Sunday 5th October saw a squad of 28 swimmers representing Team Hertfordshire take part in the annual Swim England National County Team Championships at Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in Sheffield.
Among the team were seven swimmers from Bishop’s Stortford Swimming Club, who all stepped up and performed incredibly for their County.
Team Hertfordshire finished third out of 18 Counties in Division Two, securing promotion to Division One for next year, alongside winners Cheshire, runners-up Cambridgeshire and Leicestershire who finished in fourth place. The atmosphere was absolutely electric, with 900+ swimmers from the 30 Counties racing in both 25m pools at Ponds Forge at the same time.
The County teams took part in thirty events (a combination of 100m individual races and medley and freestyle relays), accruing points across the day. BSSC played a key role in Hertfordshire’s success, with seven of the Club’s swimmers representing Hertfordshire:
- 12-13 years – Taras Boiko and Summer Miller
- 14-15 years – Rose Conday, Elliot Hall, Oliver Howard and Molly Greatbatch
- 16+ Dylan Davenport
Ella Greatbatch was also selected for the team, but was unable to swim on the day.
Highlights from BSSC swimmers:
- Summer Miller – 1st, 12-13 years 100m Butterfly
- Dylan Davenport – 4th, 16+ years 100m Freestyle and part of the boys 16-17 Medley relay, who finished 4th
- Rose Conday – 6th, 14-15 years 100m Freestyle
- Elliot Hall, Rose Conday and Dylan Davenport – part of the mixed 300m Freestyle relay team, who finished 3rd
Summer Miller from BSSC was awarded Top Girl for her phenomenal 100m Butterfly, which saw her finished in first position and take nearly two seconds off her personal best. Rafe Lawson from Berkhamsted was awarded Top Boy for incredible personal bests in his100m Breaststroke and 100m Backstroke events.
BSSC were joined by swimmers from the following Hertfordshire clubs: City of St Albans, Hatfield, Verulam, Watford, Cheshunt, Berkhamsted and Hoddesdon.
The team was headed by coach Harry Maishman from Tring Swimming Club, alongside BSSC’s Assistant Head Coach Joe Collins.
