|
Here are all the news reports from 2008
Stafford Apex Long Distance Meet - 6th/7th December 2008
Story by Louise Barnes
The Stafford Apex Open meeting started on Saturday with warm up at 8 am for the 1500 meter event. There were three Northgate competitors in the race – Emily Rutter and Robbie Ross both swimming PB’s, and Jacob Laybourne who not only finished first in a PB time but also broke the Midland District record for the distance. This time was also a National Qualifying Time (NQT).
Event 2 in session 2 saw Chrissie Jones and Emily Dewfield in the first heat of the Girls 10 and over 200 butterfly. Both girls swam well – both achieving good PB times. Emily Dewfield had her second swim of the day in the Girls 10/11 years 200 freestyle where she achieved another good PB. Georgina Jones swam a 6 second PB in the Girls 12 and over 400 freestyle.
The afternoon session kicked of with Chrissie swimming in the Girls 10 years and over 400 IM where she had another good PB. Aaran Darley then swam in the 200 backstroke and smashed both his PB and achieved a Midland District Qualifying Time (MDQT).
Next to swim was Jess Jones in the Girls 200 Freestyle, then Emily Dewfield and Chrissie in the 400 freestyle, where Emily knocked a well deserved chunk off her PB and finished in 4th place.
Sunday started with the 800 meter freestyle which was a mixed age boys and girls event, with five Northgate swimmers competing. First was Emily Rutter with a good PB, followed by Emily Dewfield and Aaran who both also achieved good PB times, as did Robbie in his swim a couple of heats later. Last to swim for Northgate was Jacob who got a PB time and a first place and also another Midland District record – not to mention another NQT!
Jacob swam again in the next race, the 200 butterfly in a new PB time and his third Midland District record of the weekend - what an achievement. Jacob followed this by a first place and another good PB time in the 400 freestyle.
Aaran swam well in the 200 free to beat his PB and get a MDQT. Emily Dewfield swam a good race in the last event in session 5 which was the Girls 10/11 years 200 IM.
Session 6 was the final one of the weekend. Chrissie swam in the second event, the Girls 10/11 years 200 backstroke, smashing her PB by some 25 seconds and achieving a county time. Jess, Georgina and Jo Pace swam next in the Girls 200 breaststroke. All three girls swam well with Georgina improving her PB.
Jacob was in the pool next in the 200 freestyle, and again swam a PB time and achieved a third place in this race. Aaran competed in the next race, the Boys 400 freestyle and again swam a good PB time and also a MDQT.
In the last race of the weekend Jess swam a four second PB in the Girls 200 IM.
This was a quality meeting with swimmers from all over the country taking part. Our swimmers performed really well and all deserve a pat on the back.
Well done!!!
Nuneaton & Bedworth Open - 6th/7th December 2008
Story by Vicky Brown
Jade Evans and Philippa Brown were representing Northgate this weekend at the Nuneaton and Bedworth Open Meet. Their first event was the 400m freestyle where Jade swam her way to a silver medal, narrowly missing out on a pb. and Philippa managed a 2 second pb.
After a little retail therapy they were back again in the 200m freestyle where once again Jade narrowly missed out on her pb while Philippa achieved another 2 second pb, which earned her the bronze medal .
On day two Philippa had a huge 10 second pb in the 200m backstroke and Jade also managed a pb this time which put her in 4th place. The final event was the 200m breaststroke where they both pb'd. Philippa once again knocked 9 seconds off her previous time.
Jade obtained three Midland times this weekend and Philippa is getting very close.
Well done to both of you.
Coventry Open Gala - 29th November 2008
Story by Richard Darley
Jack sanders won gold in the 200m breaststroke, narrowly missing out on a Midlands time which he will get soon.
Jo Pace won bronze in the 200m breaststroke and 4th in the 100m breaststroke just missing PB’s in both.
Emily Jane Davies swam very well just missing out on 2 PB’s in the 50m and 100m free.
Jacob Laybourne achieved a NATIONAL TIME and silver medal in the 200m fly. This was a brilliant swim considering he was feeling unwell.
Jade Evans won gold in the 200m fly.
Aaran Darley picked up a clutch of gold medals in the 50m and 200m freestyle and 100m and 200m backstroke. He also had silver in the 100m free and 200m IM. Aaran’s 200m backstroke was a Midland’s time and his 50m and 100m freestyle times were also PB’s. On the BAGCAT’s points system Aaran won top boy for his age group.
All the swimmers did brilliantly and showed that Northgate can compete well against the big clubs at level 1 meets.
Northgate Girl WINS GOLD at NATIONAL event!!
Story by Sally Themans
The qualifying heats for the Midlands ISA (Independent Schools Association) Team were held at Walsall and two Northgate swimmers, Sophie Blakstad and Emma Hudson, representing St Dominic's School in Brewood, both won their individual events - back stroke and butterfly respectively - winning them selection representing the Midlands in the ISA national finals in Coventry which were held on 22nd November.
This was both girls' first experience of a 50m pool, however they did not seem daunted - even though the event was an impressive standard with teams representing the North, the South West, the Midlands, the East, London West, London North and London East, all boasting impressive swimmers who the girls recognized from their Aquazone magazines!
In the individual events the two Northgate girls excelled, with Sophie winning gold in the 50m backstroke individual event and Emma coming 4th in the 50m butterfly. This was a fantastic achievement for Sophie putting her as top backstroker in a National event.
In the girls 4x50m Medley relay event, Emma swam butterfly and Sophie the backstroke leg and they secured bronze position. At the end of the day - a full 82 races - it was victory for the Midlands, winning both the boys and girls trophies. It is a great accolade that Northgate swimmers were able to play a key part in their team winning the title of National Champions of the ISA.
Boldmere Open Gala - Stechford - 22nd/23rd November 2008
Story by Dave Ballinger
There's never a dull moment for Northgate's swimmers and supporters.
