Lincs County Age Group Championships – Round 3 – 26.03.11

The swimmers from Gainsborough Dolphins brought an end to their 2011 Lincolnshire County Age Groups with more outstanding performances and personal best times. Collecting a further 23 medals in the third and final round at Louth they took their collective total to an impressive 61 medals. Achieving a mammoth 37 top six places at the Meridian Pool it capped a fine month for the Club in their first representation at these championships since the launch of the new club in January. Huge praise not only to the swimmers but to the Club coaches for their efforts in preparing the swimmers. Special mention must go to the commited parents and supporters who bared the heat of the spectator balcony through three consecutive Saturdays to give their rousing support. After collecting his first ever gold the previous week 9 year old James Beresford capped a fine Age Groups with another victory in the 50m breaststroke whilst silver in the 50m freestyle brought his personal tally to eight medals as he ended with a fifth in the 200m freestyle. Top dog for Dolphins was undoubtedly 12 year old Henry Cawte as he won gold, his fifth in total, in the 50m breaststroke whilst he claimed silver medals in the 50m and 200m freestyle to complete his 12 medal haul. Success at last came the way of Megan Stevenson in the girls 16/0 age group as she was finally rewarded with silver in the 200m freestyle and bronze in the 100m backstroke. Also in the medals for the first time this year was Emily Wright in the 16/O 50m breaststroke as she was rewarded with silver whilst in the girls 9 years Molly Creed finished fifth in this event before she gained two bronze medals. In the 200m freestyle she swam a huge life time best and in the 50m freestyle she beat her team mate Shannon Conway into fourth, an event where Emily placed ninth and Megan sixth in the 16/O age group. Medals in this event also came the way of Loveday Beresford as she won a bronze in the 11 years age group with Robyn Dand also claiming bronze in the girls 15 years. Loveday also placed third in the 200m freestyle as did Robyn in the 100m backstroke whilst the latter just missed out in the 50m breaststroke as she finished fourth. Despite suffering with two cracked ribs Aarron Smith swam though the pain to claim  silver in the 13 years 200m butterfly, an event which saw him claim second overall in the boy’s 14/U age group. Aarron also claimed bronze in the 400m Individual Medley (I/M) but missed out on the medals in the 100m backstroke and 50m freestyle as he placed fifth and sixth respectively with a ninth place in the 200m freestyle as he finished with a respective ten medals over the Championships. The mantle of unluckiest swimmer over the three rounds belongs to 13 year old Jack Boulton who despite winning silver in the 50m freestyle again missed the medals as he finished fourth in the 400m I/M, 50m breaststroke and 200m freestyle. Following their success in the 100m breaststroke in the second round both 15 year old David Trickett and 16 year old James Smith again claimed medals in the shorter 50m event. David finished second in his age group with James third in his whilst the former also claimed bronze in the Open age group with James sixth overall. David also won silver in the 15 years 200m butterfly which saw him claim fifth spot in the Open age group whilst he finished sixth in the 50m freestyle. Up against some very fast swimmers James put in some very creditable performances to finish fourth in the 400m I/M, seventh in the 200m freestyle, eighth in the 100m backstroke and 14th in the 50m freestyle. The boys 16/0 age group saw Peter Trickett finish fifth in the 200m butterfly and 11th in the 200m freestyle whilst he was a place behind team mate William Cawte in the 100m backstroke as they placed tenth and 11th. William also placed 16th in the 50m breaststroke while 10 year old William Walmsley gained two personal bests as he came fifth in the 50m freestyle and eighth in the 200m freestyle. More life time bests were achieved by the remaining representatives from the Gainsborough outfit with Lydia Waring (6th 10years 50m freestyle and 7th 50m breaststroke), Charlotte Smith (8th 12 years 50m breaststroke and 12th 100m backstroke) Hollie Watkins (12th 10 years 50m freestyle), Heather Cooke (11th 13 years 50m freestyle and 8th 50m breaststroke), Tonicha Watson and Jaymie Conran both ninth in the 14 and 15 years 50m breaststroke respectively with Georgia McKay (17th 13 years 100m backstroke and 24th 50m freestyle).

