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Year 2008

Dover Lifeguard Club held their annual awards night at the Phoenix club on 22nd December. This was the club’s opportunity to recognise all those who have enjoyed success throughout the year. The awards for the last years Boxing day dip and 1 hour Postal swim had been awarded earlier .

The first awards of the night went to those who are the future of the club , the youngest age group swimmers from the club championships.

In the boys 9/under age group there was 1st place for Lee Sheppard, 2nd for Ben Crosland and joint 3rd for brothers Jake and Kyle Miller.The girls 9/under had 1st place for Kira Tranter, 2nd for Isabella Beardsmore, and 3rd for Marysia Abbott.

National Swimming League at Horsham

Results

Dover Lifeguards travelled to the Kingsmead pool in Canterbury to take part in the Thanet Swim Club’s annual winter meet, looking to secure more qualifying times for next year’s Kent championships. There were a large number of personal bests achieved over the two days and some good club points accumulated with top six finishes across all age groups.

Callum Basford maintained his recent good form, with Kent times in: 400 free (4.49.34 5th), 200 free (2.16.15 6th), and 200 breast (2.49.96 1st). Callum also finished first in the 200 fly which he already has a Kent qualifying time in. His twin sister Megan also achieved a Kent time in the 200 back (2.33.09 2nd), Megan went on to achieve personal bests in the 400 IM (5.46.89 3rd), 200 free (2.24.20), and she finished a comfortable first in the 50 backstroke.

Luke Menniss had a good weekend with personal bests in the 400 free (4.51.97), 50 fly (34.41), and 200 back (2.36.67). Luke gained sixth place in the 200 IM in 2.44.63. Young star Ben Evans, who is recovering from a recent cold, still achieved three top six finishes: 3rd 400 IM with a Kent time 5.43.20, 4th in the 200m fly and 6th in the 50m back. Kieron Menniss achieved personal bests in the 200m breast and 200m freestyle and 10 year old Chris Clarke also achieved PB’s in the 200m breast and 50m back.

Evan Waters had a successful weekend with two Kent times- 50m freestyle and 200 IM. He also finished fifth in the 400 IM with a new personal best time and 5th in the 50m back. Rob Dawson, swimming in the 16 year age group, achieved third place in the 50m back and 50m fly, and sixth place in the 50m freestyle. 14 year old Matt Farran grabbed valuable team points for Dover, with first place in the 200m free, 50m fly, and 50m back (Kent time), and also finished third in the 200 IM. Tasha Hyde finished fourth in the 400 IM.

Katie Latham was targeting two events at this meet and she swam personal bests in the 200m fly (3.04.13), and produced a stunning swim in the 200m IM (2.41.06 Kent time). Sophie Waller, one of Dover’s youngest and brightest prospects, finished first in the 200m breast and 50m breast (both Kent times), second in the 50m back and 200 IM (Kent time), and fourth in the 50m freestyle, bringing another large number of team points to Dover. Age group rival, Shannon Smith, finished first in the 200m back (2.56.38 Kent time), 200 free (2.37.51) and 200 IM. Shannon finished second in the 200m breast and 50m breast close behind her team mate, putting in a Kent qualifying time in the 50m breaststroke.

Megan Curtis was fifth in the 200m fly, breaking the three minute mark and grabbing a Kent qualifying time of 2.59.78. She also finished fifth in the 200m freestyle (2.28.00 PB) and 400 IM. Megan finished sixth in the 50m freestyle and produced a personal best of 2.52.44 in the 200 IM. Grace Beer produced personal bests in all four of her swims- 50m fly (41.06), 50m breast (45.19), 200m IM (3.07.01) and 200m breast (3.29.30). Another of Dover’s young rising stars, Gemma Lawson, shrugged off her recent injury worries with personal best times in 50m back (39.16), 50m breast (45.34), 50m fly (38.27), 200m back (2.52.17), 200 IM (2.59.18) and grabbed a Kent qualifying time in the 50m freestyle with a fourth place finish. Ebony Wright produced personal bests in the 50m back, 200 IM (3.08.99) and 50m fly and Lily Finklestein also produced a PB in the 200 IM of 3.05.78.

Thanks to some determined swimming from all of the ‘guard’s swimmers, when the point’s totals were added the Lifeguards had finished a close second in the top club award. Coach Tim Hyde said “If these swimmers continue this kind of form, we can look forward to some good results in the Kent championships next year.”

A small group of ‘guards’ swimmers also made the journey to Black Lion swimming pool in Gillingham for the annual Dartford B grade gala. This gave the younger swimmers of the team their chance to shine, with Luca De Felice competing in his first open gala. 10 year old Luca produced some fine swims, with top six finishes in all of his races- 50m fly (59.36 3rd), 50m back (55.04 4th), 50m breast (59.41 4th) and 50m free (44.53 5th).

Another newcomer, Ben Crosland, also put in some great swims in all four of his events- 50m breast (58.7 5th), 100 IM (2.03.06 4th), 50m free (46.76), and 50m back (54.64). His team mate, Matt Austin, produced some consistent swims in the 100m back, breast and IM, earning the Dover team a good haul of points.

Twin brothers Tom and Dan Latham produced some fine swims- in the 100m back the boys were within a tenth of a second of each other recording great times of 1.27.83 and 1.27.95 respectively. Dan finished first place in the 100 IM (1.27.32) and 50m fly (38.67), with a second place in the 100m breast (1.42.62). Tom also finished third in the 100m breast (1.44.62), 100 IM (1.34.61), and 50m fly with a massive 6 second PB of 40.55.

When the points had been totalled up, the team had done well with only a small group of swimmers. Coach Tim Hyde said “The debutantes have done us proud- it shows us the bright prospects for the future of the club.”

SPEEDING TICKETS SHOW TEAMS CLASS AND DEPTH at BLACK LION

Results

The younger Members of the Dover Lifeguard squad travelled to the trinity School pool in Croydon on Saturday to take part in the last round of this years Kent Junior League

The gala opened with the young ‘guards showing they were up for a tough night of competition with 1st places in the first five events of the night. Twins Megan and Callum Basford both put in personal best performances in the 100IM, Callum’s time of 1.07.83 also a new club record. There were also first places for Katie Latham (11/u fly, 11/u bk), Ben Evans (11/u fly, 11/u fs), Alice Latham (11/u br), Shannon Smith (10/u fs, 10/u fly), Milly Furneaux (12/u br), Gemma Lawson (11/u fs, 12/u fs) and Sophie Waller (10/u bk, 10/u br). The 9/10yr mixed medley relay team of Cameron Cook, Sophie Waller, Shannon Smith and Kyle Kent kept up the fine swims leading from start to finish to bring in more vital team points with a first place finish.