Take day one of the Boldmere Open at Stechford Cascasdes which saw Northgate competing with double Paralympic gold medal winner Eleanor Simmonds!
And one Northgate swimmer can now claim she set the pace for Beijing 2008 star Eleanor to set a new British record. Rebecca Hawthorn was drawn in the same heat of the 200m freestyle as Eleanor and won it in a new pb of 2:41.89 - ahead of Eleanor who smashed the British record in her discipline of the same event in the process. It would also have been a world record for Eleanor if competition rules had allowed.
Earlier in the day Emily Rutter also had the honour of swimming in the same heat as Eleanor - this time in the 400m freestyle where the Paralympian swam another pb with the help of some Northgate pace-setting.
The day itself saw Northgate swimmers pick up a number of the trophies on offer, while others recorded a string of pbs and some county qualifying times into the bargain.
Chrissie Jones broke the 40 second barrier in the 50m breaststroke for the first time to win the event in the 10/11-year-old age group - her reward a packet of Chewits from her mum to go with the first-place trophy.
An impressive Jade Evans took home two second place trophies for her swims in the 400m freestyle and 200m backstroke. Jack Sanders also took home two trophies to go with his string of pbs with second place in the 200m breaststroke and third in the 50m breaststroke.
Sister Connie made sure the family will soon need a bigger trophy cabinet when she picked up the third place trophies in the 9-year-olds 400m freestyle and 50m breaststroke. She also took home certificates for top six placings in three other events.
In the same age group Jenny Ballinger picked up the trophy for third place in the 200m backstroke along with five certificates for top six places, while Maddie Berrow also finished in the top six in the 50m fly to also take home a certificate.
Aaran Darley arrived in the afternoon to make his mark by claiming second place with a storming swim in the 50m backstroke for 10/11-year-olds. He made a late splash when he was third in the final event of the day, the 100m backstroke.
There were also strong swims and pbs on the day for Kim Donaldson, Sam Jones, Emily Dewfield, Jess Jones, Georgina Jones and Katie Hawthorn, who smashed her pb to go under 40 seconds for the first time in the 50m free.
On Sunday Jade Evans added to her trophy haul from the previous day with another second place this time in the 50m backstroke while Kim Donaldson was rewarded for her weekend of determined swimming with third place in the 14/15-years 200m breaststroke.
Sophie Blackstad and Emma Hudson took to the pool for the first time on Sunday fresh from their success as part of the Midlands team which won the Independent Schools gala in the 50m pool at Coventry the previous day. Both were swimming at the 'wrong' end of their age group, as were so many of the Northgate swimmers, but Sophie came close to a trophy with a fifth-place finish in the 50m backstroke.
Jenny Ballinger also just missed out on a second trophy of the weekend when she was beaten into fourth place in the final few metres of the 9-year-olds 50m backstroke, although she did have the consolation of a new pb.
Northgate were also well represented on the day by Chrissie Jones, who was fourth in 10/11 years 100m and 200m breaststroke, Rebecca Hawthorn, Katie Hawthorn, Emily Rutter, Jo Pace, Georgina Jones, Jess Jones and Emily-Jane Davies.
Lots of pbs and qualifying times were achieved over the weekend, with sterling service, as always on poolside from head coach D, Richard Hawthorn, Sue Evans, Gary Barnes, John Sanders and Richard Darley.
Northgate came away at the end with a very creditable overall fifth place finish. The result was all the more noteworthy as Northgate had no boys competing on Sunday and no-one in the Open age groups on either day.
Thanks also to organisers Boldmere for a successful gala, and Paralympian Eleanor Simmonds for being a great sport and signing numerous autographs and posing for pictures.
The Ron Hooper Trophy Gala - 16th November 2008
Four Northgate swimmers were selected for this inter counties event held this year at Wolverhampton. The event was contested by teams from Leicestershire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Staffordshire as well as our Shropshire team.
Chrissie Jones, Zach Xiourouppa and Jacob Laybourne were all swimming for Shropshire for their first time whilst Jade Evans swam her sixth county event.
Chrissie was the first Northgate swimmer away in the 3rd leg of the girls 10/11 years freestyle relay. She swam well at 32.89, close to her PB for this distance (although relay times don’t count as PB’s). In the corresponding race for the boys Zach was in good form with 32.28 in the 2nd leg.
Chrissie lowered her 50m breast stroke time though when she swam 40.78 to finish 2nd in the 10/11 years individual race.
Chrissie and Zach both performed well later in their respective IM relays. First Chrissie swimming the breaststroke then, in the next next race, Zach anchored the team in a fantastic time in the free style leg.
Jacob’s gala started with a strong 2nd place in the 100 fly followed by a great 3rd leg in the freestyle relay. He also swam fly in the IM relay and a strong leg in the final Cannon, a 16x25m relay with boys and girls alternating (2 boys and 2 girls from each age group).
Jade’s first event was leg 2 of the girls 12/13 yrs freestyle relay. She swam faster than her previous best time and helped the team win this event. Jade swam close to her best in the fly leg of the girls IM relay, the team again scoring maximum points , and she finished strongly in 3rd place in the individual 100m fly.
The Shropshire team all performed really well and held 2nd place behind Leicestershire for the first 40 out of the 49 events. It was only in the closing stages that Staffordshire managed to edge past and push us into 3rd spot. Warwickshire was 4th and Worcestershire finished in 5th place.
A very big well done to our four Shropshire stars!!
National Swimming League Div.1 - Derby - 8th November 2008
This event started off well. The coach’s headlights failed (and I don’t mean D) and we were all stranded in Telford. Everyone pulled together really well to muster up enough vehicles to transport the team to Derby and just make it in time for the warm-up.
Again, as in the first round, the competition was tough but our swimmers fought well with some stunning performances.
Lets hope the round 3 draw is more kind to us.
