Chester-le-Street's Tara Johnson, holder of two national age group titles, defends her junior women's 3k national outdoor long distance title at the Holme Pierrepont National Water Sports Centre, Nottingham, tomorrow, writes ERIC WILKINSON.

The junior men and women's championships are swum together and last year, despite being at the bottom of the age group, Tara finished third overall, just two seconds behind her club mate David Proud, the junior men's runner-up, who is also competing again.

Also entered are four members of the Newburn club, Rebecca Rides, Charlotte Copesteke and Jennifer Bamburgh swim in the junior women's race and Matthew Hadden is in the junior men's event.

As a result of their placings in the recent regional final at Newton Aycliffe, three teams from this area have qualified for the finals of the English Schools seventh annual Bazuka National Primary medley and freestyle team championships at the Ponds Forge international pool, Sheffield, tomorrow.

Raventhorpe Preparatory School, Darlington, are in the small schools mixed medley and freestyle relay races. Last year, also at Sheffield, it finished fifth in the freestyle and eighth in the medley. It will be represented by Emily Jane Saxby, Adam Hillary, Stephen and Matthew Lister.

The Heighington C of E Primary School team of Naomi Kellett, Laura Maddison, Tara Cooper, Amy McDonald and Alexandra Newbould will compete in the large schools girls medley and freestyle races.

St Wilfrid's RC Primary, Bishop Auckland, are in the final of the large schools medley and freestyle events through the efforts of Mark Gabriele, Simon Callan, Joseph Reed, Luca and Joseph Rea-Dobson.

Newcastle will defend the title it has won for the past two years when the grand finals of the Durham and District Junior Swimming League divisions one, two and three are staged at Felling on Sunday with all the teams starting level on points.

Newcastle, along with former champions Darlington and Wear Valley, plus Tynemouth, Chester-le-Street and Stokesley, will fight for the league title in division one with the winners going forward to represent the league in the Northern semi-final of the National Junior League champions competition.

The main interest in divisions two and three will centre on who is to gain promotion. Division two finalists are South Tyneside, Stockton, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, Sunderland and Durham, while Consett, Newburn, Castle Morpeth, Billingham, Ashington and Hebburn Metro will feature in the division three final.