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MEMBERS IN THE NEWS | 2009 | | Double success for the Willmott sisters at the North Eastern Region Open Water Championships Sisters Aimee and Chloe Willmott were taking part in the North Eastern Region Open Water Championships held at Castlegate Quay, Stockton. With over 100 competitors taking part the event which is growing in popularity and strength. It was the girls first time swimming in an Open Water event, Aimee, 16 yrs, competed in the mixed 3k event and was overall winner in a time of 37mins 54secs. Becky Wilde from Newcastle was 2nd and Catriona Bruce from Stockton was 3rd. Younger sister Chloe , 14 yrs, competed in the mixed 1k swim winning the girls event in a time of 13mins 33secs and was 2nd overall.
| 9 August 2009 - Daniel Johnson smashed one of the oldest British records at the British GP at Leeds. Swimming the 200m freestyle B Final, Daniel set a time of 1.50.23 to take 0.87 secs off Paul Howe's British Junior record, set at Coventry in 1983!! Earlier in the day Daniel also equalled the British Record for 100m Individual Medley, a time of 58.33secs matching the time set by Plymouth's Sam Straughan earlier this year. Daniel also recorded a personal best in the 200m Individual Medley.
| | European Junior Championships in Prague By Stuart Willmott Middlesbrough Swimming Club's Aimee Willmott and head coach Steve Cox have recently returned from a successful trip to Czech Republic, where Aimee has been competing at the European Junior Championships held at the Podoli International open air 50m pool in Prague. Aimee picked up a silver medal in the 400m Individual Medley on day one despite wind and rain, and added another silver in the 200m Individual Medley on the final day. The competition was very strong with many European Junior records being broken during the 5 day competition. Aimee is now back in training preparing for the National Youth Championships in Sheffield, and from there she will be heading off to Crystal Palace, London, to join Team GB at the Tri-Nations Meet against teams from Russia and Canada.
| | Daniel Johnson to compete at the UK School Games Daniel Johnson from Middlesbrough Swimming Club has been selected to represent England North at the UK School Games which will be taking place in Wales from 3rd to 6th September 2009. The UK School Games is a multi-sport event for the UK's elite young athletes of school age. It is combined into a four-day Games environment designed to replicate the feel of a major event such as the Olympic Games, Paralympic Games and Commonwealth Games. This is a great achivement for 15 year old Daniel who is a pupil at Acklam Grange School, he will compete in the 200m and 400m freestyle and 100m, 200m freestyle relay teams. Swimming will take place at the Wales National Pool Swansea. It is a fully equipped facility to accommodation a variety of aquatic activities. The eight lane 50m pool with extensive spectator seating will be used to hold the competition. The sports programme has been increased for 2009 to include a new sport, track cycling, which combined with the existing programme of Athletics, Badminton, Fencing, Gymnastics, Hockey, Judo, Swimming, Table Tennis and Volleyball brings the total to 10 sports. The integrated programme of disability events in Athletics, Swimming and Table Tennis increases the athletes competing to over 1500. Eight teams representing England North, England Central, England East, England South, Scotland North & West, Scotland South & East, Ireland and Wales will be fighting for the medals. | | Success for Aimee and Danny at the British Swimming Championships The British Swimming Championships, sponsored by British Gas, were recently held at Sheffield's Ponds Forge 50m International Pool. Middlesbrough Swimming Club had two swimmers, Aimee Willmott 16 years old and 15 year old Daniel Johnson, who qualified for the event. The championships were also doubling up as qualification for the World Championships later in the year. Aimee swam superbly to win a bronze medal in the 400m Individual Medley and was the youngest competitor to win a medal at the Championships, in doing so she broke Jessica Dickons' 16 year old Age Group English Record by 6 seconds and Hannah Miley's British Age Group Record by 1 ½ seconds in a time of 4.43.33. Aimee also competed in the 200m freestyle and progressed through semi-finals to make the open finals in 200m Individual Medley and 200m Backstroke, recording good personal best times on the way. Aimee is now awaiting confirmation of her selection for the European Junior Championships in Prague this summer. Daniel, who was competing in his first British Championships qualified for four events but due to the schedule could only swim in three, the 200m and 400m freestyle and 200m Individual Medley. Daniel's strongest swims came in the 200m freestyle in an impressive time of 1.56.19 and he lowered his personal best by 7 seconds in 400m freestyle clocking 4.06.30. Daniel has gained valuable experience and this now currently ranks him top of his age group this year. A great performance by both swimmers under new coach Steve Cox, this will hopefully encourage the clubs younger swimmers to follow in their footsteps. | 20 March 2009 - Aimee Willmott continued to set new British Age Group standards at the British Championships in Sheffield. Swimming in tonight's 400IM final, Aimee came home in bronze medal position behind Hannah Miley and Keri-Anne Payne, her time of 4:43.33 lowering the British 16yrs old Record currently held by Miley. This follows a month after lowering the 15yrs old Short Course record during the N&D Open at Durham. | February 2009 - In a moving occasion at the Club Celebration Night on 7 February, Terry Hine was awarded the Taz award for outstanding contribution to Middlesbrough ASC. Terry has been with the club for over 25 years, starting off with teaching and moving through the squads as a coach. This has covered the periods when the club trained at the old Berwick Hills Baths, the 2 years of training in Kings Manor School Pool and the last 11 years at the Neptune. The older members will recall Terry running around the streets of Acklam on cold winter nights with a tow of swimmers in his wake. Terry spoke of some of the swimmers he had coached including Tom Maine, an exceptionally talented lad who made National finals while training in a 20m school pool! | 2008 | 
EVENING GAZETTE COMMUNITY CHAMPIONS AWARD 2008 Three of our swimmers, Catherine Fenby, Steph Hooper and Emma Simpson were nominated for the Evening Gazette Community Champions Award, after taking part in a gruelling swim in the River Tees which subsequently raised over £2000 for the Children's Diabetes Fund at South Cleveland Hospital. The girls made it to the finals and were invited to a Gala Awards Evening at the Thistle Hotel along with their parents and families. The Judges gave the award to two pupils from Lawrence Jackson School who raised fund for North East Air Ambulance in memory of their school friend who was tragically killed in a road accident. However our girls had a tremendous evening and were rewarded with £100 as finalists. 
