Blythe Barracudas Swimming Club

Nuneaton 'Diddy' League R2 8^th May 2010

Blythe Barracudas swam to an impressive consecutive win in Round 2 of the Nuneaton Junior League held on Saturday 8th May at Nuneaton.

Blythe now have two wins to their name against strong opposition and are in a good position to reach the finals to be held in September.

Blythe ran out convincing winners on the day with 28 races wins out of a possible 51, there were also 13 personal best times.

Barracudas dominated the relay events winning 12 out of the 19 events.

There were some notable individual performances with William Rigg winning the 10 year 50m Freestyle and 25m Butterfly, this double was matched by Ben Austin in the 12 year old 50m Breaststroke and 50m Freestyle.

For the girls there were wins for Emily Graham in the 11 year old 50m Backstroke and 50m Butterfly and Georgia Smith managed wins in the 9 year old 25m Butterfly and 25m Freestyle events. Congratulations must go to club member James Lee for representing Warwickshire County on Sunday 9th May with the team finishing third overall.

If you are interested in joining them please visit their website at www.blythebarracudas.com to find out more about the club.

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Mercian League R1 24^th April 2010

Blythe Barracudas were in action again in Round 1 of the Mercian Summer League at Tamworth. Despite being up against tough opposition, Blythe managed a respectable fourth place with 23 personal best times being achieved at the event.

There was success in the boys 12 and under Medley Relay team with an emphatic first place for Ben Hurdman, Ben Austin, James Lee and Tom McNutt. The individual highlights were first place for Jack Wilson in the 10 year old boys 50m Breaststroke in a personal best time and first place for Katie Berwick in the 14 year old girls 100m Breaststroke.

Blythe is a very enthusiastic and friendly swimming club which always welcomes new members.

If you are interested in joining them please visit their website at www.blythebarracudas.com to find out more about the club.

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Diddy League R1 17th April 2010

Blythe Barracudas swam into form on Saturday 17th April at Stechford Cascades, competing in the first round of the Nuneaton Junior League.

Blythe achieved a convincing victory on the night against five other teams.

There were 18 personal best times recorded on the night with Blythe winning 27 out of the 51 races and placing second in 14 of the other events.

It was a great all round team performance with outstanding victories in 11 out of the 19 relay events.

There were individual successes for Emily Graham in the 11 year and under girls 50m Backstroke and Butterfly events and Georgia Smith in the girls 9 year old 25m Butterfly and freestyle. Other winners for the girls included Frances Austin, Sophie Gifford, Amy Lewis, Amy Greenhill and Rachel Davies in their respective events. The boys also achieved great success with individual wins from William Rigg, Jack Wilson, Matthew Pagan, Ben Hurdman, Tom McNutt and James Lee.

Blythe is a very enthusiastic and friendly swimming club which always welcomes new members.

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John Vaughan Trophy Gala 30th January 2010

Blythe Barracudas took the opportunity to blood it's elite swimmers against older aged children in the recent John Vaughan Trophy Gala, held at Wolverhampton Central Baths on Saturday 30^th January.

Despite finishing eighth on the night valuable experience was gained with the young Barracuda squad competing well beyond expectations.

There were 22 personal best times out of a possible 32 individual events with some notable performances.

Many of the swimmers were up against older opposition with the club able to take stock of it's future young prospects.

Excellent performances were achieved in the following events:

Two first places for the 9 year old girls medley and freestyle relay teams which included Cerys Stansfield, Charlotte Rigg, Georgia Smith, Lily Graham and Frances Austin. There was also a second place for the 9 year old mixed freestyle relay team which consisted of Frances Austin, Lily Graham and boys William Rigg and Adam McNutt.

First places were also achieved in the 11 year old girls freestyle relay with Emily Graham, Sophie Gifford, Mollie Lewis and Sian Wyn-Jones.

In the Open events there were first places in the medley and freestyle relay team which included Hollie Joyce, Lucy Rigg, Sophie Thompson and Katie Berwick.

In her first gala for Blythe Barracudas, Emily Graham achieved a first place in the 11 year old girls 50m backstroke event, in a new personal best time.

Boldmere Invitational Meeting 20th& 21st November 2009

Blythe Barracudas produced some magnificent swims at the Boldmere Open Meet over the weekend of 21st and 22nd November held at Stechford Cascades Swimming Baths.

Blythe had 23 of it's club swimmers taking part in the event with 37 other Midlands based clubs also represented.

There were 59 personal best times recorded by the Blythe Barracudas swimmers with 11 year old James Lee deserving a special mention. James competed in seven events all in personal best times excelling in his 50m backstroke event where he achieved a Silver medal. He also received fourth and fifth place certificates in the 50m and 100m butterfly and the 100m backstroke events respectively. Blythe's other medal winner was 14 year old Elinor Penny who achieved the Bronze in the 100m butterfly.

Another noteworthy performance came from nine year old William Rigg who was awarded a 5th place certificate in the 50m freestyle event.

Fifteen year olds Michael Penny and Sophie Thompson achieved four personal best times each, over the weekend's events a feat also matched by twelve year old swimmer Kelly Hurdman.

There were exceptional swims by Ben Austin, 11, in the 100m freestyle taking 7 seconds off his previous personal best and not to be outdone. Nine year old Hannah Currie slashed 7 seconds off her personal best in the 50m butterfly.

The remaining personal best times were evenly spread between those swimmers taking part in the event, demonstrating the recent improvements of this emerging local club.

Warley Wasps Friendly B Gala 3rd October 2009

Blythe Barracudas took part in a thrilling swimming gala hosted by Warley Wasps Swimming Club at Smethwick on Saturday evening.

Blythe finished a close second on the night to eventual winners, Perry Beeches, however it could have been even better if luck had been on their side.

There were numerous great performances on the night and the team managed fourteen first place finishes out of 41 events with 12 personal best times.

14 year old James Lewis won the Individual Medley and 100m Butterfly. William Rigg won both of his individual events in the 10 year old one length butterfly and two lengths freestyle with personal best times. He was also involved in two relay wins with fellow team mates, Ben Hurdman, Jamie Edwards and Tom McNutt in the 10 Year olds Medley Relay and Freestyle Relay.

There were wins for Joe Evans in the 14 year old 100m Freestyle, Kelly Hurdman in the 12 year old two length girls Breaststoke and Amy Lewis in the 12 year old two length Freestyle all achieved in personal best times. James Lee won the 12 year old boys two length Backstroke. The girls performed well in the relay events with valuable wins in four out of seven, many achieved with younger swimmers.