The points gained from the first place finishes were bolstered with yet more fine swims and 2nd place finishes from Evan Waters(12/u br), Megan Basford (13/u bk), Megan Curtis (12/u fly), Callum Haywood (12/u bk), and Callum Basford (13/u fly). The evenings individual performances had given the team a strong platform to challenge for first place and the relays were to display great determination and the superb “never give up” ethic of the team delivered 1st place in the 11/u fs relay from Katie and Alice Latham, Shannon Smith and Gemma Lawson. There was just one 3rd place finish from the other relays with 2nd places from all of the other relay races for the ‘guards thanks to strong swims from Megan and Callum Basford, Sam Gibbs, Gemma Lawson, Megan Curtis, Milly Furneaux, Evan Waters, Callum Haywood, Dan and Tom Latham, Robin Craft, Ben Evans, Shannon Smith, Rebecca Mercer, Sophie Waller, Conoe Miller, Chris Clark and Kyle Kent.

The Lifeguard ‘s had given their all with great swims from all and their was now a nervous wait as the points were totalled. When the results were announced the ‘guards had finished a very close 2nd on the night which had also secured them 2nd place in the league at the end of a hard season of competition.

Head coach Tim Hyde was impressed with the young team’s performance.  “these youngster are the future of this club and they can all be proud of their achievements this season, the coaching team look forward to helping them develop over the coming years”.

The second round of this year’s National Swimming League took place at the weekend. A sickness bug had accounted for a large number of the guard’s first choice team and the club fielded the smallest team at the event held at Summerfields pool in Hastings.  The squad’s superb team spirit was evident throughout the night as they upset the form book, holding second place after the first block of relays thanks to second places for the boys & girls in the under 12 freestyle relays and second places for the boys under 14 medley and under 16 freestyle relays. This was to prove a very close fought gala with the guards holding on to second place for the first 30 events of 50.

Katie Latham was again on form with a first place in the under 12 backstroke and second in the under 12 fly. Ben Evans, having just missed a weeks training due to the sickness bug, stormed to first place in the under 12 back. Milly Furneaux and Sam Gibbs both secured third places in the under 14 breaststroke, followed by a second place for Alice Latham in the under 12 breaststroke, with third place for Kieron Menniss in the under 11 breaststroke. Megan Curtis showed an excellent display of determination to fight to third place in the under 14 butterfly.

Of all the individual performances of the night, Callum Basford impressed most. He was a close second in the under 14 back, third in the under 16 breaststroke, and first in the under 14 fly with a personal best time of 1.10.17. Callum was also instrumental in bringing in more points for the club as he played a vital role in no less than six relays.

Despite the depleted side of the team the performances of all were astonishing and in a close fought last series of relays the team began to show the fatigue of swimming so many races compared to their opponents. They continued to fight hard but were pushed into fourth place by only a handful of points only 3 wins from second place on the night.
The team had produced some amazing team performances and the whole of the coaching team were proud of their efforts.

Results

A long weekend of competition at the Kingsmead pool in Canterbury saw the youngsters of Dover Lifeguard club digging deep into their energy reserves and producing some excellent results. The 2008 championships came to a close following a gruelling 12 hour schedule of swimming on both days and the lifeguards showed that they had the stamina and speed to deliver impressive results despite the heavy schedule.

Saturday’s session opened with the girls open 50 freestyle, in the youngest age group (9-10yrs) Shannon Smith was impressive as she romped home in 1st place  in the final with team mate Sophie Waller 5th. The 11-12 yr age group saw Dover’s Gemma Lawson and Katie Latham both reaching the final with 5th and 6th place respectively. The 15-16yr age group also had Dover swimmers making the final and Tessa Dunford finished 2nd with Amy Gibbs 3rd..

The Dover boys in the 100m Butterfly swam well and Matt Farran reached the final and finished 4th in the 13-14 yr age group with Robert Dawson finishing 4th also in the 15-16yr age group.

The final of the girls 9-10 100 IM saw Shannon Smith again on good form with a fine 2nd place finish and Sophie Waller 4th producing a good controlled swim throughout.  In the Heat declared winner events (no finals) there were also impressive results from the lifeguard team. The boys 200m Backstroke had Ben Evans crowned as east Invicta champion  in the 9-10 yr age group, Callum Haywood was 6th in the 11-12yrs,Mathew Farran became the 13-14yr champion with team mate Callum Basford 4th, and Luke mennis was 4th in the 15-16 year age group.

The girls 200m Breaststroke had Dover swimmers claiming medals, Sophie Waller was 2nd with Shannon Smith 3rd  (9-10yrs), Katie Latham was 3rd with twin sister Alice 4th in the 11-12yr age group , Tessa Dunford (15-16) and Charlotte Hyde (17-over) were both crowned 2008 champions in their age groups

After a break for lunch the young swimmers resumed where they had left off, the girls 100m backstroke saw Katie Latham 2nd in the final with Gemma Lawson 6th in the 11/12yr age group and Katie Brown finished 6th 13/14yr old. The boys 100m breaststroke had Evan Waters 6th (11/12yr) with Callum Basford 4th (13/14yr).The girls 200m butterfly had Shannon Smith 1st (9-10yr), Abby Taylor Baptie 7th (13-14yr), and Tessa Dunford 2nd (15-16yr). Ben Evans Romped home ahead of the field in the 200 fs to claim the 2008 crown for the 9-10yr age group, 9 seconds ahead of the 2nd placed swimmer.Evan Waters was 6th in the 11-12 yr age group, Mathew Farran was 3rd (13-14yr) with Callum Basford 8th and Luke Menniss was 6th in the  15-16yr age group. The last session of Saturday had more success for the lifeguard team. The gilrs 50m breaststoke had Shannon Smith 2nd and  Sophie Waller 3rd  (9-10yrs), The 9-10 yr boys backstroke produced a stunning swim from Ben Evans who stormed home over 5meters ahead of the field to win the title and record a new east invicta record of 36.46. The girls 100m breaststroke had more good swims from the ‘guards.