National Volunteer Award for Graeme Smith, MASC Club Chairman. Following his Regional Volunteer Award which he received in September, Graeme Smith has now been presented with a National Volunteer Award for Outstanding Contribution at Club Level. The awards were given out on Sunday 19th October, in an event held at the Hilton hotel in Sheffield. There were 133 nominations nationally and 28 Regional Aquaforce Award winners. The judging panel, made up of members of the ASA Volunteer Forum and ASA Youth Forum, said they found it incredibly hard to select just five national winners. Graeme is currently Chairman of Middlesbrough Amateur Swimming Club and has led the promotion and achievement of the Swim 21 accreditation, the ASA's ‘quality mark' for clubs, at all four levels. Graeme is a qualified referee and is an Executive member of the Northumberland and Durham counties ASA. Graeme has been involved with Middlesbrough Swimming club for 12 years. His contribution during that time has been invaluable and at times unbelievable. He was approached after a brief time with the club and asked to become the club treasurer and from that time on he has become the club treasure. He has managed the finances through a huge time of growth and success for the swimmers, he has sat on boards, which have led to financial and support packages with the Local authority and the University. He has always been professional in his approach to any task he has taken on, and these have been numerous. Funding for a full time coach and assistant coach which was negotiated by Graeme, has meant that the development and promotion of swimming in Middlesbrough has moved at a rapid speed with swimmers performing at the top of their age groups resulting in the club becoming second top age group club at the nationals. Not one miss out, Graeme also recognised the need to develop himself as an official, his success in this field has led him to become a referee and to attend the British championships and more importantly for his club, the age group championships where he was able to see the swimmers from Middlesbrough perform brilliantly, a reward for Graeme in itself. Graeme promotes all the galas held by Middlesbrough at the Neptune Pool and, as with everything he does, they are run like clockwork. More recently he has become an executive member of the district and now oversees the promotion of the district championships which are run with the same dedication and effort Graeme is respected and appreciated by club members. His dedication and enthusiasm for this sport came about as a result of his daughter's involvement as a swimmer. Gillian still swims but now spends her gala times assisting her father and acting as a referee when she is home from university. Graeme's skills, hard work, professionalism, enthusiasm, commitment and caring attitude have enabled the club to progress smoothly and efficiently and he is a deserving winner of this award. | Recognition for club swimmers and coaches The last few days of September have brought a good deal of good news for the club. First of all Aimee Willmott has been selected to swim for GB at the European Short Course Championships in Rijeka, Croatia from 11th - 14th December 2008. Aimee is currently ranked no 3 in the country at 400IM behind Hannah Miley and Keri Anne Payne. Prior to this she will also be attending a British Swimming Development Squad camp in Koper, Slovenia from 26th Oct to 2nd Nov. Aimee will be joined in the N&D team for Inter-Counties at Sheffield on 19 October by Daniel Johnston, all being watched over by assistant team coach, our own Ben Philo. Also announced have been the North East England Talent Camp arrangement. Chloe Willmott has made it into the Age Group Camp for 3 one day camps and Ben Philo has been selected as one of the coaches. Daniel Johnson has been picked for the Youth Camp, 3 two day camps between Sept and April where Steve Cox is Skills Coach. Additionally Danny and Aimee will be attending the Beacon Training Sessions at Sunderland 50m pool on Wednesdays and Saturdays Well done to all of them.
| | Recognition for Graeme Smith's contribution to swimming. On Saturday 6th September, at the N&D AGM, our own Graeme Smith was nominated President Elect for N&D and will become President for the year commencing 5 Sept 2009. The following Saturday, Graeme attended the ASA NER AGM at Wetherby where he was awarded an ASA NER Aquaforce Volunteer Award for Outstanding Contribution at Club Level. Graeme does a massive amount to support MASC, both behind the scenes and more prominently in organizing our very successful galas, particularly the Middlesbrough Open. Congratulations on your well deserved award and a big thank you from the swimmers, parents and everyone involved in Middlesbrough Swimming Club.