Final result:-
|
Calverton & Bing.
|
223
|
|
City of Derby
|
214
|
|
Nuneaton
|
166
|
|
Leamington
|
152
|
|
Walsall
|
152
|
|
Northgate
|
138
|
|
Black County Junior Open - 2nd November 2008
Story by Dave Ballinger
Sequels are always tricky things - just ask any film director.
But Northgate’s Invasion of Wolverhampton Pt II proved more Toy Story 2 than Grease II (kids, ask your parents).
Part One saw the Chase Open on the weekend of October 24/25 with Northgate swimmers recording 81pbs in 114 swims, picking up nine golds, six silvers and 13 bronze medals.
Part Two was the Black County Junior Open on Sunday November 2 organised by Brierley Hill ASC with 24 Northgate swimmers in action, picking up a host of trophies and pbs.
Philippa Brown and Harriet Themans led the way in the first race of the day - the girls 11/12 100m individual medley when they picked up the trophies for first and second place respectively.
Philippa also won the 12-year-old 50m breaststroke final and the 50m butterfly final with a second place in the 50m freestyle final as well as making the backstroke final. Harriet reached all four finals in the same age group, with her best a third place in the 50m butterfly and recorded three pbs.
Joanna Pace took home the trophy for finishing third in the 50m breaststroke final behind Phillipa. Also swimming in the same age group, there were four personal bests for Jess Jones and Emily Rutter, with Jaya Ellis Perks improving on her time in the 50m backstroke.
In the 11-year-old girls section, Chrissie Jones came back with three trophies for the mantelpiece, winning the 50m breaststroke, coming second in the 50m free and third in the fly.
Rebecca Hawthorn had three personal bests, qualified for three finals and took home the trophy for third place in the 50m free. Alice Parr swam hard in all five races on the day, improving her time in the 100m individual medley.
Emma Hudson flew the flag for Northgate in the 10-year-old girls section and had three pbs, making the 50m fly final where she finished in fourth.
One of the club’s highlights of the day came in the 9-year-old girls races where Northgate had five swimmers out of six in one heat of the 50m breaststroke. It was great to see the five Northgate caps cutting through the water.
Katie Hawthorn took the honours in the final of that event, picking up the trophy for second place, while Jenny Ballinger finished not far behind in fourth with Marsha Evenett also in contention on a day when she recorded two pbs.
Connie Sanders and Jenny both made three finals with Connie recording two pbs and Jenny three.
In the same age group Maddie Berrow had two pbs on the day and came close to making the 50m breaststroke final while Megan Bowdler swam an excellent 50m free to record a pb by over four seconds.
It was great to see some of the Northgate boys competing, and Aaran Darley leading the way in the 10-year-olds section with second place in the 50m back final and two thirds in the 50m free and 50m fly. He also had three pbs.
In the same age group Jack Sanders was just beaten into second place in the 50m breaststroke final, and he also improved his pb in the 50m fly. Matt Griffiths recorded pbs in the 100m individual medley and 50m breaststroke, Giles Themans had a pb in the 50m fly and Joey Ellis Perks also had two good swims.
Will Lewis swam well in the 9-year-old boys races with his best the trophy for finishing third in the 50m free final. He also had four pbs and made the other three finals making him one of the top swimmers in his age group.
Peter Bills-Brown was unlucky to only finish sixth in the 50m back final after swimming a strong race, and he recorded two pbs on the day. Tom Davenport swam well all day in his first open gala, recording three pbs and coming close to making a couple of the finals.
Big thanks to Jo Berrow, Richard Hawthorn, Gary Barnes and Vicky Evans for their brilliant work on pool side on the day, organising, supervising and encouraging the swimmers. You are all stars.
We were a bit concerned that it might have been all a bit too much for Jo though: She claimed she'd much rather be on pool side with the kids than sitting with the rest of us in the spectator area.
Surely some mistake . . . !
Midlands Short Course Championships - 1st/2nd November 2008
Jacob Laybourne was in fine form again for the first day of this championship gala at Braunstone, Leicester. He came 1st in his age group and 3rd overall in the heats of the 400 free, in a PB time of 4:07.28. He then reduced this time to 4:06.89 when he won gold in the final. This time puts Jacob into the history books as it is a new Midlands record.
His swim in the 200 fly was awesome! The heats gave Jacob another 1st in his age group and 2nd overall in 2:13.37. In the final Jacob knocked another 4 seconds off to finish 1st in his age group and 2nd overall in 2:09.56, another PB.
Also swimming in the first day’s competition was Jade Evans who swam strong but narrowly missed a PB in the 200 free.
Sunday saw Jacob win more medals. He had a bronze in the 200 free then another bronze in the 100 fly.
Jade had a good swim again in the 400 free and Charlie Humphries swam well to get PB’s in both the 100 free and 50 fly.
A good weekend’s work - well done all.
National Masters - Sheffield Ponds Forge - 24th to 26th Oct 2008
David Clarke and Rachel Reilly swam this weekend at the National Masters Championships. Both swam well with some great results.
David achieved a silver medal in the 400 free in 4:36.11, with 6th places in the 200 free, 200 fly and 200 IM. He was 7th in the 100 fly and 9th in the 100 free in 59.68.
Well done to both.
Chase Open Gala - Wolverhampton 25th/26th Oct 2008
A fantastic weekend saw 81 pb’s out of 114 swims. 9 gold’s, 6 silver and 13 bronze medals. Everybody swam really well putting Northgate in 3rd place overall behind Stafford Apex and Newcastle Staffs.
Jacob Laybourne, one day into his fifteenth year, achieved 4 national times in that age group. See the results table on the PB page for more information.
Lincoln Vulcans Open - Ponds Forge Sheffield - 18th Oct 2008
Northgate swimmers came away with medals at the Lincoln Vulcans Open at Sheffields Ponds Forge on Saturday. Aaran Darley achieved bronze in the 200m Backstroke then silver in the 100m backstroke. Stef Otto came away with bronze in the 100m breaststroke whilst Charlie Humphries won silver in the 50m freestyle.
