Fourteen-year-old Grace Khelan has added a second gold medal to her growing international résumé, winning the women’s 100 metres freestyle in 58.62 seconds at the New Zealand Age Group Swimming Championships in Hastings. The victory came days after she secured gold in the 50m freestyle, cementing her status as Fiji’s leading sprint prospect at these age-group meets and marking the latest development in a breakout season for the teenager.
Khelan’s double at Hastings follows an impressive start to overseas competition this year. Fiji Aquatics Performance Coach Sharon Smith said Khelan only began competing internationally in 2026 and has shown “exceptional promise” since she was under 12. At her first international meet in Dunedin last month, Khelan claimed three gold medals, and in Hastings she faced and beat many of New Zealand’s top age-group swimmers, underlining her ability to perform against strong regional opposition.
The 58.62 clocking in the 100m is also significant for team selections: Smith confirmed Khelan has already achieved several of the qualifying times required for next month’s Oceania Championships, which will be staged in Suva. With the Oceania meet on home soil, Khelan’s qualifications present a timely opportunity for her to race at a major regional championship in front of a Fijian audience and to gain further experience against senior-level competition.
Head coach Esther Malani has been credited by Smith with guiding Khelan’s steady development through careful, patient coaching. Fiji Aquatics officials say the emphasis on overseas exposure — entering Khelan in meets in Dunedin and Hastings — has been key to her recent improvements and to her breaking of multiple age-group records back home. Khelan is currently ranked among the top two swimmers in several events in Fiji, a rapid rise for a swimmer who has only just started to test herself internationally.
Looking further ahead, Khelan is targeting selection for the Junior Pan Pacific Championships and the Youth Olympic Games later this year, with plans already being made for competitions in Tahiti next year and the Commonwealth Youth Games. Success at the Oceania Championships in Suva would strengthen her case for those events and add valuable championship experience as she transitions through the junior ranks.
Her father, Michael Khelan, expressed pride at his daughter’s results and gratitude for the support around her, saying the family’s sacrifices were beginning to pay off and urging Grace to remain humble. For Fiji swimming, Khelan’s latest gold in Hastings represents more than one teenager’s triumph: it is the continuation of a deliberate development pathway producing youth talent capable of challenging regional powerhouses and raising the profile of the sport ahead of a busy international calendar.
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