In the 11-12 yr age group Katie Latham was 3rd, Milly Furneaux 4th and Alice Latham 5th. Tessa Dunford was 2nd 15-16yrs and Charlotte Hyde 4th 17-over. The Boys 100 backstroke saw Evan waters 4th (11-12yrs) , Matt Farran was crowned 13-14 yr champion after a strong swim and team mate Callum Basford finished 4th. Luke Mennis recorded a new personal best to finish 6th in the 15-16 yr age group. The 200m backstroke for girls had Shannon Smith  with another 1st place in the 9-10yr age group. Katie Latham was another champion for the lifeguards when she finished first in the 11-12 yr age group, Katie Brown was 4th in the 13-14yr age group.

Sunday’s events were to produce some excellent results as the lifeguard used the skills developed from many hours of hard work in training. The girls 100m Butterfly had Katie Latham 5th and Gemma Lawson 6th (11-12yrs).Tessa Dunford was 3rd (15-16yrs).

Ben  Evans gained another championship record in the boys 100 IM , he led from start to finish with a fine display of speed and technique to finish over 5 seconds ahead of his nearest rival in a time of 1.19.38. Mathew Farran Produced another good swim to finish 4th in the 100m freestyle going below the 1min mark with a time of 59.64. Shannon Smith showed more superb swimming with a fine 1st place in the 9-10yr age group of the 200 freestyle with Sophie Waller 3rd. Katie Latham enjoyed more success with a first place in the 11-12yr age group, Megan Curtis was 5th with Alice Latham 7th, Gemma Lawson 9th and in the 15-16 yr age group Tessa Dunford was 3rd. Another east Invicta record fell to Ben Evans in the 200 butterfly when he recorded a time of 2.47.68- a massive 26 seconds ahead of his nearest rival.Callum Basford was 2nd in the 13-14yr age group.

Dover’s youngsters were on form as the afternoon session opened with 1st places in the 50m butterfly for Ben Evans and Shannon Smith (another record time for Ben) and team mate Sophie Waller finished 5th.The girls 100m Freestyle had Katie latham finishing 2nd in the 11-12 yr age group in 1.07.06..Tessa Dunford was 3rd in the 15-16yr age group.

Ben Evans continued his superb form with another 1st place in the 50m freestyle (9-10 yrs) , Evan Waters was 6th (11-12yrs),and  Matt Farran 5th (13-14 yrs). The 200m Breaststroke for boys produced more good results for the Dover team. Ben evans was 2nd in the 9-10yr age group, Evan waters was 5th and Callum Haywood 9th in the 11-12 yr age group, Callum Basford was 1st (13-14 yrs) and Luke Menniss was 3rd (15-16yrs).

The final session of a long weekend continued to produce good results for the lifeguards.  Ben Evans and Shannon Smith picked up another crown each when they both finished 1st in their respective 9-10yr finals , Ben in the 50m breaststroke and Shannon in the 50m breaststroke. Sophie Waller was 5th in the 50m breaststroke to bring in more championship points for the lifeguard team.

In the 200 IM , Shannon Smith finished 1st (9-10yr), Katie Latham 2nd (11-12yr), Katie Brown 5th (13-14yr), Megan Basford 8th (13-14), Tessa Dunford 2nd (15-16yr) and Charlotte Hyde 2nd ( 17+).

When the total championship points were added together the Lifeguards had performed well against some much larger squads . The Girls had finished 2nd overall and the boys 3rd.

“the swimmers were in stunning form and the final placings of 2nd and 3rd are well deserved and a good indication of the dedication and Talent of this young team”

The East Invicta championships 2008 continued on Sunday 12th October with the relays and 400m events being held in the afternoon and evening. Many of the swimmers were tired after their long trek home form the previous nights national league gala but they soon shrugged this off to get on with job of racing.

The 9/10 yr girls relay team of Sophie Waller, Rebecca Mercer, Alex Harding and Shannon Smith swam well to reach the final and finished 4th overall in the freestyle and 3rd in the medley.

The girls 11/12yrs freestyle team (Megan Curtis, Katie Latham, Milly Furneaux and Gemma Lawson) went one better and reached the final to finish 3rd overall. The 13/14yr boys medley Team (Matt Farran. Sam Gibbs, Callum Basford, and Lewis Young) were on form and they too made the final to finish 3rd overall.

The girls 15/16 yr team of Tessa Dunford, Amy Gibbs, Amy Bacmeister and Ione Walker were 3rd in their freestyle final and 2nd in their medley after showing a great fighting spirit..

The 11/12 yr boys team of Tom Latham, Evan Waters, Dan Latham and Ben Strachan also had a good swim to finish 4th overall.

The 400 individual medley for girls (classed by some as the hardest event in the pool) saw the lifeguards well represented. Katie Latham was 2nd the 11/12yr age group (5.55.30) Megan Curtis was 3rd in 5.59.49. Katie Brown was 4th in the 13/14 age group with Megan Basford 5th and Tasha Hyde 6th. The 15/16 yr age group had Tessa Dunford 3rd.

The 400 freestyle for boys had Evan Waters 4th (11/12), Callum Basford 4th (13/14) and Luke Menniss 3rd (15/16).

The evening saw more exciting relay action and the Dover Boys 9/10 yr team of Kyle Kent, Cameron Cook, Robin Craft and Ben Evans finished 3rd in the finals of both the freestyle and medley.

The 11/12 yr boys finished 5th in the freestyle final with good swims from Evan Waters, Ben Strachan, Dan Latham and twin Tom Latham. The 13/14 girls medley team (Megan Basford, Katie Brown, Tasha Hyde and Abby Taylor Baptie) looked impressive and were unlucky to finish 4th in their final.

The boys 13/14 freestyle team (Matt Farran, Sam Gibbs, Lewis Young and Callum Basford) secured 3rd place in a close fought race.

The girls 11/12 yr saw a fantastic finish to a hard fought race with the Dover team snatching victory in the final. Katie Latham, Milly Furneaux, Megan Curtis and Gemma Lawson (Pictured) were in unstoppable form to bring the trophy back for Dover.

The boys 400 freestyle had Dover’s Callum Basford 4th in the 13/14 age group and the Girls 400 freestyle had Megan Curtis 2nd and Katie Latham 4th in the 11/12 yr age group.

Following a hard day of competition in the relay events Dover lifeguard club had finished 3rd overall in the 2008 East Invicta relay championships.

Dover lifeguard club opened this year’s national swimming league (formerly speedo league) with an away fixture at the new excel leisure complex at Elmbridge in surrey at the weekend.

The team had been unfortunate in the week leading up to the gala with injuries being sustained by some of their key swimmers following accidents which resulted in broken fingers, fractured shoulders and various other injuries which meant that the squad was seriously weakened but still focussed on the challenge ahead.