Barry Tiffin ends his year as ASANER President At the aforementioned NER AGM, Barry ended his year as ASANER President. The post was taken over by Steve Janes who is a member of both Wear Valley and Middlesbrough. It is unique for the presidency to stay within one club, and is a tribute to the dedication and hard work of our members. Thanks to Barry for his hard work over the past 12 months, and good luck to Steve in his future role from everyone at MASC. 
| | Middlesbrough swimmers compete at The Two Bridges Open Water Meet. On Saturday 16th August the Amateur Swimming Association (ASA) North East Region held 'The Two Bridges Open Water Meet' at the Castlegate Watersports Centre in Stockton. This wasn't a traditional swimming gala, but an event whereby swimmers have the opportunity to swim 750m, 1500m or 3000m in the River Tees. The swimmers taking part are either adults in the open event or 13-15yr olds. Three of our young swimmers from Middlesbrough Amateur Swimming Club (MASC) took part in the Event in order to raise funds for a diabetes trust. The girls were Catherine Fenby (14yrs), Emma Simpson and Steph Hooper, both 13 yrs. Steph was diagnosed with Type one diabetes in June 2007, but has overcome the initial impact on her health and stamina, refusing to let the condition affect her everyday life. She trains hard and shows consistent improvement in her swimming, reaching new PB's in every gala. The girls are raising Sponsorship for the Children's Diabetes Trust at James Cook Hospital, which supports families of children with diabetes. They provide information on dealing with diabetes, update families with information on new treatment methods and organise annual events with guest speakers, often sports persons or athletes who are affected by diabetes. The staff at the trust were a massive help to Steph and to her parents, Alison and Kev, when she was first diagnosed. 
This was the first time the girls had swum in open water, although the previous weekend they did have a practice session at Ellerton Water. Catherine's dad, Glen Fenby, is himself a swimming coach and has previously swum in a cross-channel relay. Glen swam with the girls and gave them tips on how to swim a straight line in open water and how to cope with the temperature. Although the weather was mild on the day of the event, the River Tees was very cold, so much so that a number of swimmers were unable to swim any distance, and left the water, shivering. However, our girls were determined to complete the event and they persevered until they overcame the initial shock of the cold water. FENNERBY,SIMMO & HOOPS AFTER THEIR PRACTICE SWIM The 1500m swim involved two laps of the 750m circuit. Emma swam a time of 24:36.0 minutes, closely followed by Steph in 25:33.5 minutes. ‘Catherine The Brave' completed four laps of the circuit to swim 3km in 54:00.4 minutes. The girls were cheered on by their incredibly proud parents, along with a sizeable group of family and friends who had come along to show their support. Glen Fenby (39yrs) also swam the 3km event, having only decided to take part an hour beforehand. Glen finished in 1:05:37.7 and was cheered loudly for the last 50 metres. Nevertheless, Catherine in now the fastest distance swimmer in the Fenby household! Graeme Smith, MASC Chairman, commented that "Open Water swimming is growing in popularity as it is now an Olympic sport and already many are targeting the 2012 games in London. Middlesbrough had an open water tradition in the past with the legendary Jack Hatfield competing in events swum in the Tees. Perhaps this is the start for these three girls, especially as our new director of coaching, Steve Cox, arrives in September having just coached a swimmer from his current club to the European Junior Open Water Championships." Despite the water temperature and the initial nerves experienced by Emma, Catherine and Steph, they all thoroughly enjoyed the swim and are keen to repeat the experience. There was a great camaraderie among all the swimmers taking part, and everyone should be very proud of their achievement in completing the event. To end on an even higher note, our three girls have raised a staggering £1015 in sponsorship, which has very generously been matched by DHL parcel delivery, bringing the grand total to £2030! Congratulations and well done! EMMA SIMPSON, STEPH HOOPER AND CATHERINE FENBY AT THE 'TWO BRIDGES OPEN WATER MEET'
| Retirement of Les Green, Head coach at MASC Head coach, Les Green will retire from the Club on 31 August 2008. A swimming coach for over 40 years, Les joined MASC in 1999, since which time, the club has progressed competitively in leaps and bounds. He has known many of our swimmers since they were very young and coached them to standards which have often exceeded expectations, reaching National and International levels. Given the size of our club compared to many others, this is quite an achievement. It is also a credit to Les that MASC swimmers who have long since retired from the sport, still come and visit him. Congratulations on your retirement Les, and thank you for all the hard work and dedication you have put in with all of our swimmers. Les will be replaced by Steve Cox, currently assistant coach at Co Sheffield. Steve is a rising star in British Swimming's eyes and has coached on the last two Australian trips for up and coming young British Swimmers. He will have no problems settling on Teesside as he (and his wife) come from Hartlepool, leaving 7 years ago when Steve went to Co Sheffield from Hartlepool SC. Steve will commence with the club on 1st September. Les was adamant that he left with little fuss, therefore after training on 21st July, whilst he was a captive audience, e was presented with a number of gifts from the club, the swimmers the supporters club and the ASA NER. Given Les' love of Jazz and Blues, and his plans to travel when he retires his gifts included tickets to 'The Jake and Ellwood Show' in York with a stay in a lovely hotel, a camera with which to photograph all his planned trips and a signed photo album (to make sure he doesn't forget any of us). Barry Tiffin also presented Les with an engraved glass bowl on behalf of the ASA NER, as a token of their appreciation, while Fay gave him a beautiful bouquet for his wife, Marie. Swimmers presenting the gifts were Aimee Willmott, Matthew Spedding and Daniel Johnson.  