This gala was full of high quality swimmers from all over the country and therefore the opposition was extremely tough. Lucy Kesek swam well and Chrissie Jones also achieved personal best times in the 200m breast and 50m free.
well done all.
National Swimming League - Round 1 - Burton on Trent
It was a tough evening for our newly promoted team, facing fierce opposition from the likes of City of Coventry, Leicester Penguins and Worcester. The team, however, fought well and put in some fantastic performances. Every last swimmer swam their very best to end up with a very creditable 5th place on the night. Final finishing positions were as follows:
|
Leicester Penguins A
|
245
|
|
City of Coventry A
|
231
|
|
Worcester
|
166
|
|
Chase
|
157
|
|
Northgate
|
142
|
|
Solihull A
|
108
|
|
Annual Presentation evening 2008
This years presentation evening took place in the Castle Halls, Bridgnorth on Saturday 4th October. The event was a great success with everyone enjoying the occasion.
This years main winners were:-
Roz Lyle Personal Achievement Award - Ralph Davies - For the teaching groups.
Coaches Cup - Becky Hawthorn -
Annual Championships Best Performance Shield - Jacob Laybourne
Long Service Award - Ian Marshall - Ian has swam in all 31 Northgate annual championships.
There were two new trophies introduced for winning this next year:-
The Max Otto Memorial Trophy - For performance in the County Age Groups
The Stacey Burton Memorial Shield - For performance in the Diddy Gala
Thanks to all who helped in making the evening a great success - especially Jane Davies and her team.
Special Award
James Lyle has been selected as regional winner of the “Outstanding Contribution by an 18-25 year old” by British Swimming West Midlands in their Aquaforce Volunteer Awards. This is superb recognition of the work that James, and indeed Andrew and Stuart, give to the youngsters of our club.
National Championships 2008
Jacob Laybourne finished 6th in the 14yrs 1500m Free in 17:09.69 and 21st in the 200m Fly on day 1 of the championships.
Day 2 - Jacob finished 17th in the 200m free knocking over 2 seconds off his PB.
Day 4 (Sunday) - Jacob records another PB as he finishes 8th in the 400m free
Stefanie Otto swam well on Saturday (2nd August) in the 50m Free
Well done to Jacob and Stef for representing our club so well.
County Age Group Championships - Final Day - 6th July 2008
Sunday 6th July saw the finale of this years County Age Group championships, re-arranged from March following travellers moving onto the car park at Market Drayton pool.
Northgate managed to retain their County Champions title for a second consecutive year following a whole host of medals and fantastic PB’s by so many of the squad. We also had three swimmers in the Top Girl/Boy rankings, namely Matt Griffiths, Jacob Layborne and Stef Otto.
The medal winners were:-
Matt Griffiths Gold 50 free 100 IM
Silver 50 Back 50 Breast
Zach Xiourouppa Gold 50 Free 50 fly
Silver 100 IM
Jack Sanders Silver 50 Breast
Robbie Ross Bronze 50 Fly 50 Breast 100 IM
Jacob Laybourne Gold 50 Back 50 Fly (New Championship Record)
Silver 50 Free 100 IM
Sam jones Bronze 50 Fly 50 Breast
Oliver Freeman Bronze 50 Back 100 IM
Joe Thacker Bronze 50 Free 100 IM
Simon Kinvig Gold 50 Free 50 Breast
Stewart Burton Gold 50 Back
Silver 50 Fly 50 Free
James Morris Silver 50 Breast
Bronze 50 Fly 100 IM
Emma Hudson Bronze 50 Fly 50 Back 50 Free 100 IM
Molly Craven Bronze 50 Breast
Chrissie Jones Gold 50 Breast (New Championship Record)
Silver 50 Fly
Emily Dewfield Bronze 50 Back
Georgina Jones Silver 50 Breast
Harriet Themans Bronze 50 Fly
Megan Redshaw Bronze 50 Breast 100 IM
Kim Donaldson Bronze 50 Fly 50 Breast
Stef Otto Gold 50 Fly 50 Breast (New Championship Record)
50 Back 50 Free 100 IM
Holly Haywood Silver 50 Breast 50 Back 50 Free 100 IM
Emily Davies Silver 50 Fly
Bronze 50 Back 50 free 100 IM
Lucy Gould Silver 50 Fly 50 Back 50 Free 100 IM
Well done to everyone, too numerous to mention, who helped secure this win for Northgate.
Three Counties Championships - 28th June 2008
Six northgate swimmers qualified to represent Shropshire in the three counties championships which were held on Saturday at Thomas Telford school. The Shropshire team were up against Hereford and Worcester but Worcester failed to turn up. We had lots of good swims from Jacob Layborne, Jade Evans, Jo Pace, Holly Heywood. Alice Cousins and Charlotte Humphries. Jacob swam the fly and the fc. Jade swam the fly and the back. Jo swam the breast. Holly swam the breast and the fc. Alice swam the 200 im and Charlotte swam the fc and the fly. All events were 100’s except the 200 im . Shropshire were triumphant overall beating Hereford by a good margin.
Report by Sue Evans
Ickle People meet - Wolverhampton - 22nd June 2008
Northgate didn't swim quite as quickly as the wind which blew a tree down on top of a house near Wolverhampton Central Baths on Sunday - but they came pretty close.
Ten girls took part in the Ickle People Junior Meet and came back with a clutch of medals and one of the top prizes. Harriet Themans was declared top girl swimmer at the meeting after a fantastic day's swimming and she returned home with the £30 prize in her pocket. She won the gold medals in the 200m individual medley for 12-year-old girls in 2:45.39 and the 200m freestyle in 2:29.12. She also won three silvers - in the 100m breaststroke, the 100m fly and 100m free, and three bronzes - in the 100m backstroke, 50m breaststroke and 50m fly, to complete a fine day's work.
