East Region Youth Championships

 It was a hard weekend of racing for our youth swimmers at the east region championships at the long course pool in Luton. The club managed to win two silver medals and seven bronze medals over the weekend as well as setting one national qualifying time and breaking two junior county long course records. The standard of racing at this competition is extremely high with some of the best swimmers in the country competing across many different strokes and distances. I was extremely pleased with the number of finals that the team made, 27 in total, but converting finals into medals proved extremely tough with many medal places being lost in the last ten metres of the race. However, there was an excellent team atmosphere on poolside and the swimmers showed that the club is getting stronger each year despite the many challenges that face us. When you look at the clubs who finished above us in the medal table ten of them have full time coaches and some of them more than one, over 18 hours of water time, funding from local councils or universities and have over 150 registered competitive members compared with our 95. I think bearing all that in mind we are a club that is punching above its weight and we can hold our heads up high in any forum. The medal winners, county record breakers and the national qualifier are all listed below:

MEDALS

Hayley  Alcock                   Silver  50 Breast                Bronze 200IM & 100 Fly

Rhiannon McCaffray                                                       Bronze  400IM

Brandon Nabarro             Silver 100 Breast               Bronze 200 Breast & 200IM

Nicola    Pasquire                                                              Bronze 400 Free

Nick Stalley                                                                         Bronze 50 Breast

Junior Long Course County Records

Nick Stalley         50 Breast                             Oliver Maltby 50 Fly

National Qualifier

Brandon Nabarro   100 Breast

Record Presentations

Modernian Swimmers crowned top of the Counties Medal table

Modernian swimmers excelled themselves at this year’s Bedfordshire ASA Country Championships, bagging a total of 228 medals and taking them to the top of the county medal table. Not content with 96 gold, 80 silver and 53 bronze medals, the Club also saw Oliver Maltby (who won 24 gold medals) break the Junior and Senior County Records in 50m and 100m Back and the Junior record for 50m and 100 Fly. Meanwhile Hayley Alcock broke the Senior County Records in 50m Breast, 100m Fly and 200m IM.

Both the Junior and Senior swimmers excelled themselves in the pool, setting new PBs, National, Regional and County times and with many swimmers also being crowned County Champions across a number of events. Junior County Champions went to Oliver Maltby, Rhiannon McCaffray, Patrick Keaveney (who at only 12 came home with 17 gold medals and won the Junior title for 400IM and 1500 Free), Nick Stalley and Nicola Pasquire (who broke the 60 second barrier for 100m Free).  Senior County Champions went to Oliver Maltby, Hayley Alcock, Nicola Pasquire and Connor Delaney.

Several swimmers also qualified for Regionals and for some, including Luca Hargrave, James Maltby, Kerry Delaney and Llywelyn Wake, it was the first time.

Age group wins went to Patrick Keaveney, Joe Munno, Oliver Maltby, Nicola Pasquire, Aiyana Lawson, Kaelah Lawson, Brennan Connelly, Connor Delaney, Hayley Alcock, Oliver Robinson, Orla Keaveney, Tia Wilson, Molly Bow, Hannah Hawkins, Nick Stalley, Llywelyn Wake, William Maltby and Rhiannon McCaffray.

Four of our relay teams also won gold medals in the Boys 10&U 4x50m Free & Medley team, Girls 10&U 4x50m Free and Boys 11-14 4x50m Free