 
| | Aimee Willmott's success at British Championships Aimee Willmott competed in the British Championships at Liverpool over the weekend of 10 - 13 July. Despite being only 15yrs old, Aimee achieved tremendous success, winning a silver medal in the 400m individual medley and a bronze in the 200m IM. The Nunthorpe School pupil competed against swimmers who were older and more experienced than herself and was the youngest finalist by at least 2 years in each of her events. Given that Aimee currently ranks as the fastest 15yr old girl in the world at 400m IM, she is expected to achieve even greater things in the future, and will be travelling to Belgrade for the European Junior Swimming Championships on 30th July. Although this is a very exciting time for her, Aimee and the rest of the swimmers at the club will bid a sad but fond farewell to their head coach, Les Green, who retires later this month after over 40 years of coaching. Although Les has been adamant that he leaves with little fuss, the swimmers have a few surprises in store for him. (Pleasant ones!) | | 4 May 2008 - Another British Age Group record for Aimee Willmott who took nearly 2.5 secs off Hannah Miley's existing 400IM record for the 15 years age group which had stood since 2005. Swimming in the ASANER Open 400IM final at Ponds Forge, Aimee swum most of the event way out in front and clocked 4.45.02. | | 24 April 2008 - Aimee Willmott and Peter Thompson have been selected for the GB squad to compete at the European Youth Championships in Belgrade, Serbia from 30 July to 3 August 2008. Full squad and further details are on British Swimming website. | December 2007 - Peter Thompson won the "Emerging Sports Star" award at the 11th Annual Evening Gazette Sports Awards held at the Thistle Hotel on 10th December. Former chairperson Sue Campion collected the award on Peter's behalf, fitting in that Sue first taught Peter as a small boy. Aimee Willmott was one of three nominations for "Junior Sportsperson of the Year". Neither swimmer of course was there, Peter being with the GB squad in Hungary for the European SC Champs while Aimee is training and competing in Australia. | November 2007 - Biathlete Brothers Matthew and James Keenan triumphed in the North East Schools Biathlon Championships, finishing 1st and 4th respectively in their categories at the regional finals in Beverley. For Matthew (10yrs) this was his second successive win at the championships while James (9yrs) was competing in the finals for the first time. The St Joseph's School pupils will now compete in the National School Final in Bath in February where Matthew will be hoping to repeat his success at lasts year's finals where he was National Champion in his section.
| | 4 November 2007 - 14-year-old Aimee Willmott set a new British Junior Record of 4:43.66 in the 400m Individual Medley at the North East Championships in Middlesbrough. Aimee shaved 0.41secs off Stephanie Proud's record and with well over a year left to compete as a junior, she will be hoping to lower it further. | October 2007 - three Middlesbrough swimmers are included in the individual events at the InterCounties Championships at Ponds Forge in Sunday 21st October. Swimming for a very strong Northumberland & Durham Counties team are Daniel Johnson, Aimee Willmott and Peter Thompson while Jordan Heaney also makes the team as one of the relay squad.. Also involved from the club are assistant coach, Ben Philo, and Gillian Smith who is one of the appointed officials for the meet.    
| September 2007. Peter Thompson has been named as one of the 31-strong British Swimming squad to compete at the LEN European Short Course Championships which take place in the Hungarian city of Debrechen from 13 to 26 December 2007. After Peter's considerable success at the European Junior championships in Antwerp earlier this year, this event will provide another opportunity to compete on the international stage and furthers his development towards future Olympic Games. Well done and good luck Peter.
| September 2007 - Three NP Squad members took part in the Junior Great North Run on 29th September. Matthew Spedding, Sarah Giblin and Adam Jones all completed the 3 mile run at the Newcastle Quayside and raised over £600 In sponsorship for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. The following day the trio all took part in the N & D Gala at the Neptune, recording some impressive times. Congratulations!
| | September 2007 - following his stint as N&D President, Barry Tiffin was inaugurated as NER President on 15th September. Congratulations to Barry. Also selected as President Elect was Steve Janes, an honorary member of the club. Must be unusual to have both positions held by representatives of the same club. July 2007 This summer, Peter Thompson represented GB in the European Junior Swimming championships in Antwerp from 18 - 22nd July 2007 where he won a bronze medal in the 200 butterfly in a personal best time (PB) and British Age Group Record of 2.00.67. Les Green, Head Coach at the club stated "It is a fact that medallists from the European Junior Championships usually progress to an Olympic final or medal. Bill Sweetenham National Performance Director for British swimming, was singing his praises". Peter left Antwerp for Sheffield where he won the National silver medal in the boys 17-18 yrs 200 fly. He then produced his lifetime best series of swims in the heats of 100 fly; 56.83, 56.44, 55.98 and finally 55.86 in the Men's 100 butterfly final where he finished 9th. Peter then flew to Paris with the British Senior Team where he swam fastest of the three British swimmers, completing his 200 fly in 2.02. Aimee Willmott swam at the European Youth Olympic Festival from 23 - 27 July 2007 in Belgrade, competing in 400 IM, 200 IM, 400 freestyle, 200 back and Medley Relay. She competed in temperatures that are not normally endured by athletes, producing some truly amazing swims with gold in the 400 IM in a British Age Group Record of 4.50.32, winning by 6 seconds. She also won gold in the 200 IM in 2.19.37, silver in the 400 freestyle in 4.21.40 and bronze in the 200 backstroke in 2.18.92. She was part of the Medley Team which finished 5th. Once again, the compliments from the British Swimming coaches were commendable. They spoke favourably of her professional attitude, enthusiasm and support to the rest of the team. Aimee flew from Belgrade to Sheffield, physically and mentally exhausted, yet still managed to produce a silver in the 200 IM and a bronze in the 200 breast. MASC are very proud of all our members, who work tremendously hard. Both Peter and Aimee are very popular members of the club and very encouraging to the other swimmers, particularly the younger ones. However they both are a result of a huge commitment by their parents, the Club Coaches, the Council and British Swimming. Well Done to both of you!  