Georgia Driver made use of her long-distance stamina skills to come home first in the 10-year-olds 200m freestyle in a time of 2:47.00 and she was also ranked fourth in the 200m individual medely in 3.18.69. In that race she came just behind Rebecca Hawthorn, who continued her fine form from the previous weekend's gala in Wrexham with more medals. In the 200m individual medley she picked up a silver in 3:17.76, and she also won bronze in the 50m breaststroke in 49.13. She followed that up in the afternoon session with a silver medal in the 100m breaststroke in 1:47.49.
Emily Dewfield saved her best until last, winning the gold medal in the 11-year-olds 50m freestyle in 34.43. This added to the bronze medal which she picked up in the first race of the day - the 200m individual medley which she swam in a pb of 3:03.28. She just missed out on another medal in the 200m freestyle where she finished fourth in 2:42.71.
Beth Hampshire won the silver medal in the 100m butterfly in a time of 1.19.99 after earlier recording pbs in both the 200m individual medley and the 50m breaststroke.
Jenny Ballinger was rewarded for being one of the few 9-year-olds in the meeting to brave the 100m fly with a bronze medal in 1:56.82. She also finished just outside the medals in fourth in the 100m breaststroke in 2:00.43 and recorded three other pb’s.
Katie Hawthorne was just behind Jenny in the 100m breaststroke, finishing fifth in 2:01.11. Earlier in the day she also recorded a sixth place finish in the 50m breaststroke in a pb of 54.25.
Maddie Berrow had an excellent swim in the 50m fly to record a pb of 56.99 and also swam well in her other races including the 100m freestyle in 1:42.61. Just behind her was Megan Bowdler who swam her 100m freestyle in 1:42.80, and she also moved ever-closer to breaking the one minute barrier in her 50m breaststroke, recording a time of 1:00.26.
Emma Hudson swam in eight races on the day in the 10-year-old age group and recorded a string of personal bests, including 1:23.50 in the 100m freestyle and 1:48.01 in the 100m fly for a fifth-placed finish.
Emily Rutter also tackled eight races during the day, knocking over 20 seconds off her previous fastest in the 200m individual medley in 3:09.40 and securing seventh place in the 50m breaststroke in 48.81.
A big thank you to Jo Berrow, Jo Bowdler and Sarah Dewfield for all their help, support and vocal encouragement to the swimmers from poolside. (I hope you all had the large drink you deserved waiting for you at home).
Just a final thought, after hearing Oakengates named in second place in the team competition on the day, where have all the Northgate boys gone?
Two open galas in two weekends and not a boy in sight . . .
Report by Dave Ballinger
Cath Ankers Open Meet - Wrexham - 16th June 2008
Northgate picked up three speeding tickets in Wrexham - but it nothing to do with the North Wales Constabulary’s notorious speed cameras.
Eight swimmers crossed the Welsh border to take part in the Cath Ankers Meet at Wrexham Waterworld on Saturday June 16, and they returned with a clutch of medals, pbs and the three speeding tickets for swimming too fast!
Rebecca Hawthorn was responsible for two of those tickets handed out to swimmers who went quicker than the optimum time allowed for each event by the organisers. She smashed her pbs in both the girls 8-10 100m individual medley and 50m freestyle with times of 1:32.51 and 35.76 respectively. She also picked up a silver medal in the 50m breaststroke and another medal for finishing in the top six in the 50m backstroke.
Megan Redshaw picked up the other speeding ticket for her swim in the 13-year-olds 200m individual medley with a time of 2:43.49. In her final event of a long day - the 100m butterfly - she summoned up enough stamina to claim gold with a time of 1:22.28. This added to her earlier haul of a silver in the 100m breaststroke (1:28.12), bronze in the 100m freestyle (1:10.86) and a fifth place medal in the 100 backstroke.
In the 8-10 age group, Emma Hudson recorded pbs in all five of her races and picked up a silver medal in the 100m individual medley (1:38.29) and another medal for finishing fourth in the 50m freestyle (37.97).
Emily-Jane Davies knocked nearly eight seconds off her previous best 100m backstroke in the 14-year-old age group to record a time of 1:20.41, just missed out on a medal in the 100m freestyle and recorded a new pb in the 200m individual medley.
Katie Hawthorn, Megan Bowdler, Maddie Berrow and Jennie Ballinger, all nine, were swimming in the 8-10 year age group and up against some tough, much older opposition, but all performed well. Katie had pbs in all four of her races, knocking over six seconds off her best in the 50m breaststroke to record a time of 55.38. Megan had good swims in both the 50m freestyle (46.24) and 50m backstroke (57.13). Maddie swam her first competitive 100m individual medley and pushed her heat winner hard all the way in 1:55.80, and also swam well in the 50m freestyle (46.96). Jennie, in her first open gala, performed well to set herself some good targets for future swims, including a 43.68 in the 50m freestyle and 48.93 in the 50m backstroke.
A big thank you to coaches Bethan Redshaw and Jo Berrow for all their help and encouragement to the swimmers on poolside during a long day - and having the patience of saints. Instead of "Are we nearly there yet?" the question they kept getting was "Is it nearly our race yet?" again . . . and again . . . and again . . .
They probably deserved medals as well!
Report by Dave Ballinger
Midlands BAGCAT Championships - part 2 - 14th/15th June 2008
This second weekend proved just as exciting as the first one with six swimmers achieving 9 PB’s in 19 swims.
Jack Sanders was first away on Saturday swimming well in his first Midlands event. Chrissie Jones swam well in the 200m breast, just narrowly missing her PB and finishing 2nd in the heats. The final was so exciting as Chrissie needed to put every ounce of effort in to beat off the strong opposition to win her second gold medal of the championships, knocking 3 seconds off her best in the process. Aaran was next up in his number 1 event, the 200 backstroke. Aaran swam really well with a PB time and a place booked in the final. He swam strongly again in the final to finish 6th fastest in the Midlands.
