BSSC swimmers were on sizzling form for weekend two of the 2025 Swim England Hertfordshire County Championships, returning from Westminster Lodge with 41 age group medals, 18 Junior Championship awards and six Championship awards.
After weekend two, BSSC are in top position in the medal table for the Junior Championship, second for age-group and third for Championship. Medal count:
Age group – 41:
• 19 gold
• 16 silver
• 6 bronze
Junior Championship medals – 18
• Gold – 10
• Silver – 4
• Bronze – 4
Championships medals – 6
• Gold – 2
• Silver – 3
• Bronze – 1
BSSC’s youngest swimmers
The two 10 year olds swimming in the 10/11 year age group at their first County Championships both performed superbly. Daniel Cara took an impressive eight seconds off his entry time and finished 4th in the 100m backstroke heats to secure a place in the 10-11 years final, where he finished a very respectable 5th place. Cian Millsom swam against very strong competition to secure a place in the 10-11 year 100m Freestyle final, where he finished seventh.
Three of the Club’s 11 year olds made their first appearance at Counties, with Evie Lowers, Linke Groenewald and Luca Tse reaching the Final of the 100m Butterfly, 100m Breaststroke and 100m Freestyle respectively.
Returning to Counties were 11 year olds Taras Boiko, Harrison Dodwell and Kenny Millsom. Taras Boiko performed superbly, winning golds in the 400m Freestyle and 100m Butterly, and silver in the 200m and 400m Individual Medley.
Meanwhile, 11-year-old Harrison Dodwell achieved personal best times and top-ten finishes in all of his events, including a four-second PB to reach the 100m Breaststroke Final where he was joined by team-mate Kenny Millsom.
Freestyle success
There were BSSC finalists in all of the male 100m Freestyle finals, with Cian Millsom (10-11 yr), Harrison Dodwell, Luca Tse and Taras Boiko (12 yr), Guy Spearman-Baines and Noah Conroy (13 yr), Benjamin Palmer (14 yr) and Elliot Hall (15 yr) all securing their places in the age group finals, and Dylan Davenport and Brandon Macdonald-Williams swimming in the 16/over final.
Top-three places were taken by Benjamin Palmer (gold), Elliot Hall (gold) and Dylan Davenport (bronze).
13-14 year olds
The medals kept on coming for the 13 and 14 yr age groups, with Noah Conroy taking silver in the Male/Open 13 yr 100m Butterfly.
12 year old Summer Miller added to her 800m Freestyle silver medal from weekend one, with five top-three finishes – gold in the 100m Butterfly, 200m Individual Medley and 400m Individual Medley and silver in the 100m Free and 400m Freestyle.
14 year old Benjamin Palmer dominated the boys age group Freestyle events, taking gold in the 400m and 100m Freestyle and earning second place in the 400m Freestyle 15/U Junior Championships.
Edie Foster took gold in the 14 yr age group for the 100m Butterfly and 100m Freestyle.
Medals in every event…
The older swimmers were on top form, with three swimmers in the 15 yr category winning top-three places in all of their events.
Elliot Hall had a fantastic weekend, securing medals in all of the Male/Open events he entered: golds in the 100m Butterfly, 100m Freestyle, 100m Breaststroke, 200 IM and 400m Freestyle, and silver in the 400m IM.
Rose Conday, also 15, medalled in all of her events, taking silver in the 100m Backstroke, 100m Freestyle, 200m and 400m Individual Medley and bronze for the 400m Freestyle.
Molly Greatbatch won gold in her 100m Breaststroke and bronze in the 100m Backstroke and 200m IM.
Finally, onto the swimmers in the 16/over category, with Brandon Macdonald-Williams taking gold in the 200m IM, newly-elected Club Captain Emma Fields taking the top spot in for the 100m Butterfly, Jake Lloyd 100m Butterfly and silver in the 400m IM and Niamh James 100m Backstroke and 200m IM.
Dominating in the relays
Saturday saw the 15 and Unders of Hertfordshire battling it out across 12 relay events.
The BSSC A relay teams in the youngest age group (13/Under) events finished with two silver and two bronze medals, together with a 4th and 8th place finish. This is an enormous improvement on last year’s Championships, where this age group came home with one bronze.
