|
We started the year with the National Championships in December 2006, they were held in Gloucester which was great for a big home crowd. It was the first time that the National Age Groups and the British Championships were held together. It was also the first time we saw combination routines in this country. Some great results were achieved:
12 & under figures – Fern Perry 4th. 1
3/14 figures Anya Tarasuik 3rd & Alex O’Mahony 7th.
15/17 figures Lisa Marsh 8th & Catherine Sparks 19th.
18/19 figures Katie Dawkins 2nd.
Technical Solos: Katie Dawkins 9th, Lisa Marsh 10th & Catherine Sparks 15th.
Free Solo: Katie Dawkins 8th. Duet: 13/14 Anya Tarsuik & Alex O’Mahony 1st.
Recreational Teams: 12 & under s 3rd. 13/14’s 1st. 15/17’s 1st.
The Aqua Fun/Starter Courses have been a great success this year and there has been a relatively successful conversion rate into ongoing membership but we are always keen and happy to welcome more new members to the club so if you do have any friends that might like to have a go at Synchro why not bring them along.
The Western Counties Development Squad met once a month between January and June at Quantock with our girls making up the majority of swimmers. The Western Counties Talent ID Squad also ran at Quantock and met 4 times between January and June. They all took part in dance, gym, psychology, nutrition and synchro sessions. Proving a great opportunity for swimmers to focus on their synchro skills and learn and have a go at different aspects of the sport.
The Multi Regional Squad met twice throughout the year once again focusing on all the different aspects of the sport with some intense weekend training. Again it was great to see many of our girls take the opportunity to be part of this squad too.
The Great Britain Squad Trials took place on 12th May in Aldershot. Lisa Marsh, Katie Dawkins and Becky MacEnrie all took part in the Trials; Lisa was placed 7th in the junior trial, successfully earning herself a place in the Great Britain Junior Squad. The Junior Squad had a 5 week training camp before going straight on to the Junior Europeans in Spain where they came 8th in the Free Combination Team and 9th in the Free Team. In the figure competition Lisa was placed 2nd GB athlete.
In the senior trials Katie Dawkins came 4th and progressed from the Great Britain Junior to Senior Squad. Initially Becky MacEnrie came 10th and therefore just missed the opportunity by one place, however due to one of the other swimmers not accepting the place a retrial took place where Becky successfully gained in a place in the Senior Squad along with Katie. Congratulations to Lisa, Katie and Becky.
As part of the Great Britain Senior Squad, who are training towards the 2012 Olympic Games, Katie and Becky have moved to Aldershot where the Great Britain Senior Squad have centralized. We obviously miss having the experience of Katie and Becky at our club sessions but know that they will bring back with them a wealth of knowledge, new techniques and a higher standard for our swimmers to aspire to in the future.
Anya Tarasiuk, Charlotte Frost, Isobel Collings, Fern Perry and Alex O’Mahony all attended two training camps – one over Easter and one in the Summer as part of the National Youth Development Squad.
On 8 September an “open” selection day was held for promising youngsters in the South West who wished to be considered for the Talent ID Squad for 2008. The standard this year had improved dramatically from last year. Congratulations to the following athletes who were offered places in the 2008 Squad:
Megan Dymmock-Morgan / Fiona Molnar / Lauren McNamara / Georgia Fredericks / Hannah Teague / Charlotte Sissons / Sophie Tamlyn / Meg Simmonds / Nancy Gorely.
Rachael Milliner and Corrie Leach were admitted into the Academy Development Squad for 2008.
At the Walsall Trophy Competition in Taunton, Bristol Central entered 3 duets. Our Skills 2 came 1st, our Skills 1 came equal 1st and the Skills 0 who are only 10 came 4th which was very good considering they were swimming against people twice their age (and size). It was good experience and Bristol Central came 2nd overall.
The 6th October saw the first Multi Regional Age Group competition, this included London, South East and South West Regions. Full results can be provided if you haven’t seen them already. It was felt that the overall standard was very good and that we should aim to keep this competition as a Multi Regional event, it offers a good pre competition warm up to the National Age Groups and British Championships and provides good all round competition experience for all swimmers. From these results the Western Counties Academy Elite Squad was selected for 2008. Congratulations to Anya Tarasiuk, Alex O’Mahony, Leanne Summerbee, Charlotte Frost, Alice Dale, Fern Perry, Anastasia Bates, Laveena Chana, Sofia Riesco, Isobel Collings & Emma Holloway.
The 2007 British Championships and National Age Groups will again be a combined event which takes place on 1st & 2nd December in Gloucester. It is fantastic that Bristol Central will have 2 x 12U Squads, 2 x 13/14 Squads, a 15/17 squad and a Senior Squad – a total of approx 45 swimmers. Please do come along and offer your support to the club.
On the 8th December there is a trial for the Western Counties Development Squad at Quantock.
Due to the timing of the British Championships and National Age Groups, and the preparation involved prior to this event, we will not be holding a Christmas Show as we have done in previous years but we will be putting on a display of this year’s routines on 16th December, further details will be available shortly.
As some of you may be aware Lynne Sissons will be stepping down from her current role of Director at the end of the year. I am sure you will all agree that Lynne has done a superb job and we would all like to say a huge thank you to Lynne for all her time and effort over the years.
And finally, a BIG thank you to ALL the coaches, helpers, judges, scorers, and the many ‘behind the scene’ helpers who have given their time voluntarily throughout the year. If there are any parents out there who could help in anyway please let us know.
Nikki Abbott
|