Sunday saw Jacob Laybourne again in great form. His swim in the 200 free gave him yet another National Qualifying Time (NQT) and a PB when he finished 5th. Later in the day Jacob had another PB and NQT in the 200 fly, also achieving his second bronze of the championships. Jade Evans had a PB in the 200 free with a great swim and Aaran had more PB’s in the 400 and 100 free events. Georgia Driver swam a brilliant race in the 400 free narrowly missing her PB time.
At the end of the championships the BAGCAT points were added up and we had two “Top 8” winners. The first 8 swimmers in each age group were awarded with a certificate, specially printed “TOP 8” tee shirt and a gift voucher. Jacob was in 5th place and Chrissie finished 8th.
Overall a fantastic championships with some very good successes. A massive well done to the seven Northgate swimmers who took part. Also, a very VERY big thank you to D, from the swimmers, for his fantastic support and help not only throughout the two weekends but also the several weeks/months of training beforehand.
Midlands BAGCAT Championships - part 1 - 7th/8th June 2008
The Midland BAGCAT championships is split over two weekends and the first weekend proved highly successful for our Northgate squad. Six swimmers were involved in this first half in a total of 14 events and 11 personal best (PB) times were broken.
Chrissie Jones, in her first Midland Championships, started off with a PB and 9th overall place in the 200m freestyle followed on the Sunday with a gold medal in the 10 years 100m breaststroke, again in a PB time.
Jacob Laybourne had a fantastic weekend with 6 swims and 6 PB's. He had a bronze medal and National Qualifying Time (NQT) in the 800m freestyle, and a second NQT and 4th place in the 400m freestyle. Jacob also had a 5th in the 100m fly and 8th & 9th in the 100m free & 200 back respectively.
Jack Sanders, also in his first Midlands, swam a great 100m breast in a PB time finishing 12th overall. Meanwhile another first timer Aaran Darley swam well in a very tense 100m back event and came 5th overall in a PB time. Aaran also PB'd in the 200m free.
Also competing in this very prestigious event were Georgina Jones in the 100m breast and Jade Evens in the 100 free and 200 backstroke.
A big well done to all !!!!!
Haden Hill Open - 11th May 2008
Awards were given to the following swimmers, who were placed 1 to 8, at the Haden Hill open yesterday:-
Philippa Brown 1st in the 50 fly (leading from the start) girls 11/12 years - pb
Philippa Brown 6th in the 13 years and under 200 freestyle - pb
Jade Evans 5th in the Womens open 100m backstroke - pb
Philippa Brown 2nd in the Girls 11/12 50 freestyle
Jade Evans 6th in the Girls 13/14 100m freestyle
Georgina Jones 7th in the Girls 11/12 50 breaststroke.
The following swimmers also achieved pbs at this gala:-
Philippa Brown - 100 freestyle.
Georgina Jones - 200 freestyle.
Jade Evans - 100 breaststroke.
Emily Rutter - 100 breaststroke.
Philippa Brown - 100 breaststroke
Nuneaton Junior League Div 1 Round 2 - Leamington - 10th May 2008
It was a tough night at Leamington for this first division gala but the Northgate team showed true grit. The tough opposition gave all the swimmers a run for their money but despite all this we still managed to finish in a creditable third place.
We only managed to win 5 events but we made sure that we were not far behind in the others to give us an overall score of 180 points to Worcester’s 209 and Leamington’s winning 255 points.
The five winning swims were Chrissie Jones 10yrs 50m Breast and 25m Fly, Jack Sanders 10yrs 50m Breast, Zac Xiourouppa 10yrs 25m Fly and the Girls 10yrs Medley relay team (Sophie Blakstad, Chrissie Jones, Emma Hudson and Georgia Driver).
Northgate were in third overall place all through this gala and the final points were as follows:-
|
Leamington
|
255
|
|
Worcester
|
209
|
|
Northgate
|
180
|
|
Orion
|
139
|
|
Stratford
|
131
|
|
Hinkley
|
125
|
|
Well done to all the team!!
Midland District Youth Champs - 3rd/4th May - Coventry
Stefanie Otto gained 2 bronze medals in the 100 & 50 mtr breaststroke events and she also reached the finals of the 50 & 100 mtr freestyle.
Holly Haywood made the finals at 50 & 200 breaststroke coming 4th in the 50 in a P.B. time & 6th in the 200. Holly was also 1st reserve for the 100 mtr breaststroke final.
Charlie Humphries recorded two P.B. times in the 100 free and the 50 fly where she came 4th.
Well done girls!!!
Coventry Open Gala - 26/27th April 2008
It was a bit of a mixed bag of results at the Coventry Open Gala this weekend with some swimmers not favouring the 50 metre pool whilst others achieved very good improvements on their times.
Aaran Darley was one who really made the most of this event, adding two more Midland District Qualifying Times to his tally in the 200 and 400 free. Aaran also achieved Gold, Silver and Bronze in the 50, 200 and 100 back respectively, all in PB times. Meanwhile, Jacob Laybourn was in great form ultimately achieving the "Best Boy" title by the end of the weekend. Jake achieved wins in the 400 IM and free and in the 200 free and fly. He also was third in the 100 free and back and in the 200 IM.
Other notable achievements were Megan Redshaw second in the 400 IM, Chrissie Jones PB and Bronze in the 200 free and a gold in the 50 breast, Harriet Themans with PB's in the 200 free and IM, Georgia Driver with a fantastic improvement of over 8 seconds in her 400 free time and Sam Jones with a fourth place in the 100 breast.
Well done also to Rebecca Hawthorn, Robbie Ross, Jess Jones, Jack Sanders, Jo Pace and Georgina Jones.
Back to Top
Mercian League round 1 – Leamington – 26th April 2008
This gala marked the return of Northgate to the Mercian League after a short absence and all involved swam well.
Leamington were the early leaders and by event 20 out of the 50 swims they were on 104 points with Halesowen second (92), Redditch third (80) and Northgate in fourth place on 72 points. The next few swims though saw Northgate catch Redditch then slowly inch past them to finish in a very creditable third overall.
