year 11 will complete her studies via correspondence as she will be heading to Russia weeks in advance to train.

Bobbi's brother, Jacques is Year 13 and attends Lindisfarne College in Hastings. He is a more than useful swimmer in his own right.

In 2014, he came first in the 100m and 200m breaststroke at the National Age Group championships.

That earned him a place in the New Zealand team to compete at the Victoria International Age Group Championships in Melbourne. Competing against some of the Australian Olympians, Jacques placed second in the 100m breastroke and was a close fourth in the 200m breastroke.   

At the Open Nationals recently, Jacques won the 50m and 100m breastroke finals and completed personal best times.

Jacques has been selected by New Zealand Swimming to attend a breaststroke swimming camp in Cairns, Australia in June.  Bobbi desires even more travel than just a trip across the Tasman though.

"To this day I am under a second away from qualifying for the Junior Commonwealth Games in Samoa. I intend to keep on working hard and hope to represent New Zealand at the highest level." 

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