Our Story

Southland Swim School and Swim Academy was founded in December 2003 by owner and operator Jeremy Duncan. Before a rebrand in 2022, it was known as H2O Dreams.

When I moved to Southland in 2003 from Christchurch, I had already embarked on my learn-to-swim and coaching journey starting as a 20 year old university student. Following on from finishing my swimming career where i represented New Zealand and broke New Zealand records as an age grouper and open level athlete.

During my time at Aquagym in Christchurch, I placed swimmers on age group national teams and coached swimmers to national titles and new zealand age group records in both New Zealand and Australia. I also coached two para-Olympians, helping them secure spots on the Sydney 2000 Olympic team.

Upon my arrival in Southland, my vision was to build a performance based programme that provided a pathway from infants to internationals  and taught the right skills at the right time by giving every athlete the opportunity to be the best swimmer they could be.

These programs soon proved successful, consistently placing multiple swimmers on national teams. such as the 2010 Commonwealth Games 2010, 2010 Oceania Champs,  2011 World Champs, and the highlight being placing and watching Southland’s very first home grown olympian Natalie Wiegersma compete with distinction at the 2012 London Olympics in the 200 and 400 individual medley.

I’ve also had the honor of being selected as a national coach ( in brief ) for several prestigious events:

– 2006 World Junior Championships

– 2009 Oceania Championships
– 2010 Commonwealth Games
– 2010 Pan Pacific Championships
– 2011 World Championships
– 2012 London Olympic Games

I hold the highest coaching qualification in Australasia, a Gold License, and am one of only six active coaches in New Zealand with Olympic experience.

Over the past 21 years, our business has thrived, teaching thousands of Southlanders to swim well.

Southland Swim School and Swim Academy remains committed to equipping every child and athlete with the skills to excel in swimming. All our coaches and teachers are united and in this vision, driven by our passion for the sport and to see young people excel.