A number of our swimmers took part in the British Mencap Championships which took place on the 17^th May in Cardiff. Swimmers were allowed to enter up to 3 races.

The standard of swimming was exceptional; this could be seen in the amount of Personal Best (PB’s) that were achieved. George Allen achieved 1 PB. Annie Edwards, Francis Chapman, Jordan Mancey and Tom Want achieved 2PB’s. Ciarán Kelly, Harrison Trusler and Lauren Trusler  all achieved an amazing 3  PB’s.

Worthy of a particular mention: Annie Edwards – 6.6 second PB 100m Breaststroke. Ciarán Kelly -  7.78 second PB 100m IM and 10.67 second PB 100m Butterfly, Francis Chapman – 8.39 second PB 50m Backstroke, Lauren Trusler – 4.59 second PB 50m Backstroke and 4.74 second PB 50m Freestyle. Jordan Mancey – knocked off a whopping 20.72 seconds off of his 200m Freestyle Club time.

Tom Want came first and Ciarán Kelly came 4^th overall in the men’s 50m Butterfly

Well done everyone!

Other Comments:

'Chris Allen (George’s Dad) said it was a great day and well done to all'

Charlotte Egan, Francis Chapman, Jessica Draper and Jordan Mancey, took part in the Special Olympics Eastern Regional Gala, which took place in Hatfield on 26^th April.

Jessica and Jordan both took part in their first 25m Butterfly race, beating their club times.

Our relay teams did exceptional well coming 1^st and 3^rd place.

Well done everyone!

Comments from:

Francis said it was "Fantastic!"

Jess said "I really enjoyed it, everyone was so friendly. I liked the medals and the music they played."

Jordan said" It was great fun, there was a great atmosphere, I was really proud of all the swimmers, we did so well. I liked it because all the other teams were friendly, saying well done. I shook lots of people’s hands and congratulated them on their achievements. I liked being part of a joint relay team, it didn't matter that we were from different swimming teams, we all helped each other, cheering everyone on."

A number of our swimmers made a big splash as they took to the swimming pool to raise thousands of pounds for charity.

The annual Basingstoke Lions’ swimathon saw around 65 swimmers in teams of six compete to swim as many lengths of the swimming pool at Basingstoke Sports Centre as they could in 30 minutes.

Participants were cheered on by their family and friends from the centre’s viewing gallery.

The event, which last year celebrated its 30th birthday, is free to enter and the money raised is split between organisations supported by Basingstoke Lions, and charities of each team’s choice.

Swimmers on the evening helped to raise over £1,800 for the club, an improvement on last year’s sum of £1,500.

Tony Bamberger, fundraising chairman for Basingstoke Lions and Head Swimming Coach (Sharks), said  “It was very successful – we had extra teams and raised a considerable amount more than last year. Everybody who took part loved it.”

All our swimmers did exceptional well, this could be seen in the amount of Personal Best (PBs) times that were achieved.  James Richardson, George Allen both achieved 1 PB. Francis Chapman and Charlotte Egan both achieved 2 PBs. Annie Edwards, Harrison Trusler and Lauren Trusler achieved an amazing 3 PBs.

Worthy of particular mention:

Charlotte Egan – 10 second PB 50m Backstroke

Francis Champan, - 11 second PB 25m Backstroke

Lauren Trusler -   10 second PB 25m Butterfly, 18 second PB 100m Backstroke

Well done to everyone who took part.

It was fantastic to see so many of our swimmers participating in this event. For a number of our swimmers this was their first experience of a gala.

Everyone swam exceptionally well, with everyone obtaining at least one Personal Best.

Medals were presented to all those who took part by Ken Moore (Club Chairman)

Well done to everyone who took part and thank you to all those who helped make this such a successful event.

Pupils from Dove House, Maple Ridge, Chalkridge Schools and QMC took part in the Basingstoke Special Schools Gala in October.

For the large majority of swimmers this was their first competitive race.

We were all impressed with the enthusiasm and effort shown by all the swimmers, which could clearly be seen in the high standard of swimming.

Well done to everyone who took part.

Comments from Maple Ridge Primary (Pam Brown):

'The swimming gala was very well organised. The children came away with a real sense of achievement, and were very proud to show their medals to the rest of the school during assembly.'

'It was really good fun' (Josh)

'I loved it because we were all champions' (Ryan-James)

Comments from Chalk Ridge Primary:

'We were all very proud that James as able to take part in the swimming competition. It was a huge achievement and we were not surprised that he did so well.'
Head teacher - Donna Shave

Comments from QMC pupils:

Jessica Draper - "I like entering competitions, and making my coaches proud when I win medals. I love cheering on my friends in their races"

Jordan Mancey - "It was a great gala, it was good to see so many swimmers enjoying themselves."

This was another first for Sharks… Ciaran Kelly and Andrea Merritt (Dove House Swim Teacher) took part in this 1.25km open water race.

Ciaran was one of only two under 16’s taking part and completed in 25 minutes 12 econds coming 20th out 58 in the Male Wetsuit category.

Not only was this an amazing achievement but they also raised £350 for Dove House School – well done!

11 of our swimmers took part in the Reading Cygnets LD open meet on the 30th June in Reading.

Our swimmers enthusiasm and hard work could be seen in the amount of Personal Bests (PBs) times that were achieved.

Charlotte Egan, Ciarán Kelly, Daniel Rigby, Francis Chapman and Tom Want achieved 1 PB, Annie Edwards, George Allen and Harrison Trusler all achieved 2 PBs. Charlotte Trusler achieved an amazing 3 PBs.

Congratulations to Annie Edwards who obtained the meet record in the 25m Breaststroke - well done to all swimmers!

4 of our swimmers crossed the border to take part in this gala on the 11th May!! This was the first time that we had entered Swansea Stingray Open meet and we were made to feel very welcome. Charlotte Egan was even sharing her sweets with the officials – we like her style!

All 4 swimmers did us proud , with Ciarán Kelly and Charlotte Trusler both achieving PBs. We entered the 200m freestyle relay and 200m IM relay which was another first for the Sharks all 4 swimmers finished with a smile – well done Charlotte Egan, Charlotte Trusler, Ciarán Kelly and Harrison Trusler.