| June 2007 - Masters Swimmer, Terry McGee had great success in the recent British Masters Gala in Manchester, swimming to gold in the 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke. Well done Terry.  
| May 2007 - NPS swimmer, Matthew Spedding, has won a National Award at The Breathing Life Awards which were held on Thursday 31 May at the London Hilton Metropole. Matthew, who is 13, beat stiff competition to win the Junior Sport Award for nominees who are 12 years and over. He was presented with the award by former World 200 backstroke champion, Katy Sexton, along with X Factor star, Chico. The Breathing Life Awards are an annual ceremony held by the Cystic Fibrosis Trust to recognise and celebrate the achievements and spirit of those living with Cystic Fibrosis. Matthew was nominated for the award by Sue Campion, who told judges "He always gives 100%, never alluding to his condition, never making excuses for not doing what he is asked." Having swum to gold in the 1500 freestyle of the Autumn Graded Series was evidence both of Matthew's courage and of the benefits swimming has brought to his health. After winning the award, he said , "I felt amazing, I just couldn't believe it. I have got lots of friends at swimming and it's just a sport I really enjoy". Congratulations and well done Matty. |
| May 2007 - Chairperson Sue Campion received an award from Northumberland and Durham Counties during the Middlesbrough Open. The Agnes Gray awards are presented quarterly for services to the sport in N&D. Previous recipients have been retiring but Sue's active contribution as chairperson, teacher, coach and official was recognised and rewarded. Sue received engraved glassware presented by board chairman, Fred Murray.
| May 2007 - Peter Thompson and Aimee Willmott will be packing their bags again. Peter has been selected to swim for GB in the European Junior Championships in Antwerp from 18th to 22nd July. Meanwhile Aimee is nominated to BOC and should make the team to be off to Belgrade in Serbia for the European Youth Olympics from 21-28 July. Well done to both!
| March 2007 - Peter Thompson again broke the British Age Group Record for the 200m Butterfly at Manchester during the British Championships. Not content with lowering the mark to 2.02.24 in the heats, Peter then shaved a further 0.13secs off in the Mens final to leave the record at 2.02.11. | March 2007 - Evening Gazette Extract:- Aimee Willmott, 14yrs a member of Middlesbrough Swimming Club competed at the 36th WISE International Schools Swimming competition held at the National Aquatic Centre in Dublin on 10th March.Aimee a pupil at Nunthorpe School, Middlesbrough competed in three events where she won gold in the 200m individual medley breaking the WISE record by 8 seconds in a time of 2.20.20 held since 1998. She also collected gold in the 100m breaststroke in 1.14.35 and silver in the 100m backstroke in 1.06.14. The strong English team of 40 swimmers, 20 boys and 20 girls, in three age categories, junior, intermediate and senior came away with a staggering 31 gold medals, 13 silver medals and 2 bronze medals to win the event against the other home nations. The event which is contested every year will be hosted by England in 2008 in Crawley.
| 2006 | December 14-19, 2006 - Aimee and Peter are competing in the Queensland Open and Age Group Championships. See updates on ASA Website . As of 16th Dec, Aimee has one gold (200 Bk) and 2 silver (100 Bk and 400 Free) while Peter has a good PB in 100 Fly. Full results from Australia. On the last 3 days of the championships there were more medals as Peter set a new British Record of 2.02.59 to take silver in the final of the Mens 200 Fly. A gold later followed in the same event for 16 year olds. Aimee continued on the gold trail as she won both 200 and 400 IM events.
| November 15th 2006 - next week is a big week in the swimming careers of Aimee Willmott and Peter Thompson. On 23rd November, Aimee jets off to Singapore with a British Swimming ladies squad while, on the following day, Peter flies to New Zealand with another British squad. Both will join up again in Australia during December for a visit to the Offshore Centre and competition in the Queensland State Championships.
| November 15th 2006 - Following a recalculation of the scores, Mitchell Young joined the merry band of Middlesboro award winners for the Autumn Series. Mitchell was overall champion for the 10 year olds. Another change saw William Knight promoted to 2nd in his age group.
| November 12 2006 - There was overall success for our swimmers following the completion of the N&D supported Autumn Graded Series. Jack Baister was overall 9 years champion while Abigail Konya won the girls 10 years award. In possibly her last competitive event, Fiona Watson was 2nd overall in the 14/over girls age group. Fiona also had the satisfaction of setting a new PB in her last event, 100m backstroke. 12 year old William Knight also took home an award as 3rd overall in his age group.