Tessa Dunford opened the gala with a storming swim and personal best time of 1.12.98 in the 100m individual medley. The 11/u girls fs relay team of Katie Latham, Shannon Smith, Alice Latham and Gemma Lawson were unstoppable and led from the start, extending their lead over the 4 legs of the race to finish 1st.

Katie Latham and Ben Evans swam the 11/u backstroke individual events with Katie finishing a comfortable 1st place and Ben in 2nd place in the boys event. Katie Latham was on form again in the 11/u butterfly to finish a close 2nd with Ben 3rd in the same event for the boys.
Twins, Callum and Megan Basford were also swimming well with 1st place for Megan and 2nd for Callum in the 13/u backstroke. Alice Latham, twin of Katie, produced a fine swim in the 11/u breaststroke to finish 1st in a time of 42.96.

Gemma Lawson, recently returned from along term injury herself set a blistering pace in the 11/u fs to touch in first place ahead of some very good competition. Tessa Dunford snatched 1st place for the ‘guards in the 15/u breaststroke and Sam Gibbs was 2nd in the 13/u 100m fs. The last set of relays saw the lifeguard team fighting for points across every leg of every race. The 11/u medley team of Twins Katie and Alice Latham, Shannon Smith and Gemma Lawson finshed a fine 1st place with all of the other teams grabbing points where they could.

The team had put in a brave effort but had been pushed into 5th place by just 1 point when the score were totalled at the end. Coach Tim Hyde was optimistic about the rest of the season. “the swimmers did the club proud tonight, they all played their parts well, with the return of our injured swimmers over the next rounds we will build on this result”

Lewis & Abbey Report - English Channel Relay

Club Championships News 2008

The youngsters of the Dover lifeguard squad produced some fine swims in their first gala of the new season following on from a 2 day training camp at the town’s Duke of York School.

The importance of preparation and attention to detail of swimming were emphasised at the camp and the swimmers used this well on a night of close competition. The gala opened with the squadron breaststroke relay. Brooke Amos, Kate Holt, Sophie Waller,Grace Beer,Milly Furneaux, Tasha Hyde,Chris Clarke, Kieron Menniss, Dan Latham,Callum Meadows, Luke Menniss and Callum Bowers showed a great team spirit as the lead changed hands over the course of the 12 legs but the Dover team fought back and finished ahead of the field.

The first series of individual events had some good performances from the team with 2nd places for Tasha Hyde (18u back-37.25),Amelia Beardsmore (11/u breast-50.39), Brooke Amos (9/u free-40.24), and Rebecca Mercer (10/u back-50.01). On top of this fine set of swims there were speeding tickets for Callum Bowers (15/u breast-39.87), Chris Clarke(10/u IM-1.42.20) and Kate Holt (10/u IM-1.39.61).

As the gala progressed the team showed some great determination. There were more speeding tickets-which are classed as a badge of honour, meaning that swimmers have surpassed the level of this set of gala’s- above first place finishes, with the club receiving no gala points for the swim to ensure fair play. Luke Menniss(15/u back -36.73) and India Ribbans (11/u free-37.72) both received speeding tickets . India’s achievement being that much greater as this was her first ever gala, coping with her nerves well having only recently joined the competitive squad.

In the other individual events of the night there were also some good performances . 1st places for Abi Taylor-Baptie (18/u fs-32.89),Cameron Cook(9/u back-44.61), Lily Finklestein(15/u fly-39.01) and Callum Haywood (15/u free-33.23). Supporting these were 2nd places from Matt Austin(11/u back-44.56),Chris Clarke(9/u breast-54.54), Grace Beer(12/u free-36.24),Leah Meadows(10/u free-44.00),Abi Taylor-Baptie(18/u IM-1.23.23),and Ebony Wright(12/u Back-41.28)

The display of determination and guts in the individual races was only surpassed by the youngsters efforts in the relays throughout the night, there were only 2 relay events when the Dover team finished out of the top 3 placings.The 11/u team of Amelia Beardsmore,Sophie Waller, Dan Latham , Matt Austin and Kyle Kent were in awesome form when they finished 1st in both the freestyle relay and medley event.The 9/u team of Cameron Cook, Marysia Abbott, Chris Clarke,Leah Meadows and Brooke Amos finished 1st in the freestyle relay and 3rd in the medley. The 15/u team repeated enjoyed the same placing with fine swims from Milly Furneaux,Callum Bowers,Lily Finklestein, Luke Menniss and Callum Haywood.

All of the other ‘guards relays swam well with more top 3 finishes adding to the team’s points total.  When the final points were totalled there was a very close finish with the top 3 teams separated by a handful of points. The Dover team had fought hard and secured a good 2nd place finish.

Coach Tim Hyde was pleased with the team’s performance-“the effects of the camp are clearly having an impact with many of these swimmers looking more focussed and better prepared than before. This gives us a great launch pad for the rest of the season and we look forward to the challenges ahead.” “ I was particularly impressed with the team spirit, the more seasoned swimmers helped put the new comers at ease and this ensured that they produced the good swims on the night. Our relay teams dislayed a true never give up attitude which will serve them well in their swimming careers”

Awards on the night went to:
Best Boy-Callum Bowers
Best Girl-India Ribbans
Best Overall performance-Amelia Beardsmore

Tom Russell goes to Windermere 6th September 2008

After just over two hard months of training in Dover harbour, 7 swimmers from Dover Life Guard Club were ready to take on the English Channel as a relay team. Their training objective was to be able to condition themselves to deal with the cold water, changing sea and weather conditions, swim for one and a half hours twice with a one hour break in between and to complete a night training session in total darkness with only glow sticks and a rescue boat for safety.

All 7 swimmers met their objectives and were on stand by to go at the end of July. The weather was good and we met our boat the Ocean Breeze and the pilot Dave Whyte at Dover Marina on 30th July at 07:00. We set off for Sanphire Hoe beach at 07:30 and the first swimmer swam to the beach and started the swim at 07:58. The swim started on a slack tide, the sun was strong, there was no wind and the sea was flat which was perfect conditions for a channel swim.

We were extremely lucky as the weather and sea conditions did not change for the duration of the swim. The swim was successful with all swimmers swimming very hard and fast legs of their swim to finish on the sandy beach under Cap Blanc Nez in a very respectable time of 10 hours and 2 minutes. We were also privileged to have had the company of a small pod of dolphin for a short period of time at the beginning of the swim.