The final points were:-
|
Leamington
|
261
|
|
Halesowen
|
213
|
|
Northgate
|
195
|
|
Redditch
|
189
|
|
Stratford
|
97
|
|
Fox Hollies
|
73
|
|
Back to Top
Nuneaton Junior League - Round 1 - Walsall 12th April 2008
Due to the fantastic efforts by the Northgate team during 2007 we were swimming in division 1 of this league tonight against some pretty tough opposition. Our swimmers also proved to be tough though as we managed to finish in second spot behind the home team.
We finished in the top 3 places in 30 out of the 51 events, winning 12 of these.
The final positions were as follows:-
|
Walsall
|
242
|
|
Northgate
|
182
|
|
Oswestry
|
167
|
|
Coalville
|
164
|
|
Stratford
|
155
|
|
Dove Valley
|
146
|
|
A very well done to all of the team, especially those swimming this league for the first time.
Back to Top
WELSH NATIONAL AGE GROUP & YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS
20th – 24th March 2008 – Wales National Pool, Swansea
The WELSH NATIONAL AGE GROUP & YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS is the pinnacle of the welsh swimming calendar. This is a high class long course meeting with clubs being represented from all over Wales and the UK. Moving up an age group (12-13) from last years 11 & Under, qualifying was going to tough, as it turned out this year qualifying was even tighter with 20-30 swimmers 10 -15 seconds inside the qualifying times being rejected a clear indication of the improving standard of British & Welsh swimming. In light of this Northgate’s Welsh representative Megan Redshaw did really well to qualify in the 100, 200, 400, 800, 1500 Freestyle as well as the 100 & 200 Breast, 200 IM & 400 IM. Better still with the new structure of distance events the fastest heat is swum as the final, Megan qualified as the 4th fastest making her first ever final. Surprisingly Northgate’s mental tough girl buckled slightly but finished a respectable 7th in a new Long Course (LC) PB. The following day was the 200 Breast, an uncharacteristic movement on the block meant an excellent 6 second LC PB remained unofficial (DQ), but it was an excellent swim and certainly added to Megz LC bag of experience. The remaining four days Sat-Mon saw LC PB’s in all events, notably the 100 Free 1:10.88 converted to an overall SC/LC PB of 1:09.28 and the 200 IM was also an overall SC/LC PB. Megan attitude all weekend was excellent and we were very impressed and proud, many people that we know commented on the massive improvement in Megan’s times from last year. We are looking forward seeing what she can achieve during all the long course events we have planned for the rest of this year as we begin to focus more on this and in next year’s event when she will be one of the older swimmers in the age group. Advice for young swimmers and parents going into their first Midlands/Long Course event, long course swimming is very different to short course swimming if you can get to a LC event before the Midlands it will be very beneficial, don’t set your expectations to high, enjoy the experience.
RESULTS
Story By Nick Redshaw
Back to Top
World Masters Championships - Perth, Australia 2008
This years World Masters Championships took place from 18th to the 25th April in Perth, Western Australia. Northgate’s Lucy Gould and Nick Thacker were over there competing. Read all about their adventure HERE
Shrewsbury Open Meet - 5th/6th April 2008
There were 5 Northgate swimmers competing in this open with some excellent performances all round.
Megan Redshaw swam in 6 events and picked up 5 medals, narrowly missing her 6th.
1st place in 100 free, 100 & 200 fly, 200 IM and 3rd place in 200 free
Jade Evans had two 1st places in 50 & 100 free - The 100 was also an MDQT.
Charlie Humphries swam well achieving 2nd place in 50 fly and 100 free - both MDQT's, and a 3rd in 50 free narrowly missing a third MDQT.
Georgia Driver swam an excellent race to equal her PB despite recovering from a recent chest infection and Emily-Jane Davies swam the fastest time of her age group in the 50 free.
Well done to all of you.
Link to results
Back to Top
Nuneaton Qualifying Open Meet - 5th/6th April 2008
Saturday
This event proved to be a very competitive, high class, meet with no more than 163 Midland District Qualifying Times (MDQT) being achieved throughout this first day, along with 4 National times.
Northgate had their fair share of this tally with MDQT being achieved by:-
Jake Laybourne 200 Free (PB) - 100 Fly (PB) - 200 Back
Aaran Darley 200 Back (PB) - improving his time to 2:56.15
Stef Otto 100 Free - narrowly missing a national time by just 0.8secs
Chrissie Jones 200 Breast & Silver medal
Emily Rutter swam well in the 200 Fly while Jo Pace improved her personal best time in the 200 Breast.
Sunday
Beth Hampshire was the first Northgate swimmer off today with a good swim in the 100 Fly showing she is well on her way to returning to form. Megan Redshaw swam well in the 200 IM and 200 Free following her 5 medal wins in the Shrewsbury Open yesterday.
Another girl who swam at Shrewsbury yesterday was Georgia Driver where she equalled her 200 Free time set in the CAG’s this year and took home a silver medal. Today at Nuneaton Georgia reduced her time by a further 4 seconds to get within touching distance of a second MDQT.
What a difference a day makes!!
Emily Dewfield swam strongly and narrowly missed her PB by only half a second whilst Chrissie Jones beat her previous best by one and a half seconds to improve her MDQT.
Altogether a great weekend with around 300 MDQT being achieved throughout this meeting and 7 of these to Northgate swimmers.
A very well done to the Northgate Team!!
Link to Results
Back to Top
Birmingham Open - 21st to 24th March 2008
Northgate swimmers attended the City of Birmingham Easter meet over the weekend. The standard of swimmers at this event was high and Northgate rose to the occassion with some midland district qualifying times and excellent pbs.
Jade Evans achieved her midland district qualifying time in the 400IM on the Friday afternoon, and carried on this standard achieving a midlands time and coming 5th in the heats of the 200 backstroke, and achieving a fantastic pb in the 100 freestyle.