The junior championship (15/Under) medley team were incredible, with the mixed medley, female medley, mixed freestyle and female freestyle teams bringing home four gold medals between them. Full relay results:
Gold
Mixed 10/15 Medley Team: Rose Conday, Molly Greatbatch, Elliot Hall, Benjamin Palmer
Female 10/15 Medley Team: Lois Fields, Molly Greatbatch, Rose Conday, Edie Foster
Mixed 10/15 Freestyle Team: Rose Conday, Benjamin Palmer, Edie Foster, Elliot Hall
Female 10/15 Freestyle Team: Rose Conday, Molly Greatbatch, Emilia Cass, Edie Foster
Silver
Male/Open 10-13 Freestyle team: Taras Boiko, Harrison Dodwell, Guy Spearman-Baines and Noah Conroy
Female 10-13 Medley team: Elspeth Lowe, Linke Groenewald, Summer Miller, Isabella Crotty
Bronze
Male/Open 10-13 Medley team: Taras Boiko, Guy Spearman-Baines, Noah Conroy, Harrison Dodwell
Mixed 10-13 Freestyle team: Summer Miller, Isabella Crotty, Harrison Dodwell, Noah Conroy
Top-10 finishes
10-11 yrs
• Cian Millsom – 100m Freestyle
• Daniel Cara – 100m Backstroke, 100m Breaststroke
12 yrs
• Evie Lowers -100m Butterfly
• Harrison Dodwell – 100m Backstroke, 100m Breaststroke, 100m Freestyle
• Kenny Millsom -100m Breaststroke
• Linke Groenewald -100m Breaststroke
• Luca Tse – 100m Freestyle
• Taras Boiko – 100m Freestyle
13 yrs
• Guy Spearman-Baines – 100m Breaststroke, 100m Freestyle
• Jenson Richards – 100m Breaststroke
• Noah Conroy – 100m Freestyle
• Summer Miller – 100m Backstroke
14 yrs
• Benjamin Palmer – 100m Butterfly
• Emilia Cass -100m Freestyle
• Isabelle Earley -100m Breaststroke
• Lois Fields – 100m Backstroke, 100m Freestyle
16/over
• Adrien Storck-Wihlidal – 100m Backstroke, 100m Breaststroke
• Brandon MacDonald-Williams – 100m Freestyle
• Dylan Davenport – 100m Backstroke, 100m Butterfly
• Esme Stringer – 100m Breaststroke
• Freya Hadnutt – 100m Backstroke, 100m Freestyle
• Niamh James – 100m Butterfly
• Oliver Tom – 100m Backstroke
Age group awards
Gold
• Taras Boiko (12 yr ) – 100m Butterfly, 400m Freestyle
• Summer Miller (13 yr) – 100m Butterfly, 200m Individual Medley, 400m Individual Medley
• Benjamin Palmer (14 yr) – 100m Freestyle, 400m Freestyle
• Elliot Hall (15 yr) – 100m Breaststroke, 100m Freestyle, 100m Butterfly, 200m Individual Medley, 400m Freestyle
• Molly Greatbatch (15 yr) – 100m Breaststroke
• Brandon MacDonald-Williams (16/over)– 200m Individual Medley
• Ella Greatbatch (16/over) – 100m Breaststroke
• Emma Fields (16/over) – 100m Fly
• Jake Lloyd (16/over) – 100m Butterfly
• Niamh James (16/over) – 100m Backstroke, 200m Individual Medley
Silver
• Summer Miller (13 yr) – 100m Freestyle, 400m Freestyle
• Noah Conroy (13 yr) – 100m Butterfly
• Rose Conday (15 yr) – 100m Backstroke, 100m Freestyle, 200m Individual Medley, 400m Individual Medley, 100m Butterfly
• Elliot Hall (15 yr) – 400m Individual Medley
• Ella Greatbatch (16/over) – 100m Breaststroke
• Jake Lloyd (16/over) – 400m Individual Medley
Bronze
• Molly Greatbatch (15 yr) – 100m Backstroke, 200m Individual Medley
• Rose Conday (15 yr) – 400m Freestyle
• Dylan Davenport (16/over) – 100m Freestyle
