Tenby swimmers have continued to enjoy success in the hectic round of competitions currently taking place. The younger members of the swimming club were recently away at Fishguard and Haverfordwest, and the full team attended a League meeting at Carmarthen.
Competition Results
The first event covered by this report, took place on January 29, at the brand new swimming pool in Fishguard. This was a Pembrokeshire Junior League meet, for children of 10 years and under. For quite a few of the younger members of the team, this was a relatively new experience, but all of them had a lot of fun and performed very well. The final score was Tenby 60 points and Fishguard 45 points, so a great result for the Dolphins. As well as winning their individual races, several of the swimmers made impressive improvements to their personal best times. Notably: Hari Truman, 9/ U 50m breaststroke (who improved by 3.12 seconds); Hannah Saunders, 8/U 25m breaststroke (0.13 sec improvement); Henrik Jaakola 10/U 100m breaststroke (1.71 sec improvement); Niamh Slack, 9/U 50m freestyle (1.06 sec improvement) and 10/ U 50m butterfly (2.91 sec improvement). Following on quickly from this gala, the Junior team were in action once again in Haverfordwest on February 1, for another Pembrokeshire Junior League meet. The whole team put in some strong performances and coaches Steph and John Amos were delighted with the team effort, and the result. The final scores were Tenby 53 points, Haverfordwest 46. Hari, Hannah, Niamh and Henrik were obviously having a bit of a stellar week and were again on great form in Haverfordwest, setting yet more personal best times in a variety of strokes. Great work guys. Keep it up! All in all, it was an excellent week for the younger members of the Tenby team. Well done to all of the swimmers who took part in both galas, and thanks to the parents for bringing the children along. To top off a very busy week of competitions for the club, a team was selected to take part in the first round of the 2006 Dyfed League at the pool in Carmarthen on February 4. Teams from Carmarthen, Aberystwyth, Cardigan and Haverfordwest provided the opposition, and a tough competition was expected. The Dyfed League competitions include a total of 61 races for a variety of age ranges from 9/U up to the Open events where there are no upper age restrictions. A tough competition was expected and Steph Amos selected a strong team to meet the challenge. However, the flu bug that has been sweeping through the Tenby area in last few weeks took its toll, and that, together with a clash with a Pembrokeshire Orchestra event and a certain rugby match in Twickenham, meant that 22 of the original squad had to withdraw! Fortunately, most of the senior swimmers made it to the gala, and the hastily arranged last minute replacements in the younger age groups swam brilliantly, and scored valuable points for the team. Tenby were off to a flying start, winning 10 out of the first 11 races, and quickly established an advantage over Carmarthen, with Aberystwyth in third. As the competition progressed, the other teams began to notch up more victories and the points advantage was gradually reduced. The excitement increased amongst swimmers and spectators alike as the competition moved towards a nail-biting conclusion. With 10 races remaining, Tenby held an 11-point advantage over Carmarthen. However, Carmarthen appeared to be on a roll and racked up several more race wins to reduce the gap even further. The Tenby swimmers showed great determination over the culminating relay races, and although they did not manage to win any of the last five events, they scored good place finishes and the team held on to record a well-deserved victory by a very narrow margin. The final scores were: Tenby 246, Carmarthen 242, Aberystwyth 158, Haverfordwest 144 and Cardigan 102. A great result. Well done everyone! The team members were: Niamh Slack, Carys Davies, Kiera Slack, Ffion Davies, Bethan Davie, Jade Thomas, Angharad Lear, Becky Gwyther, Casie Paxton, Kira Hardy, Elena Ciccotti, Lauren Arthur, Tasha Kinsey, Gemma Amos, Sophie Arthur, Coral Lewis, Holly Watkins-Rees, Joann Randles, Daniel Evans, Edward Hurle, Daniel Davies, Arran Lloyd, Rhys Davies, Samu Jaakola, Henrik Jaakola, Sam Lewis, Cheyne Lloyd Johnnie Delahunty, Jack Lear, Lloyd Delahunty, Nathan Clarke, Leon Goddard, Daniel Brown, Lewys Canton, Andrew James, Carl Amos, Mike Nicholas and Austyn Shortman.
Forthcoming Events
This week we are halfway through the West Wales Championships. Already we have seen some very strong performances from several Tenby swimmers, and we await this weekend with eager anticipation. The competition concludes on Monday, February 20, but on Sunday 19th we have the team relay events. Last year we achieved a strong second place finish, and Sunday's races are sure to be very exciting. It's going to be tough, but if recent performances are anything to go by, a repeat cannot be ruled out! Good luck to all those selected, and also to those competing in the many individual events. The 2006 Llanelli Open takes place on March 11/ 12. Entries for this event are now closed. The 2006 Welsh Age Group and Youth Championships will be held at the National Pool, Swansea, from April 14 - 17. Please note that qualifying times are required for entry. All Pembrokeshire Development squad members are encouraged to enter. Details can, as usual, be found on the notice board and the club web site.
Club News
The Tenby Pool is undergoing boiler repairs and maintenance for the next few weeks, and is closed until March 6. Training for the Pembrokeshire Development Squad members continues as normal on Wednesdays in Milford Haven, but Tenby Senior and Junior Squad members will be required to make alternative arrangements in the maintenance period. Attendance of training sessions with the other Pembrokeshire teams is possible. Please contact John and Steph Amos for details.