The relay team consists of 6 swimmers who must swim for one hour each in the same order until they arrive in France clear of the water. At the final 400 meters, all the team can enter the water if it is day light and safe to swim in to the beach behind the lead swimmer to finish together. The added bonus to this successful attempt of the English Channel was for the swimmers to be greeted by some of the teams parents who had taken the ferry over to France and monitored their progress from the French cliff tops before rushing down to the beach to greet them as they finished. The swimmers were allowed 5 minutes to celebrate, take photos and collect shells and pebbles to bring home as mementoes before having to swim back out to the escort boat for the return trip.  

All of the team trained very hard to take on one of the hardest open water swims in the world and all deserved their success. I am very proud to have been able to coach them. Well done.

The team were:

Dan Seagrove-Castle, Dominika Szucsova, Sophie Tills, Tessa Dunford, Danni Pryor, Katie Brown, Lewis Young (Reserve)

Dawn Bissett (Chaperone), Lee Wakeham   (Coach)

Also on the 27th July Michelle Toptalo who is also a Dover Life Guard Club member swam a successful solo swim across the English Channel in 15 hours 14 minutes.

SWIM 21 report of evening celebration

Season ends on a high for Lifeguards

Dover Lifeguards’ enjoyed another successful weekend when they took part in the 6th Herne Bay Open Gala at the Kingsmead pool in Canterbury on Saturday. There were some fine swims from across the squad as they chalked up many personal bests performances, and reaped the rewards of their high training regime.

Sophie Waller continued her recent surge of improvements with a new personal best of 42.91 in the butterfly and a fifth place finish in the final. She then went on to record a massive 14 second personal best in the 100m freestyle with a time of 1.21.01. In Sophie’s last swim of the day, the 100m breaststroke, she was again on form and recorded two personal bests along the way to a fifth place in the final in a time of 1.39.28.

Other swimmers on form with PB's were:

Grace Beer- 100m back 1.30.55 (4 second PB), 100m breast 1.41.56 (5 seconds), 100m fly 1.35.17 (4 second PB), 100m free 1.20.38 ( 5 second PB)

Megan Curtis- 100m back 1.23.53 (5 second PB), 100m breast 1.38.49

Ben Fiddock- 100m breast 2.10.38 (2 second PB), 100m free 1.36.34 (19 second PB)

Ben Squirrel- 100m breast 1.52.41 (10 second PB), 100m free 1.34.35 (15 second PB)

Dan Latham- 100m back 1.32.20, 100m breast 1.46.32 (3 second PB), 100m fly 1.33.48

Tom Latham- 100m back 1.28.33 (4 second PB), 100m breast 1.52.41 (3 second PB), 100m free 1.22.64 (5 second PB)

Callum Haywood- 100m back 1.24.72, 100m breast 1.42.07 (4 second PB), 100m free 1.14.36 (2 second PB)

Abby Taylor-Baptie- 100m breast 1.34.82, 100m free 1.13.54

Callum Bowers- 100m back 1.18.98 (10 second PB), 100m breast 1.34.37 (17 second PB), and 100 m free 1.07.24 (17 second PB)

Matt Farran- 100m breast 1.25.77 (5 second PB), 100m fly 1.10.12

Luke Menniss- 100m free 1.03.92 (2 second PB), 100m fly 1.31.31 (2 second PB), 100m back 1.19.32

Conor Miller- 100m free 1.28.66 (9 second PB), 100m back 1.36.01 (3 second PB), 100m breast 2.01.94 (15 second PB)

Chris Clark- 100m free 1.30.84 (4 second PB), 100m back 1.50.35, 100m breast 1.56.91 (6 second PB)

Robin Craft- 100m free 1.29.34 (3 second PB), 100m back 1.44.28 (5 second PB)

Evan Waters- 100m breast 1.37.31

Mollie Allen- 100m breast 1.40.63 (5 second PB)

Kyle Kent- 100m breast 2.01.28 (4 second PB)

Cameron Cook- 100m back 1.37.18 (3 second PB), 100m breast 2.05.40 (14 second PB)

Kieron Menniss- 100m back 1.58.40 (5 second PB)

Tasha Hyde- 100m fly 1.18.08

When the points totals were added, the Dover team had finished fifth placed visiting club with great points hauls from the following:

Matt Farran- 5th overall 13/14 boys

Sophie Waller- 6th overall 9/10 girls

Mollie Allen- 9th overall 9/10 girls

Megan Curtis- 8th overall 11/12 girls

However, the brightest star of the day was the guards’ Ben Evans who recorded new event bests for the Herne Bay Open Championship and gold medals in the 50m fly (34.45), 100m back (1.20.00), 100m free (1.10.66) and 100m breast (1.36.15). This secured Ben the top boy trophy in the 9/10 age group.

Coach Tim Hyde was impressed with the whole team’s performance and was amazed at the huge PB's the entire squad had managed to put in. “Ben’s total domination of all events was an inspiration to his team mates. He is reaping the reward of his great training ethic.”

WhiteCliffs Report

Today 22nd June 2008 was cloudy with broken sunshine and a strong South Westerly wind gusting at 21-28 mph which was causing a choppy sea outside of the shelter of the Prince of Wales Pier. The sea temperature was 59f and still rising.

There were 11 swimmers for the 400 club championship freestyle race which included new comers Paris Bates and Abbey Taylor-Baptie. This was a tough swim as swimmers were punching into the wind and tide to finish by touching the Prince of Wales Pier. Well done to Paris for battling the conditions and not giving up. Due to the weather there were no club records beaten.

10 of these swimmers continued racing after calling their number to the placing and timing judges for the 800 freestyle race. The 800 meter race is an additional race which is incorporated into the club championship races to form a mini series (200, 400, 800 & 1000 freestyle). All swimmers finished this race and would have found the return 400 meters a different swim with the wind and tide behind them. All swimmers finished strong and returned to the headquarters for a hot drink and to warm up before the 1000 meter freestyle race.

The 1000 meter freestyle race was a testing race for all. The wind and tide was behind the swimmers, but the sea was choppy and required the swimmers to use their strength and ability to adapt their stroke to the conditions especially between the two jetties where the sea was bouncing back off the wall and causing a confused sea which is difficult to swim in. All swimmers should be pleased with their performance in this race.

Results can be found on the open water page.

Well done to all. Lee.

RLSS Lifesaving Success - Bronze Medallion & Life Support

First round Kent Junior League 2008

The Dover Lifeguard Squad was in action last weekend. Almost every competitive squad member was competing as the club took part in 3 levels of competition over the two days.