Rebecca Hawthorn had excellent swims, achieving pbs in the 200 freestyle, 200 breaststroke, 50 freestyle and 50 backstroke. Holly Haywood had a great swim on the Sunday morning, winning the heats in the 200 breaststroke. Sam Jones swam well achieving pbs in the 50 breaststroke, 200 breaststroke and 200 IM.
Northgate swimmer Alice Cousins, had some fantastic swims whilst swimming for the City of Birmingham: 3rd in the heats of the 400IM with a midland district qualifying time; achieving a midland district qualifying time in the heats of the 100 backstroke; 3rd in the heats of the 400 freestyle with a midlands district qualifying time, followed by a fantastic swim in the final gaining first place and a national qualifying time. Alice achieved a midlands time in the 100 freestyle, 200 backstroke and the 200IM, coming 2nd in the final.
Well done everyone.
Link to results
Report by Jane Jones
Back to Top
Brierley Hill Open - 19/20th January 2008
A great weekends swimming with PB’s being broken by all 14 swimmers involved in this latest open meet at Wolverhampton Central Baths.
The team managed to bring home a total of 11 medals and these were:-
Stef Otto Gold 100 Breast & 50 Free
Holly Haywood Gold 200 Breast & Silver 100 Breast
Kim Donaldson Gold 200 Breast & Bronze 100 Breast
Jacob Laybourne Silver 200 Back & Bronze 200 Fly
Megan Redshaw Bronze 200 Breast & 400 IM
Georgina Jones Bronze 200 Breast
Most of the above swims were also PB’s. Other PB’s achieved over the weekend were:-
Saturday
Becky Hawthorn 400 Free / 200 Free
Emily Dewfield 400 Free / 200 Fly (by nearly half a minute)
Georgina Jones 200 &400 Free / 100 Breast (PB in heat & final) / 200 Back
Kim Donaldson 400 Free / 100 Breast / 200 Free
Jo Pace 100 & 200 Breast
Megan Redshaw 100 Breast / 200 Fly / 200 Free
Sam Jones 200 Fly / 200 Free
Jacob Laybourne 400 IM / 200 Free
Sunday
Becky Hawthorn 50 Free
Megan Redshaw 50 Free / 200 IM
Harriet Themans 50 & 100Free /200Back /200 &400 IM (400 by half a minute)
Jade Evans 50 Free / 100 Fly
Holly Haywood 200 IM / 100 Free
Kim Donaldson 200 & 400 IM / 100 Free
Aaran Darley 200 Back - This is Aarons first Midland District time!!
Jacob Laybourne 400 Free / 200 IM
There were other excellent times swam that just missed out on being PB’s.
With performances like these the big question now is “will Northgate retain the trophy for County Champions”?? Let’s make sure we do!!
Watch this space. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Back to Top
100 x 100 Challenge - 12th January 2008
A great mixture of young and not so young Northgate Swimmers were burning off the Christmas Pud as they attempted the grueling 100 x 100m swim in the pool at Bridgnorth.
The older swimmers embarked on the challenge so swim each 100m in a time of 1.30 mins, whilst the younger swimmers were challenged to swim 50 x 100m in at intervals of 1.45 mins or 40x 100m at 2 minute intervals.
A large number of swimmers started the challenge at 7am on a cold and damp morning, and within the first 20 minutes a small number had dropped out. The pace was relentless and credit must be given to all those who ‘had a go’ at the attempt. After the first 40 mins to an hour, the pool had emptied out to the final few…
The swimmers who achieved 50 x 100m (200 lengths) were; Robbie Ross, Harriet Themans, Emily Rutter, Fern Cates and Hollie George. Also achieving 50x100m, exceeding their initial target of 40, were youngsters Emily Dewfield and Aaron Darley, who are just 10 years old, and 9 year old Georgia Driver. This is an amazing feat for such young swimmers to manage to swim 3 miles before breakfast!
The star of the day however, was 12 year old Jade Evans who managed the entire 100 x 100m – coming in for her final length to of 400 at around 9.45 to great cheering, having swum constantly for almost three hours and covering a distance of 6 miles.
Josh Davies and Sam Jones also had a good attempt, both reaching 84 sets before they “hit the wall” in marathon runners – speak.
But it was our veteran swimmers; Dave Clarke, Lyndon Hollingshead, Nick Thacker – all of whom swim in the Masters Category – who showed the assembled appreciative crowd that they can still pass fantastic feats of endurance. Joined by them in success were Nick’s son Jo Thacker, Northgate Swimming Club teacher Stuart Burton, James Morris, Oliver Freeman and 14 year old Jacob Layborne – who finished in fine style with a final 100m in only just over a minute.
Click HERE to see photo’s of the victorious swimmers.
Back to Top
Stourbridge Crystal Open - Sunday 6th January 2008
This was a high class meeting with over 40 clubs being represented from all over the country. As well as the usual clubs from the midlands there were also swimmers from as far away as Bournemouth, Liverpool, Preston and Nottingham
There were some excellent performances by the Northgate squad who managed to achieve a total of 18 PB's between the 10 of them as well as 3 Gold's, 2 Silvers and 2 Bronze awards.
Notable achievements were as follows:-
Aaran Darley - 50 Free PB, 100 IM PB, 50 Back PB and Bronze award.
Emily-Jane Davies - 100 Breast PB
Emily Dewfield - 50 Breast PB, 50 Free PB, 100 IM PB
Kim Donaldson - 200 Breast PB
Georgia Driver - 50 Free PB, 50 Fly PB, 100 IM PB
Jade Evans - 50 Free PB 4th, 50 Fly PB Bronze, 200 Free Gold
Jacob Laybourne - 200 Fly Gold, 200 IM Gold
Robbie Ross - 50 Free PB, 200 Fly PB Silver
Jack Sanders - 50 Free PB, 50 Back PB, 100 IM PB, 50 Breast Silver
All results can be seen on the Stourbridge website. Click HERE to link.
Well done to all.
Back to Top
|