| October 22 2006 - Aimee Willmott and late call-up Daniel Johnson helped Northumberland and Durham Counties to second place in the InterCounties Championships at Ponds Forge. Both swimming in the 12/13 years age group, Aimee won the 100m Breaststroke and took second in the 100m Backstroke while helping the medley team to 3rd spot. Daniel swum the freestyle leg for the medley team who finished in second spot. Overall winners were Lancashire - full results here
| October 2006 - Aimee Willmott has been chosen to represent N&D in the InterCounties Championships at Ponds Forge on 22 October 2006 . Peter Thompson was also selected but his unfortunate coming together with a car has ruled him out.
| September 30 2006 - more athletics success for the Templeman twins as Elizabeth and Katy finish second and third in the Junior Great North Run.
| September 16 2006 - Barry Tiffin clocked up a very unique treble when he was elected as President of ASA North East Region with effect from September 2007. Barry will also have the honour of being both N&D and ASA NER president for a 4 month spell at the end of next year.
| September 2 2006 - At today's Northumberland and Durham Counties ASA Annual General Meeting, Barry Tiffin was elected as President for 2007. Barry, along with wife Fay, came to Middlesbrough early in 2001 after more than 20 years involvement with swimming in Leeds. He now completes a unique double, having been Yorkshire President in 1998. This is a great honour and Barry will officially take over the Presidential chain at a ceremony on 23rd January.
| June 2006 - Ben Bowes (AA Squad) was selected to represent Great Britain in the European Deaf Swimming Championships in Thessaloniki Greece (17-25th June). At age 15, he was the youngest male swimmer in the British squad but Ben was not deterred by this and swam British Deaf Swimming Association record times in four events (15yrs and under) including: 50m Back (33.88); 100m Back (1.19.27); 200m Freestyle (2.21.49); and 200m IM (2.46.80). Vincent Dickson, Swimming Director (British Deaf Swimming Association) stated that it was a pleasure to have selected Ben and that he has gained important experience and learnt what it takes to compete at a major championship. The next targets for Ben’s training are the World Deaf Swimming Championships in Taipei in 2007 and the Deaf Olympics in 2009.
| June 30 2006 - Confirmation that Peter's swim (see below) was indeed a World Schools Record shaving 0.98secs off Stephen Parry's previous record set in 1994, ten years before he took bronze in the same event at the Athens Olympics.
| June 29 2006 - Peter Thompson won the gold medal in the 200 Fly at the World Schools Games in Athens. Having qualified second fastest into the final, Peter stepped up a gear for the big event and took gold in 2:02.79 - a British Age Group record for 16 year old boys. Remarkably Peter now holds the record at 14,15 and 16 years. There will be a big welcome for Peter when he returns home next week, having achieved one of the best performances ever by a Middlesbrough swimmer.
| May 16 2006 - Many may have wondered why the talented Templeman twins did not take their place in the Junior Skins at the Middlesbrough Open on Saturday 13th May. Elizabeth and Katy had a prior engagement, both having qualified for the British Biathlon Championships at Manchester's Sportscity and Aquatics Centre. It was a fantastic success as Katy came 1st and Lizzie 2nd. Well done to both and also mother Julie who, having spent all Saturday in Manchester, then spent all day Sunday competitor stewarding at the Open!
| May 2006 - Peter Thompson has been selected to swim in the World Schools Gymnasiade in Athens from 26th June to 2nd July. Peter will compete in both the 100 and 200 Fly - fine reward for his recent record breaking swim.
| April 2006 - Ben Bowes (AA Squad) competed in the National Deaf Swimming Championships (long course) at Loughborough University on 22nd April 2006 and won Golds for each of his four events: 50 metres Backstroke, Breast, Butterfly and Front Crawl (15 years and under). Subsequently, Vincent Dickson Swimming Director (British Deaf Swimming Association) invited Ben to join the British Deaf Swimming Team and take part in the European Swimming Championships in Thessaloniki, Greece 17-25th June, 2006. Ben has accepted this challenge and will be taking part in some of the backstroke events. Furthermore, Vincent Dickson is arranging additional training events to prepare the British Team for the World Championships (2007) and Deaf Olympics (2009).
| April 8 2006 - Another great swim from Peter Thompson at the British Championships. Taking 0.7s off the 100 Fly PB set 2 days earlier, Peter qualified for the evening's semi-final in a time of 57.25 In the semi Peter equalled his 57.95 secs time from 6 April but this was not sufficient to make the final. However, a good few days!
| April 7 2006 - Peter Thompson finished 8th in the 200 Fly final at the British Championships - great performance from the youngest in the final and a quicker time than the previous night's semi. In all 3 races, Peter swum quicker than the British Record time he took to the meet.
| April 6 2006 - Stunning performance by Peter Thompson in the heats of 200 Fly at British Championships. Going out in a staggering 57.95 PB, Peter shaved over 2 seconds off his own British Age Group Record to finish in a time of 2.02.67 and go into the semi-finals as 2nd fastest overall. In the evening, Peter comfortably qualified for the final in 6th spot, swimming just over a second down on his heat time but still under his previous British Record.