Lincs County Age Group Championships – Round 2 – 19.03.11

FOLLOWING the previous week’s success in the first round of the Lincolnshire Age Group Championships the squad of Gainsborough Dolphins swimmers gained even more glory in round two. They returned from the Meres Pool at Grantham having amassed 36 top six places including five gold, seven silver and nine bronze medals. Each and every one of them should be proud of their efforts with some magnificent swims, plenty of personal best times and another successful outing in the last round should see them set a new record for collective medals. There was no doubting the race of the day which came in the Mens Open 100m breaststroke final with 15 year old David Trickett and 16 year old James Smith qualifying. Having already posted the fastest time of the day and personal best in the heats David secured gold in the 15 years age group whilst James also swam faster then previous to claim second in the 16/O age group. The final had the whole gallery on their feet as the two Dolphins swimmers along with two Lincoln Vulcans finalists were neck and neck down all four lengths of the pool. It came down to a very tight finish which saw David secure the silver and James just touched into fourth as both again swam sensational life time bests. These two also posted very fast personal best times as they gained success in the 100m Individual Medley (I/M) with James sixth in his age group and again in the Mens Open final whilst David again claimed silver in the boys 15 years. This duo also claimed a bronze each in their respective 50m butterfly age group whilst James finished a respectable fifth in the 16/O 400m freestyle. The closest finish of the day came in the girls 15 years 50m butterfly as Robyn Dand was rewarded with equal first place with the Boston SC swimmer as the judges could not separate them. Robyn also gained a bronze in the 200m backstroke whilst she placed seventh in the 100m I/M. Continuing their heroics from the first round 12 year old Henry Cawte and 13 year old Aarron Smith were both again in the medals. Double gold was secured by the younger in the 12 years 100m breaststroke and 100m I/M events along with a silver in the 400m freestyle whilst Aarron, despite being ill for some of the week, claimed two silvers (13 years 100m breaststroke and 50m butterfly) whilst he also placed third in the 100m I/M, fourth in the 200m backstroke and sixth in the 400m freestyle. The young starlets were also in tremendous form as 9 year olds James Beresford, Shannon Conway and Molly Creed all swam superbly. After just missing out on his first ever Age Group gold in the first round James made no mistake this time as he was victorious in the 400m freestyle ably supported by two silvers in the 100m I/M and 200m backstroke. Backing up her gold from the first week Shannon claimed two bronze medals with excellent performances in the 50m butterfly and 200m backstroke. Despite her best efforts Molly just missed out on a medal as she placed fifth in the 100m I/M in a life time best. Not to be outdone 10 year old William Walmsley and 11 year old Ewan McKay also secured silverware as they both claimed a deserved bronze in their 50m butterfly age groups whilst William also finished fifth in the 200m backstroke and 7th in the 100m I/M. The final medal was claimed by 11 year old Loveday Beresford as she secured bronze in the 400m freestyle whilst she just missed out on the medals in the 100m I/M finishing fourth. Despite new personal best times unlucky again was 13 year old Jack Boulton who finished fourth twice in the 400m freestyle and 50m butterfly. Jack also placed sixth in his 200m backstroke and 100m I/M events as did Megan Stevenson in the 16/0 100m I/M whilst she placed 8th in the 50m butterfly. 15 year old Ben Dalton and 16 year old Will Cawte were both unfortunate to miss out on medals as they placed 5th and fourth respectively in the 50m butterfly. Ben also finished 7th in his 200m backstroke event with Will 8th in the 16/O age group just behind team mate Peter Trickett in 7th. Peter also took the bragging rights as he finished 10th in the 100m I/M with Will in 17th and the former also claimed 8th in the 400m freestyle. The 13 and 14 year girls age groups are proving the most competitive and they were very creditable performances recorded by Heather Cooke (10th 13 years 50m butterfly), Tonicha Watson (15th 14 years 100m breaststroke and 16th 100m I/M)) and Georgia McKay (22nd 13 years 50m butterfly and 16th 13 years 200m backstroke). The Gainsborough swimmers return to the Meridian Leisure Centre at Louth for the final round in confident mood for more success.