There was a small contingent of the younger squad swimmers who made the trek to the South East Regional Championships, which was running over both days. This involved all of the top youngsters under 14 years old from the best teams across the South East. (See separate report)

Those not taking part at the South East Regionals were swimming in international competition against Calais in the Festival of Sport at Dover on Saturday. The Dover team swam well, and showed the excellent team spirit which was been evident of late to storm through to a comfortable victory over their French counterparts. The Dover girls relay teams won every race they took part in with the boys performing almost as well but the French team were snatching winning places here and there.

The individual races saw some excellent swims with personal bests from Milly Furneaux, Grace Beer, Mollie Allen, Rebecca Mercer and Robin Craft all in the 50m backstroke in their respective age groups. Megan Curtis, Sophie Waller and Rebecca Mercer all put in PB’s in the 50m breast, and with Callum Bowers and Callum Meadows recording PB's in the butterfly the Dover team finished comfortably ahead of the Calais team.

Following on from the great performance of Saturday a large number of the Dover squad trekked to the Kingsmead pool in Canterbury on Sunday to take part in the annual Margate Open gala. Almost every swimmer recorded personal bests in the friendly atmosphere created by the Margate club.

The ‘Guards had a fine haul of medals and trophies from the gala as the youngsters used the opportunity to gain valuable competition experience. There medals and trophies for all finalists. For Dover these were: Callum Bowers (5th Back and Breast, 4th Fly), Oliver Latham (6th Back), Tom Latham (3rd Back and 5th Breast), Robin Craft (6th Fly and Free), Brad Harvey (2nd Fly and 3rd Breast), Dan Latham (2nd Fly and 6th Breast).

For the girls there were also a good haul of trophies with the following top six placings: Tasha Hyde (2nd Breast and Fly, 6th Back), Sophie Waller (2nd Breast, 5th Back, 6th Free and Fly), Mollie Allen (1st Back, Free and Breast), Ebony Wright (5th Fly), Abby Taylor-Baptie (6th Breast) and Alice Latham (2nd Breast).

Coach Tim Hyde reflected on a weekend of hectic competition action.

“To be able to compete at 3 venues at 3 different levels of competition is an indication of the dedication of the swimmers and poolside team. We have enjoyed some great successes over the weekend and the whole team should be proud of themselves.”

Dover Lifeguards had a weekend of international competition when they attended the 11th international challenge “des 6 Bourgeois”. This competition was attended by clubs from France, Holland, Belgium and Great Britain. This year’s trip was supported by P&O ferries and Dover Harbour Board. The ‘guards’ were keen to do well following last year’s first place finish. The competition was held over two days of the weekend encompassing all four strokes plus 100m individual medley.

On the Saturday, this young lifeguard squad were in impressive form gaining points from all top ten finishes. In the 10 years fly there was second place for Chris Clarke (52.75), fourth for Kyle Kent (55.71), sixth for Robin Craft (57.70), seventh for Dominic Wild (59.00) and ninth for Kieron Menniss (1.02.75). In the 11 year age group, Ben Evans was first (35.98), Jamie Woodard second (39.06) and Matt Austin ninth (57.45). The twelve year age group also had successes with Sacha Wild fifth (40.28), Dan Latham sixth (40.59), Evan Waters seventh (41.82), Callum Haywood eighth (46.45) and Callum Meadows tenth (50.37). The 13 year age group had Sam Gibbs first (34.16) and Callum Basford third (34.48). The 14 year age group saw the lifeguards’ take a clear sweep of the top three places. Bradley Harvey 1st (31.50), Sam Woodard 2nd (31.71) and Matt Farran 3rd (32.24), Lewis Young also gained points for the team when he finished tenth in 40.90. In the 15 year age group, Callum Bowers finished fourth and Luke Menniss fifth. The oldest boy for the lifeguards was Tom Jefferson who finished third in the 16/u age group.

The girls ten year fly had first place for Shannon Smith, Mollie Allen fourth and Sophie Waller seventh. The girls eleven year age group saw the lifeguards take all top 5 places: Katie Latham 1st, Gemma Lawson 2nd, Ebony Wright 3rd, Grace Beer 4th and Alice Latham 5th. Courtney Tranter finished 8th. In the 12 year age group, Megan Curtis was first, Edith Cooke 3rd and Milly Furneaux 8th. The lifeguards finished first in the 13/14 and 15 year age groups with superb swims from Megan Basford, Tasha Hyde and Tessa Dunford respectively. Abby Taylor Baptie was 8th (14 years), Amy Gibbs 2nd (15 years) and Katie Brown 5th (15 years). Amy Bacmeister was 3rd in the 16 years age group and Siobhan Philpot won the Masters in 39.64.

The boys backstroke produced some good results too. The ten year age group: Dominic Wild 2nd, Cameron Cook 3rd, Chris Clarke 4th, Robin Craft 6th, Kyle Kent 7th, Kieron Menniss 8th. The 11 year age group saw Ben Evans and Jamie Woodard first and second respectively with Matt Austin 5th. The 12 year age group had Callum Haywood 3rd, Evan Waters 5th, Tom Latham 6th, Sacha Wild 7th, Callum Meadows 8th and Dan Latham 10th. The 13 year age group had first for Callum Basford, 4th for Sam Gibbs and 10th for Matt Menniss. The fourteen year old boys repeated their butterfly result with first- third for Matt Farran, Sam Woodard and Bradley Harvey. Oliver Latham was eighth. Luke Menniss finished third in the 15 year age group with Callum Bowers close behind in sixth. Tom Jefferson produced another third place finish in the 16 year age group.

There was a repeat performance from the girls with special mention to Shannon Smith first in the 10 year age group, Mollie Allen 3rd, and Sophie Waller 6th. The 11 year age group saw top five places for Katie Latham, Gemma Lawson, Ebony Wright, Grace Beer and Alice Latham. Megan Curtis was fourth in the twelve years age group, Edith Cooke 8th and Milly Furneaux 9th. Megan Basford was first in the 13 year age group and there were top six finishes for Tasha Hyde 3rd, Tessa Dunford 4th, Katie Brown 5th, Amy Bacmeister 2nd and Siobhan Philpot 2nd.

The day’s competition finished with the home club hosting a disco for all, which was a great opportunity to extend the entente cordiale with many friendships being forged.
The next day’s competition opened with the Dover team in first place but they were going to have to fight hard to hold off a challenge from the Calais team.

