Around 190 swimmers duked it out on the first day of December at the Warren Swimming Carnival, the highest turnout since the pandemic.

Junior swimmers aged five to 17 came from areas including Nyngan, Coonamble, Cobar and Gilgandra to compete in the Warren Memorial Swimming Pool.

Recent rains ahead of the Sunday made for boggy water, although Warren Amateur Swimming Club president Jaimie Haywood said that didn't stop children enjoying the pool.

"The numbers were brilliant," she said.

"I think we got about 180 before COVID hit. And after that, 120 has been our average for about the last probably five years.

"Gilgandra normally hosts a carnival the day before us, so a lot of the Coonamble and Gilgandra kids go there on the Saturday rather than come to us on the Sunday, but they have it on a different weekend this year. I reckon that's a lot of the reason we got more this year, along with the fact that we've got refurbished, new amenities.

"It was just a good day."

Members of the Coonamble Swimming Club pose for a photo. IMAGE: Facebook/ Coonamble Swimming Club

The swimmers competed across freestyle, breaststroke, butterfly and backstroke events.

They took advantage of the new kiosk, canteen and changerooms which finished construction in September 2024.

Numbers have also been up for at least one of the clubs this year.

The Coonamble Swimming Club had at least 27 swimmers at the carnival.

“The club’s doing really well. We’ve got lots of swimmers,” Coonamble club president Mr Williams said.

“From what we were getting a couple of years ago - the numbers were dwindling - we’re now getting 40 or 50 kids back in the pool.”