| April 4 2006 - Great swim by Aimee Willmott at British Championships at Ponds Forge. Aimee took 7 seconds off her 400IM entry time to make the final! A superb swim, especially the backstroke and breaststroke legs, took Aimee through as by far the youngest finalist. Although not repeating the time in the final, Aimee still managed to beat her initial entry time.
| March 2006 - Daniel Waugh (AA Squad) was successful in the recent DSE Championships at Sheffield. 14 year old Daniel had to swim at the bottom of a large age group but still came away with 6th and 8th places.
| March 2006 - Alex Mason, now a student at Loughborough University, was a member of the victorious university team who recently won the National Lifesaving Championships at Ponds Forge. Alex will be seen more regularly at the club later in the year as he starts a placement back on Teesside.
| 2005 December 2005 - Middlesbrough now has its own ASA-qualified referee. In the recent referees' examinations taken in November, Graeme Smith was successful and now takes his place on the ASA list. More Middlesbrough officials should be in place shortly as a large number head for Sunderland to train as timekeepers over the coming weekend (17/18 Dec). Also news for existing timekeepers - a judges course should be in place early in 2006. October 2005 - Middlesbrough swimmers were amongst the medals at the ESSA Championships at Manchester's Aquatics Centre on 21/22 October. Peter Thompson saw off many of his great rivals from Nationals to win the 100m Butterfly while Aimee Willmott took silver in the 200m Individual Medley behind Katrina Alder who swims one year above Aimee at Nationals. October 2005 - Many may have seen the article in the Evening Gazette supporting the nomination of Sue Campion as a Teesside Community Champion. For those who did not, click here to read the article from Evening Gazette website. October 2005 - The N&D Intercounties team for the meet at Ponds Forge on 16th October contains 3 club swimmers - Olivia Atkinson, Peter Thompson and Kirsty Stephenson. Good luck to all 3. The team bus also contains further Middlesbrough representation as Sandra Dove is Assistant Team Manager while Graeme Smith is one of the 2 appointed N&D poolside officials. September 2005 - More good news as 4 club swimmers have been selected for the 2005/2006 World Class Programme. Following her super performance at the Nationals, Olivia Atkinson retains her place but will have some company in the coming year as she is joined by both Aimee Willmott and Holly Brettle. Holly has come on leaps and bounds since joining the club and this is due reward for her hard work. Peter Thompson joins the Youth Programme and has also been selected for a senior British fly camp in Spain later this month. September 2005 - 5 Middlesbrough swimmers have been selected for the N&D Inter-Counties squad - the largest contingent in recent times from the club. Selected for the training day at Stanley on 18th September are Olivia Atkinson, Aimee Willmott, Kirsty Stephenson, Christopher Dove and Peter Thompson. The Inter-Counties meet takes place at Ponds Forge on 16th October. September 2005 - Middlesbrough swimmers took part in the Yorkshire Graded Series held before the summer break. Competing at the York and Harrogate rounds (reports in Gala reports) the swimmers performed so well that four overall series awards were taken by club swimmers. These duly arrived on September 2nd and congratulations go to the Templeman twins, Lizzie and Katy (1st and 2nd in 11years age group), Rachele Blakey (1st in 12 years) and Fiona Watson (1st in 15/over age group). 1 September 2005 - Our new full time assistant coach joined the club today. Ben Philo has been recruited and we wish him well in his new post. Ben was formerly a very successful swimmer at Stockton competing at all levels up to Nationals. He also guested for Middlesbrough in the Oberhausen galas several years ago. Ben is already known to many at the club as he worked at the Neptune both as a senior lifeguard and teacher. 7 August 2005 - Peter Thompson continued to have success in the 200m Butterfly. Although one of the youngest 15 year olds at the National Youth Championships / Commonwealth Games Trials, Peter qualified second fastest for the 200 Fly Final while setting yet another British Age Group Record. His time of 2.04.91 was a record for the 15 year old age group leaving Peter as British Record holder for both 14 & 15 years ages. Peter was not quite able to repeat the feat in the final but his time of 2.05.65 earned him the bronze medal in the 15/16 years age group behind the Scots duo of Christopher Chasser and Stuart Houston. Peter still had the honour of being fastest 15 year old. June 2005 - Aimee Willmott has received an invitation from British Swimming to attend an Identified Female Swimmers Camp in Spain during September. Quite an acheivement for Aimee to be included in a group of the top young female swimmers in the UK - other invitees include Elizabeth Simmonds & Jordan Tomlinson (Lincoln Vulcans), Bo Stockton's Jemma Lowe and Jessica Dickons, IOM's Olivia Rawlinson, top Scots swimmer Hannah Miley to name but a few. May 2005 - Christopher Dove received recognition in his home town for his achievements throughout the past year. Following nomination for his successes (incl 200 Fly National title), Chris attended the Darlington Sportswinners Award ceremony and came away with the trophy for Young Sports Achiever. Chris now goes forward to a larger awards ceremony at the Tall Trees Hotel later in the year. May 2005 - Three members competed for the 2nd Middlesbrough ASC European Golf Open in Spain during the first week of May. Freed for a week from the stress of organising the Middlesbrough Open, meet manager