AMERSHAM Swimming Club's youngsters enjoyed their best ever national championships. Between them they produced six finalists, plus ten more top placings, three club records and 20 personal best (pb) times.
It was a triumph for the coaching team lead by Christine Green and a reward not only for the swimmers and their hard training but also for the parents who often get up as early as 4.30am to get their youngster to the pool.
Andrea Poore (12) produced an outstanding series of swims. She finished fifth in the 200m butterfly in a new club record time of 2.39.38sec; a fifth in the 400m freestyle again in record time of 4.51.92sec; a fifth in the 200m freestyle in 2.19.22sec for the third club record, and an eighth in the 200m individual medley in a pb time of 2.38.78sec.
Then in the 11/12-year freestyle relay Andrea teamed up with Hannah Shaw, Jenifer Howard and Katie Ambridge to knock three seconds off their Southern Counties time and become seventh place in the final. The same quartet were 13th in the medley.
13-year-old Joelle Jeans (unofficially the "rookie of the year" for the club) rose to the occasion in her first season of any sort of major competition to reach the 50m freestyle final. This event, possibly one of the hardest in which to medal, where starting and timing the final are all vital, made it all the more commendable that such a newcomer should shine. Though finishing eighth in the final, Joelle's time of 28.69sec was a massive pb and super swim in the tough 14-year group.
12-year-old Katie Towers in the 13-year group gained three top 20 placings with 15th in the 200m backstroke, 15th in the 100m backstroke 1.11.82sec pb, and 19th in the 400m individual medley where she improved her pb by six seconds.
Jenifer Howard (12) swam three personal bests with 1.14.91 for 17th in the 100m backstroke; 2.39.89 for 20th in the 200m backstroke and pb 50m backstroke. Hannah Shaw (12) swam 1.14.30 for a pb 100m butterfly finishing 14th. Jane Stalker (16) in the toughest age-group full of big "stars" swam her best ever long course 400m freestyle for 19th place in 4.42.08sec. Andrea Poore finished off rather weary after ten swims but managed 16th in the gruelling 800m freestyle.
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