Lincs County Age Group Championships – Round 1 – 12.03.11

THE FIRST wave of Gainsborough Dolphins swimmers travelled to the very impressive Meridian Leisure Centre at Louth last weekend for the first of three consecutive weekends competing at the Lincolnshire County Age Group Championships. Racing against the top swimmers in the County the eighteen representatives managed 31 top six places including six gold’s, five silvers and five bronze  medals. The hard winter training they have endured under the watchful eye of head coach Colin Pitchforth paid dividends from the first event of the day which saw 9 year old James Beresford claim silver in the 50m backstroke. The youngster from Sturton followed this up with two other impressive swims to claim another silver in the 9 years 200m breaststroke before settling for the bronze in the 200m Individual Medley (I/M). Despite having competed at other events nothing can prepare the younger swimmers for their first taste of this level of competition and as with James it was no different for the three girl representatives. Working hard and putting in the practice on her under water work paid huge dividends for 9 year old Shannon Conway who won gold with an impressive personal best time in the 50m backstroke. In the 9 years 200m breaststroke both Molly Creed and Grace Tooke beat the nerves to put in excellent swims with Molly placing fifth but a very harsh call from a judge saw Grace disqualified. Also receiving the rash of the officials on the day was 21 year old Emily Wright who faced the same treatment in her 200m breaststroke race. The stars of the first day were undoubtedly 12 year old Henry Cawte and 13 year old Aarron Smith with the former claiming two gold’s (200m breaststroke and 200m I/M) and one bronze medal in the 100m freestyle. Henry also claimed a silver medal in the boys 14/U overall standings to cap off some superb performances. Victories in the 100m butterfly and 200m breaststroke were followed up with bronze medals in the 200m I/M and 50m backstroke whilst Aarron also finished a creditable seventh in the 100m freestyle. The final gold on the first day was won by Robyn Dand in the girls 15 year age group 50m backstroke. Robyn just missed out on more medals as she finished fourth in the 100m freestyle and butterfly events whilst she finished sixth in the 200m I/M. Proud of his efforts after an excellent winters training saw 13 year old Jack Boulton smash his life time best to claim silver in the 100m freestyle whilst he placed fifth in the 200m I/M and 50m backstroke, sixth in the 200m breaststroke and seventh in the 100m butterfly. Also competing in their first Age Groups was 10 year olds Lydia Waring and William Walmsley with Lydia claiming sixth in the 50m backstroke and William a creditable tenth in the boy’s equivalent. Facing some very talented opposition in the eldest age group 16 year old James Smith claimed bronze in the 200m breaststroke, sixth in the 50m backstroke and two eighth places in the 200m I/M and 100m butterfly events. In his favourite event, the 100m freestyle, he claimed sixth place in his age group and also qualified for the final of the Mens Open event as eight fastest. Improving on his place by one he came home in a respectable time to finish as seventh fastest in the County. In the same event 15 year old David Trickett was nineteen hundredths from beating the magic minute as he finished seventh whilst he finished fourth in the 100m butterfly, fifth in the 200m breaststroke and seventh in the 200m I/M. A silver medal in the 100m freestyle was the reward for 11 year old Loveday Beresford as she competed at her first Age Groups whilst she finished fifth in the 100m butterfly. Dolphins boasted the oldest competitor on the day as 38 year old Chris Webster finished 14th in the 16/O 100m butterfly ahead of team mates Will Cawte (16th) and Peter Trickett (18th). Will also finished seventh in the 50m backstroke with Peter tenth whilst the latter just edged Will out in the 100m freestyle as they finished 19th and 20th respectively. Just missing out on a top six place in two events was Megan Stevenson in the girls 16/O 50m backstroke and 100m freestyle as she finished seventh in both whilst she placed tenth in the 100m butterfly. The remaining representatives at the opening round were Charlotte Smith (10th girls 10 years 50m backstroke), Tonicha Watson (14th girls 14 years 200m breaststroke) and Georgia McKay (18th girls 13 years 50m backstroke and 19th in the 100m butterfly). The Meres Pool at Grantham is the venue for the second round this weekend and is the same pool that hosted the long distance Age Group events last month  in which Henry won silver in the boys 12 years 1500m freestyle and Loveday placed fifth in the girls 11 years 800m freestyle.

Ethos & Values

Tag Line
All striving to achieve our swimming potential.

Ethos
The Club believes that:
Everyone in the club is an individual and is to be respected regardless of their ability and reasons for swimming, from the newest beginners, the swim for fitness and masters swimmers, to the top competitive swimmers aiming for county, regional or national recognition. The teachers and coaches, the behind the scenes administration team, the parents, guardians and family members, without each other we are not a CLUB.