Graeme Smith remained unbeaten over the 6 rounds of golf played over the courses at Alicante, Villamartin, Los Ramblas and La Finca and consequently retained the trophy. Second place was a very tight affair and not decided until the last day when Ray Smith edged out Mark Stephenson. All enjoyed the break from the cold of Teesside but were not too appreciative of the return to Leeds/Bradford where the temperature was over 20C lower and a car was seen driving past the airport covered in snow. May 2005 - Many Congratulations to Sue & Terry Hine on the birth of their 1st Grandchild, George, who was born on the 7th May, weighing a healthy 8lb 8oz. No truth in the rumour that George is already on the teamsheet for the 2014 Diddy League. March 2005 - News from British LC Championships at Manchester (Sat 19th Mar) - Peter Thompson swum a PB of 2:08.09 in the heats of the 200 Butterfly. Even better is that this is a British Age Group Record for the event, beating the set standard of 2:09.40. In a strange coincidence, former Middlesbrough swimmer, Paul Morren, had shaved 1/100th of a second off the standard to briefly hold the record before Peter took the record apart in a subsequent heat. Also today, Gemma Porter swum into the semi-finals of the 50 Fly where she finished 12th overall. | On the 5th and 6th March, Daniel Waugh of Ormesby School and Middlesbrough Swimming Club competed in the DSE National Junior Swimming Championships. Over a busy weekend he placed 6th -50m Back, 5th - 100m Freestyle, 2nd - 50m Fly, 3rd - 50M Breast and 2nd - 100m Back. He took 25 seconds off his PB time to take 2nd place in 1.48.87 for the 100m Back. Well done Daniel. |
| 2004December 2004 - Both Kirsty Stephenson and Gemma Porter have been selected for the NEC Squad to attend a training camp in Spain in March 2005. At the recent NEC Championships in Leeds, Kirsty won 100m Fly while Gemma struck gold in 50m Freestyle. | November 2004 - Olivia Atkinson has been selected for the 2005 World Class Programme. Following her overall 2nd place in the 11 year old girls Bagcats at the 2004 National Age Group Championships and further assessment at Loughborough on 31st October, Olivia has been selected as one of 90 11-14 year olds in the UK to attend camps starting in January 2005. There was no good news for the club's three National champions - Aimee Willmott, Chris Dove and Peter Thompson - who have not been chosen but will attend special one day clinics to monitor their progress. Peter, who had his best ever Nationals on his way to winning the 200m Fly title in just a fraction outside the British Record, is especially disappointed as he has featured in the World Class Programme every year since its inception. More info from ASA website | September 2004 - Peter Thompson and Kirsty Stephenson have been selected to represent Northumberland & Durham Counties ASA in the Inter Counties Gala at Sheffield on 17th October. It is also understood that Paul Morren has been invited on the basis of his exploits under the Middlesbrough banner. | September 2004 - 5 Middlesbrough swimmers have been invited to the Talent Identification days at Loughborough on 30/31 October. Peter Thompson, Paul Morren (now training at Co Leeds), Olivia Atkinson, Aimee Willmott and Christopher Dove have all been invited following their successes at the National Age Group Championships. We wish them all the best on their quest to join the 2004/2005 National Age Group Programme (formerly World Class Start). | August 2004 - more good news on the coaching front. On return from holiday, club chairman, Sue Campion, discovered she had qualified as an ASA Club Coach thus boosting the strength of the club coaching team further. Sue works predominantly on lessons and the transition of the youngest swimmers in the club through to the training squads. Congrats to Sue. | A team of young Middlesbrough swimmers raised a grand total of £650 in the recent Butlins Swimathon 2004 held at the Rainbow pool. Four 11 year olds from National Potential Squad - Tyler Whitehead, Sophie Butcher, Paul Davis and Michael Weatherson - were joined by 7 year old Georgia Whitehead from A Squad to complete the swim in 1 hr 35 mins 41 secs. The money raised goes to MacMillan Cancer Relief and The Swimathon Foundation. Well done to the five! | Following the Stockport Meet, indications are that this year could be the busiest National Championships ever for the club. So far, 13 swimmers have qualified for either the Age Group or Youth Championships with 74 swims between them. Full list is:- Peter Thompson (10), Paul Morren (8), Kris Mason (2), Christopher Dove (10), Stephen Watson (2), Stephen Loughran (3), Gemma Porter (9), Kirsty Stephenson (7), Amy Campling (5), Samantha Cook (1), Olivia Atkinson (10) and Aimee Willmott(7). With the Middlesbrough Open and NEC Bagcats still to come before the closing data for qualification, this number may yet be increased. | | Club president and 'A' Squad coach, Ray Smith, received great news on Saturday 24th April just before he took charge of the Diddy League Squad for another win. After many months of hard work, Ray was told by ASA that he had qualified as an ASA Club Coach. Ray attended several classroom sessions and sat an examination before spending many, many hours both at home and on poolside to complete his logbook. Congratulations to Ray and further demonstration of the club's commitment to top quality coaching for its swimmers. | Former club captain, Chris Surtees, had a recent welcome return to form when he represented Loughborough University at the Irish Championships in mid-April. As well as lowering his LC PB for 100 Fly to 57.20 secs, Chris also won the 200m Individual Medley title. |
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