THE late Norman May was the doyen of sport commentators for many years on the ABC, and nobody will forget his call of “Gold. Gold. … Gold for Australia” for the 1980 Medley relay at the Moscow Olympic games.

Baimbridge College student, Dominic Hoggard, could have had ‘Nugget’ May make that same call after he swept the pool at the State Schools Victoria swimming championships with four gold medals safely tucked away in his chosen events.

Proudly displayed in his trophy cabinet are the gold medals for the 50m freestyle, 50m backstroke, the 50m butterfly, and the 50m breaststroke events that he won convincingly.

The young swimmer swims in the Multi Class events, as he suffers from cerebral palsy, but he hasn’t allowed it to stop him from achieving his goals both in and out of the water.

The Year 10 athlete is back in training after a break following the championships and is looking toward the national titles in July on the Gold Coast.

Training is a huge part of his life as he gets older, with the pool at HILAC being home for three days a week where he trains with the Hamilton Olympic Swimming club, while he also travels to Geelong to train in the Melbourne Swimming Club programme another three days each week.

To make his achievement even sweeter, he was suffering a virus which hampered his performances, but he still thrashed his opposition in all four events.

His goals for the future are set, with his sights on appearing in the Paralympics sometime in the future.

“My dream is to try and make it to the Paralympics,” Hoggard said.

“This is the main reason why I have switched to Melbourne Swimming Club, as my coaches down there have told me they can help me achieve it.

“A big difference between the two is that here in Hamilton it is a 25m pool, whereas in Geelong it is a 50m pool.

“It certainly makes a difference when you are in the water, but I have really enjoyed the challenge.”

Swimmers in the Multi Class are restricted to a maximum of only four events, otherwise Hoggard would be entered for many more, such is his love of the sport.