Aims
To deliver high standards of teaching and coaching, to ensure swimmers feel valued and respected, and to help the individual swimmer maximise their potential as they strive to achieve their goals. Whether that be learn to swim all the strokes, swim for fitness, masters, or to compete at the highest level. In a caring, supportive, positive environment where no one feels under pressure from parent, coach or peers.

Values
Opportunity – to give every swimmer and coach the chance to maximise their own potential, and realise their swimming goals.
Team work – to provide a caring, supportive family orientated environment, where everyone involved in the club can work together as a team for the benefit of the individual.
Value and success – giving value for money, whilst achieving the highest possible standards of teaching.
Respect – ensuring the environment encourages swimmers and all involved in the club to enjoy their sport, and to succeed through learning, hard work and mutual support.
Pride – to represent and run the club in a professional, businesslike manner. Expecting all members to do the same to ensure the club is held high esteem in the community.
Health & Fitness – to provide the opportunity for everyone to enjoy swimming as part of a healthy lifestyle.

Lincs Junior Swimming League – Round 1 – 05.03.11

THE Riddings pool at Scunthorpe was the venue as the youngsters of Gainsborough Dolphins gave very impressive performances as they represented their new Club for the first time. The first round of the Lincolnshire Junior League presented them with a tough draw against Cleethorpes and Scunthorpe Aquatics ‘A’, City of Lincoln Pentaqua ‘A’, Thorne Tigers and Lincoln Vulcans ‘B’ although the latter withdrew leaving only four clubs competing. Predictably CASA ‘A’ dominated the early stages with consecutive wins in the first twelve races before 9 year old Ben Ambrose claimed Dolphins first win of the evening in the boys 10/U breaststroke. In the same age group James Beresford also won his backstroke with these two being joined by Ben Crookes and Ben Gravill for a second in their medley relay whilst Max Marshall-Malone replaced the latter for the same result in the freestyle relay. James also claimed a second place in his freestyle while Ben Crookes was third in his butterfly event. The 9 years age group put in some fantastic swims with the girls claiming two wins and four second places in their six events. Chloe Huddart (breaststroke) and Harriet Webster (butterfly) won their individual races with Harriet (freestyle) second and they were joined by Freya Janney and Lucie Blades to claim second places in their relays with Freya (backstroke) also finishing second. Eliot Vasalo (backstroke) and Max (breaststroke) were both impressive to claim third places in their individuals and they were joined by Ben Gravill and Harry Overton for a third place in their freestyle relay. In the 12/U age group the girls edged out the boys with Loveday Beresord (butterfly and freestyle) and Charlotte Smith (breaststroke) claiming superb victories with Charlotte also second in her backstroke event. Hannah King and Zara Thomas joined this pairing to secure second in the freestyle relay and third in the medley event. Two personal best times saw Aidan Clover finish second (freestyle) and third (backstroke) in the boys 12/U age group and he was joined by Zaki Thomas, George Tooke and Thomas Humphreys for a third place finish in their freestyle relay. It was reversed in the 11/U age group as the boys dominated the girls with Ewan McKay impressive. Ewan claimed two first places in the butterfly and freestyle with William Walmsley (backstroke) and Cammron Bower (breaststroke) both third. This trio teamed up with Laurence Hepton for a second place in the freestyle relay with Matthew Overton replacing Laurence as they stormed to victory in the medley relay. In the girls 10/U Grace Tooke (breaststroke), Shannon Conway (backstroke and butterfly) and Molly Creed (freestyle) all finished second as they did in the medley relay as Katie Bindon made up the quartet but an unfortunate disqualification denied them a full house of second places. Lydia Waring swam a fantastic breaststroke race for second in the 11/U age group whilst team mates Aysha Simpson (butterfly) and Lily Blades (freestyle) both finished third as did Lydia in her backstroke race. Alongside Hollie Watkins these three also claimed third places in both their medley and freestyle events. The final event of the evening saw Dolphins have to swim very fast as with one boy and girl from each age group the line up of Chloe, Ben Gravill, Molly, James, Lily, Ewan, Loveday and Aidan secured second place. The Club would like to express their thanks to all the parents and supporters for their resounding support as well as ‘kiddy catchers’ Andy Crookes, Leanne Clover and Wendy Walmsley, time keeper Tony Bindon and coaches Chris Webster, Colin Pitchforth and Nic Clover. Final Result: 1st CASA ‘A’ 207 points; 2nd equal Gainsborough Dolphins and CLP ‘A’ 166; 4th Thorne Tigers 76.