In the breaststroke, there was second place in the 10 year age group for Dominic Wild, Chris Clarke 4th, and Kieron Menniss 5th. In the 11 year age group, Ben Evans was third and Jamie Woodard 6th. The twelve year age group saw a good haul of points with Evan Waters 3rd, Sacha Wild 4th, Callum Haywood 5th, Tom Latham 6th, Callum Meadows 7th and Dan Latham 9th. Sam Gibbs and Callum Basford saw first and second respectively in the thirteen year age group. Matt Farran maintained his good form with second in the 14 year age group, Sam Woodard 4th and Bradley Harvey 5th. Luke Menniss and Callum Bowers were sixth and seventh in the 15 years age group.

The girls breaststroke saw top three finishes for Shannon Smith, Mollie Allen and Sophie Waller (10 years), Katie Latham, Alice Latham and Gemma Lawson (11 years). Milly Furneaux was second in the 12 years with Megan Curtis fourth. Tasha Hyde was first in the fourteen years, with Tessa Dunford, Amy Gibbs and Katie Brown all finishing in the top 6 in the 15 year age group. Siobhan Philpot was second again in the Masters.

The freestyle had top six finishes in the ten year age group for Robin Craft, Dominic Wild, Chris Clarke, Kyle Kent and Kieron Menniss. There were also top six finishes for Ben Evans (1st 11), Jamie Woodard (2nd11), Evan Waters (3rd 12), Sacha Wild (4th 12), Callum Haywood (6th 12), Sam Gibbs (1st 13), Callum Basford (4th 13), Matt Farran (1st 14), Sam Woodard (2nd 14), Bradley Harvey (3rd 14), Luke Menniss (2nd 15), Callum Bowers (4th 15), and Tom Jefferson (1st 16).

The fight for first place was now very close due to the high number of swimmers that the Calais team were able to field. The Dover team continued about its business and there were top 6 finishes for: Shannon Smith (1st 10), Mollie Allen (3rd 10), Sophie Waller (6th 10), Gemma Lawson (2nd 11), Katie Latham (3rd 11), Alice Latham (4th 11), Ebony Wright (5th 11), Grace Beer (6th 11), Megan Curtis (1st 12), Megan Basford (1st 13), Abby Taylor Baptie (6th 14), Tessa Dunford (3rd 15), Amy Gibbs (5th 15), Katie Brown (6th 15), Amy Bacmeister (4th 16) and Siobhan Philpot was second.

The Dover team had performed spectacularly well but when the points were totalled up they had been overwhelmed by the larger numbers of Calais swimmers who had accumulated an unassailable points total. Despite so many top 6 finishes the team had finished second due largely to the fact that there were age groups where the team had been unrepresented. Coach Tim Hyde was pleased with the performance and congratulated his young team on their determination in the face of a much larger team.

Congratulations to the following, who passed their competitive start exam recently:

• Cameron Cook

• Robin Craft

• Ben Fidock

• Kyle Kent

• Kieron Menniss

• Josh Rhydderch

Saturday saw the relay events at this years Kent ASA swimming championships held at the Black Lion pool in Gillingham.

There were some good team performances from all of the swimmers across all age groups. There were final placings for the 12/u boys fs team of Jamie Woodard, Ben Evans, Evan Waters and Sam Gibbs who finished 6th and a 4th place in the final for the boys 13/14 fs team of Matt Farran, Bradley Harvey, Sam Woodard and Callum Basford.

Sunday saw the individual events recommence. It was to prove a good day for many of the swimmers.

The girls 50m fly saw PBs from Megan Curtis (37.53) and Megan Basford (34.26). The boys 50m back also saw improvements on entry times for Ben Evans (36.54- 2nd 10 year old), Callum Basford (34.25) and Sam Woodard (32.75. Katie Brown was Dover's only representative in the ladies open 100m back and swam well to produce a personal best of 1.16.23.

It was then the turn of “Pocket Rocket” Ben Evans in the 200m butterfly. Ben fought hard from start to finish, demonstrating some excellent stroke technique, when he finished strongly with an 8 second PB to finish with a new kent record time of 2.55.84.

The afternoon session was to produce more good swims from the team. In the girls 50m fs Mollie Allen finished 5th in a new PB of 37.19. Shannon Smith then knocked over a second off her entry time to finish in 33.69. There was another personal best from Dover youngster Gemma Lawson to push back her already impressive time to 32.40.

In the boys 100m fs Callum Basford (1.05.83) and Matt Farran (1.00.80) both produced new best times. The best performance from the boys was from 13 year old Sam Woodard who knocked a full 4 seconds off of his time to break the 1 minute mark for the first time. His time of 59.86 looked impressive and breaking the 1 minute mark for the 100m fs is comparable to the kudos that used to be attached to the four minute mile in running.

The weekend finished on a high for the club when Megan Curtis continued her recent impressive form when she recorded a massive 14 second personal best in the 400 individual medley. Megan finished 4th in her age group in a time of 6.14.18.

The first weekend of the Kent ASA Swimming Championships saw some impressive performances from the Dover Lifeguard Club swimmers.

The first of the club swimmers into the water this year was Sam Woodard in the 800 freestyle. Sam put in a very controlled performance to record a massive 19 second PB in a time of 9.40 to finish 4th.

Megan Basford swam in the 11-13 100m backstroke, with Megan storming through to finish in a dead heat to become joint Kent Champion in a time of 1.10.78.

Dominic Wild had a good weekend with personal best performances in the 200 breaststroke (3.48.06) and 50 breaststroke (50.29).

Dover’s Tessa Dunford was in excellent form and produced PB’s in the 200 breaststroke (2.57.13) and 100 IM (1.13.95).

In the boys 100m fly Sam Gibbs (1.13.66), Sam Woodard (1.11.61), Matt Farran (1.11.00) and Bradley Harvey (1.08.40) all bettered their entry times with personal bests from all.

Megan Curtis put in a massive 12 second PB in the 200m fly (3.02.28) and followed this up with a 2 second PB in the 100 IM (1.23.42)- looking controlled throughout.

The boys 50m Freestyle, produced some very close finishes and Dover’s Callum Basford (29.94), Sam Gibbs (29.74), Sam Woodard (29.10) all produced PB’s but the best performance came from young Ben Evans who stormed through a class field in the 10 yr age group to record a time of 32.06 and snatch 1st place to become Kent Champion in his age group.

Mollie Allen was another youngster who was performing well and she produced two 2nd places in the 50 breaststroke (47.15) and 100 IM (1.34.85) - both personal bests.

