This local Open Meet at Beechdale Baths on 29 June was the perfect opportunity to post some new times, assess the impact of recent sprint work and put into practice skills learnt on Mick’s diving courses.
5 events were open to swimmers aged up to 14 years old:
- 100m Individual Medley (IM) with trophies for the top 6 boys and girls in each age group, determined by the heats.
- 50m in all 4 strokes – the top 6 boys and girls of each age group from the heats would go through to Finals; trophies for all finalists, the top 3 presented on the podium and photographs taken.
The Meet began. Swimmers and coaches had set up camp, the warm-up was completed, racing underway and those trophies looked impressive …
Portland swimmers did themselves proud, clocking good times and giving it their all. Over half the swims produced PBs – in backstroke it was 12 out of 15 races in the heats!
Congratulations to:
Mia for feisty, determined swims;
Beatrice for strong performances including an exciting heat-winning IM;
Austin for entering all 5 events at his very first Open Meet recording New Times in 100m IM and 50m breaststroke and a 7 second PB(!) in 50m backstroke;
Finlay for chalking up PBs in all 3 of his 50m events: breaststroke, backstroke (4s) & freestyle (5s);
Stanley for fighting through the pain of a swollen foot for 2 events, before being forced to pull out; (something to do with a shed roof and trampoline ….)
William for swimming PBs in all 3 of his 50m events at his first Open Meet: breaststroke (2s), freestyle (3.5s) & backstroke (7s!);
Edward for getting PBs in 50m backstroke and freestyle, just missing out on Finals;
Dhruv for a strong swim at his first Open and good New Time in 50m freestyle – beating his coaches’ predicted time by 3 seconds(!);
Briony for repeating the success of the last Meet (Eckington) by once again achieving PBs in all 5 of her events;
Orla for 5 new times too: a brand New Time in 50m butterfly plus 4 PBs, including a 5 second one in 50m backstroke AND for cheering on other Portland swimmers even when lining up for her own races;
Gaby for PBs in 50m freestyle and 50m backstroke (2.5s) and reaching the 50m butterfly Final to win 3rd place trophy and picture on the podium;
Chloe for PB-ing in all 3 of her events – 50m backstroke, 50m freestyle (2s) and 100m IM (12s!), qualifying for and finishing 5th in the backstroke Final;
Olivia for achieving double success in backstroke, knocking 2 seconds off her 50m time in the heat, qualifying for and PB-ing AGAIN in the Final to win 6th place trophy;
Rebecca for a PB in 50m butterfly and attaining 5th place in 50m backstroke Final;
Dahlia for 2 PBs (50m backstroke, 50m butterfly), reaching 3 Finals (50m fly – 4th place, 50m free – 5th & 50m back – 6th) and winning an IM trophy for 5th in age group;
Charlotte for PBs in both her races;
Anna for a 9 second PB(!) in 50m freestyle at her first Open Meet;
Jaime, who set 3 new fastest times in the heats of 50m backstroke (2s), 50m breaststroke (5s) and 100m IM (5.5s, resulting in a trophy for 4th in age group); and who qualified for 3 Finals, finishing 6th in breaststroke and swimming even faster than in the heats to get not only PBs in the 50m freestyle Final and 15 minutes later in the 50m butterfly Final, but 3rd place podium and trophies for both!
Well done to all Portland swimmers for always trying their best and helping each other along the way.
A special `thank-you’ to Dan and Dom for giving up their Sunday to organise, look after, advise and support the swimmers.
One last thing, Stanley – maybe do a bit of reading or some other calmer activity before the next Open Meet …
Log in and go to Swimmers’ Corner for the latest PB Records – updated with times from this Open Meet and the Club Summer Gala.
