The Katherine Turtles Swimming Club 40th Birthday Carnival took place on Saturday and Sunday at the Katherine pool, with more than 170 swimmers travelling from across the Territory to take part in the meet.

The Turtles were well-represented among the clubs from Darwin, Palmerston, Nhulunbuy and Alice Springs, with plenty of swimmers beating their personal best times, and Katherine's Ellamae Tisbe being named the 14 Years Female Champion.

Turtles Head Coach Pru Ducey said she was incredibly proud of all the club members.

"I'm absolutely really proud of them, they worked so hard and swam so well," she said.

"It's really nice to see them rewarded for the effort and commitment they put into training."

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Ms Ducey, who has been involved in the club for around 20 years, said the carnival commemorated 40 years since the first ever swimming carnival at the Katherine pool.

"The pool opened its doors in October 1981 and in October 1982 it has its first birthday carnival," she said.

However, Ms Ducey said the Katherine Swimming Club existed even before the pool.

"Before that, the swimmers used to swim in someone's backyard pool and one of the hotel pools."

She said the club has connected generations of Katherine swimmers, with some parents who swam with the Turtles now supporting their kids who have joined the club.

A lot has changed since the early days of the Katherine Swimming Club, with one tradition being shafted for something more modern for this year's carnival.

"Historically there's been what's called a 'march-past' where each team will organise something to do while they're walking around the pool," Ms Ducey said.

"This year we decided to change it to a dance off, so they can do a dance with their whole team and there will be judges to decide the best one. We decided it was maybe a little bit more modern than a march-past."

She said the Alice Springs Swimming Club were crowned winners of the dance off, with the new tradition likely to continue into the future.

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