The younger boys set new personal best times in the 200 fs when Jamie Woodard, Ben Evans, Sam Gibbs and Sam Woodard swam well in their heats.

In the girls 100 IM Shannon Smith (1.28.06) and Katie Latham (1.24.92) were also amongst those producing more PB’s.

Amy Gibbs produced a fine swim in the 50 Fly with a 1 second improvement on her entry time finishing in 33.33.

Callum Basford looked impressive as he recorded a personal best performance of 1.13.16 in the 100m backstroke.

The weekend was finished on a high with personal bests in the boys 100 IM from Evan Waters (1.27.21), Ben Evans (1.22.17- 2nd) and Sam Gibbs (1.17.75).

At the close of a long weekend competition, Dover coach Time Hyde reflected on the squad’s performances.

“This was an impressive performance from a mainly young and inexperienced squad. To produce a personal best rate of over 63% was something they can all be proud of”.

Girls in Action at Schools Gala in Gillingham  -  Intermediate Girls

Dover lifeguards development squad took part in the first team gala of 2008 when Folkestone Swimming Club hosted the 3rd developmental gala of the season at the Dover pool. The ‘Guards were looking to maintain their record of the previous year of top 3 finishes in every gala in the series.

The youngsters got off to a flying start with a comfortable win in the breaststroke squadron relay. The team led from start to finish with Mollie Allen and Dominic Wild building a good lead and this lead being extended over every leg by Courteney Tranter, Jamie Woodard, Grace Beer, Dan Latham, Shannon Smith, Callum Haywood, Ella Savage, Luke Menniss, Tasha Hyde and Sam Ward. The team came out with a determined attitude into the individual events with the first 5 races producing personal bests from all of the swimmers.

Megan Curtis earned herself a Kent qualifying time with a superb swim in the 18/u backstroke in a time of 39.68. There were PB’s for Sam Ward in the 18/u back, Tom Latham in the 11/u breaststroke and Grace Beer who picked up a speeding ticket in the 11/u breaststroke with a time of 47.43.

Shannon Smith then stormed home in 1st place in the 9/u freestyle in a time of 34.79. Shannon was to have a great evening with 1st place also in the 9/u fly (42.15), 2nd place in the 12/u breast (46.75) and 3rd in the 12/u back.

Kyle Kent produced some good performances with 2nd place in the 9/u freestyle (40.57) and another 2nd in the 9/u back with a personal best of 45.66.

Jamie Woodard was in great form with personal bests in the 12/u fly (41.07), and 10/u breast (53.87) which earned him a speeding ticket.

Courteney Tranter was not to be out done by her team mates and stormed through with a personal best and speeding ticket in the 10/u back (45.95) and another PB and 1st place in the 10/u backstroke.

Matt Austin held together a solid performance in the 10/u IM to finish 1st in 1.54.25. He followed this up with a 2nd place in the 10/u freestyle (45.79).

Laura Austin, recovering from a recent injury stormed through in the 18/u fly to finish 1st in a time of 36.62.

Edith Cooke, a newcomer in the squad, produced a great swim in the 11/u back with a personal best time of 43.87 and another 1st place for the team.

Callum Meadows was another youngster who was firing on all cylinders on the night and he produced personal bests in the 11/u back (45.44) and the 11/u freestyle (39.76).

One of the teams younger members, Mollie Allen was to produce a truly awesome performance with 1st places in the 9/u breast (48.22 PB), 9/u back (45.36 PB) and 11/u freestyle (39.62). Along with 2nd place in the 10/u fly (47.00 PB), Mollie had raked in valuable points for the team.

Ebony Wright, another swimmer on form, produced PB’s in the 11/u fly (45.90) and 12/u freestyle (36.32- 2nd place).

There was a 1st place for the 9/u freestyle relay team of Mollie Allen, Chris Clarke, Kyle Kent and Shannon Smith and 2nd place for the 11/u freestyle team of Edith Cooke, Ebony Wright, Tom Latham and Callum Meadows. Another 2nd place followed for the 18/u freestyle team of Tom Russell, Megan Curtis, Laura Austin and Sam Ward.

By the half way point of the gala the lifeguard team were on a strong 2nd place overall and looking to chase down first place over the 2nd half of the gala.

The 2nd half of the gala opened well with Katie Brown gaining a new personal best and speeding ticket in the 18/u freestyle in a time of 31.94.

Tom Russell the new men’s captain, then produced a good captains performance with a first place in the 18/u freestyle followed by a 2nd place in the 18/u 100 IM with a new PB of 1.16.76.

Kate Holt (10/u freestyle 46.20), Amy Bacmeister (15/u Fly 41.11) and Luke Menniss (15/u fly 38.90) all produced personal bests with some solid performances from all.

The 9/u medley relay team then stormed home in 1st place with Kyle Kent (Back), Mollie Allen (Br), Shannon Smith (Fly), and Chris Clarke (Fs) all performing well to hold off a strong challenge from the other teams.

The final quarter opened with a good swim from another of the ‘Guards swimmers returning from injury when Tasha Hyde produced a PB in the 18/u breaststroke and 1st place.

Ella Savage showed that her new determination in training was paying off with a good 4th place and personal best in the 15/u freestyle in a time of 34.69.

The last individual race of the night had newcomer Thomas Jefferson swimming the freestyle. Tom was impressive from start to finish and produced a good personal best of 30.81 and earned himself a speeding ticket.

Going into the last set of relays the Dover team were in 2nd place and the team pulled together to produce yet more impressive performances.

There was a 1st place from the 10/u medley team of Kate Holt (Back), Dominic Wild (Br), Jamie Woodard (Fly) and Courteney Tranter (Fs).

The 18/u medley team were just touched into 2nd place but producing great performances were Katie Brown (Back), Sam Ward (Br), Laura Basford (Fly), and Tom Russell (Fs).

In the final relay of the night, the squadron freestyle relay the lead changed hands over each leg. The noise from the cheering crowds and team mates was deafening but the Dover team had the depth and strength to fight through and finish just ahead of the 2nd place team by a hands length.  

When the final point totals were totalled up the Dover Team had finished in second place.

Coach Tim Hyde was impressed with the team’s performance.

“This team of youngsters have produced some fine swims this evening, the determination and skill they have showed really is an indication that all their hard work in training is paying off. The personal best rate of 61% is impressive and they should be proud of themselves.”

Individual awards went to: - Mollie Allen: Best Swimmer - Courteney Tranter: Best Girl - Jamie Woodard: Best Boy.