Counties March 2015

Worcester’s swimmers enjoyed another highly successful County Championships this year, winning 120 medals in total, including 12 in the most prestigious Open/Championship events.

With four of the Club’s senior swimmers who won titles last year not competing… having either moved on to University, missing Counties to focus on Nationals or recovering from injury… there were some big shoes to fill but the new looking team stepped up brilliantly.

James Marsh retained his 200m Breastsroke crown with a superb Personal Best of 2.24.66… before also collecting Silver in the 50m & 100m Breast, and Bronze in the 100m Individual Medley.

Excitingly, though, there were first ever Senior titles for Anthony Redfern who won the blue ribbon 50m & 100m Freestyle events in spectacular style, and Lucy Clayton who produced a stunning PB of 34.65 to win the 50m Breaststroke having been just touched out in the 100m race where she was the leading Junior (15/u).

There were also Championship bronze medals for bothers Daniel and Mike Adair in the 200m Butterfly and Backstroke respectively

However, it was the performances of the Junior swimmers that really sparkled this year, with Sam Hall in particular catching the eye – Sam won 14 medals (13 of them Gold!) in the 14/u Age Group… plus 3 Junior titles in the 100m Breaststroke and both the 100m and 200m Butterfly.

He is improving rapidly at the moment and will be one of the Worcester swimmers chasing in several events one of the invitations extended to the top 24 swimmers in the country to compete at National Championships this Summer.

Like Sam, team mate Ben Holmes also stepped up a level this year taking his first Junior title in the 100m Freestyle, reward for all his hard work, whilst two other swimmers also grabbed a hatful of medals: 12/u’s Olivia Fletcher and Matthew Richards, with 16 & 18 respectively.

Olivia enjoyed the slightly greater success with Gold in 8 events including the 100m & 200m IM; 50m, 100m & 200m Freestyle; 50m & 100m Butterfly; and the 200m Backstroke… though Matthew’s Gold in the 400m Individual Medley (to go with his two other Golds in the 50m & 100m Butterfly) was one of the most impressive swims of the 3 weekends.

Overall, though, it was a remarkable 26 Worcester swimmer who won medals, testimony to the strength in depth at the Club:

Medal winners in the age group events included Milo Reed (9’s 50m Breastsroke Silver), Max Rice (10’s 400m Freestyle Gold, 50m Breastsroke & 100m Freestyle Silver, 50m Freestyle Bronze), Daniel Kearley (10’s 400m IM Silver & 400m Freestyle Bronze), Aaron Cook (12’s 50m Butterfly, 100m Butterfly, 200m Breastsroke & 200m IM Bronze), Kai Gooden-Morris (13’s 800m Freestyle Gold), William Hadley (15/16 50m Breastsroke & 100m Freestyle Silver, 100m IM & 100m Butterfly Bronze), Oscar van Vuren (15/16 200m Freestyle Bronze, 800m Freestyle Silver), Aimee Monks (10’s 50m Butterfly Bronze), Becky Yates (10’s 100m Breastsroke Bronze), Charlotte Hall (13’s 50m Butterfly, 100m Butterfly & 400 IM Bronze), Sophie Davis (13’s 200m Breastsroke Silver, 100m Breastsroke & 400m IM Bronze), Yasemin Tayar (14’s 50m & 100m Butterfly Silver, 200m Butterfly Bronze), Emily Stancer (14’s 100m Freestyle Gold, 50m Freestyle Gold), Charlotte Yates (14’s 50m, 100m & 200m Breastsroke Bronze), Hattie Goff (14’s 50m Backstroke Gold), Ellie McGinnes (14’s 200m Backstroke Bronze) and Samantha Gearey (15/16 200m Backstroke and 800m Freestyle Silver).