Please be advised that there will be NO swimming session at Newtown on Sunday 24 March 2019 between 2.30 pm and 4.00 pm for Junior Performance/Senior Development/Seniors and Senior Performance as most swimmers and coaches are at the Crystal Open Meet in Wolverhampton.

Lessons WILL go ahead as usual between 1.30 pm and 2.30 pm.

Stourbridge Swimming Club have advised that the session programmes for the upcoming open meet are available on their website. Please ensure that you print the programmes you require as they will not be available at the meet.

Session times are as follows:

Sessions 1 and 3      8:30am warm up  9:30am start

Sessions 2 and 4      1:00pm warm up  2:00pm start

Thanks​

Lisa

The accepted entries list for the upcoming Rugby Open Meet is available to view on their website. Please follow the link on their main page.

Thanks

Lisa

The list of accepted entries for the Crystal meet on 23rd March is now available to view on the Stourbridge Swimming Club website. Session times are also shown.

Please check the list before attending the meet.

Thanks

Lisa

Please can you remind your swimmers that the use of mobile phones in the changing rooms is strictly forbidden.  This includes taking photos, Face Timing and the use of any App that may take photos.  Also, photos of swimmers in their costumes should not be posted on social media.

Your cooperation with this is much appreciated.

 There is a Team Manager Level 1 course Wednesday 1 st May 2019 6.30pm – 9.30pm at Friary Grange Leisure Centre, Lichfield. This course is free of charge.

 Team Manager training is designed to ensure any volunteers who are taking groups of athletes to competitions or camps, locally or abroad, are fully equipped to do their role. Ensuring athletes arrive and return from sporting activities unharmed is a big responsibility and this training will ensure volunteers have all the necessary skills and knowledge to do this with confidence.

If anybody would like to attend this course or would like more information please let me know on swimandy82@gmail.com

Many Thanks 

Andy

We have just received the information for this year's Young Volunteer's Programme aimed at 14 - 16 year olds.  This is an excellent way to learn additional skills such as time keeping, first steps to coaching, aquatic helper and life support.

Places are limited to 4 per club and are on a first come first served basis.  The cost is £25 per person and full details and an application form can be found here:

YVP RLSS and Snowdome Forms.pdf​

Please email Andy Stead, Workforce Coordinator on swimandy82@gmail.com if you are interested.

 Please note the following closures for Eversfield

  Wednesday 13 March – both the Pool and the Sports Hall

 Thursday 21 March

 Thursday 4 April

We apologise for any inconvenience caused due to school closure.

We need to provide volunteers for the upcoming Warwickshire meet. They require Marshals, announcer and volunteers to provide refreshments to poolside volunteers.

Please email me on blytheopenmeet@hotmail.com with any sessions you may be available to assist with.​Thanks

Lisa

All sessions will remain the same with the exception of Thursday’s Senior Performance sessions, which will be at GSA 7 til 8:30 pm until further notice. 

Happy New Year to all our members.

If you are still paying monthly fees by Standing Order please take time to ensure you are paying the correct amount. The fees since April 2018 are:

Learn to Swim £30 per month

Development £35 per month

Juniors £40 per month

Seniors £40 per month

Junior Performance £48 per month 

Senior Performance £52 per month

We are currently checking all payments and remind you that with a standing order it is your responsibility to amend the amount you pay with your bank. 

Several groups are now on Direct Debit and we aim to have all groups paying by this method as quickly as possible to ensure the correct payments are being made. 

If you are unsure which group your child swims in, please check with your coach.

We appreciate your assistance with this.

Is anyone looking to go away at February Half Term?  The Club has 3 seats to Fuerteventura from Birmingham that were bought as part of a group that we need to sell.

They are for 5 nights from 18 - 23 February with good flight times - 10:00 out and returning at 17:45.

The seats include 20kgs luggage each and can be packaged with accommodation from just £425 per person.  Additional passengers can be added if needed but it's 3 that we urgently need to sell.

We don't need to be paid for these now, a small deposit will secure them and they can then be paid for in full January pay day but we do need to sell them quickly as names have to be given to the airline in the next few weeks so please let all your friends know if they looking for a holiday in February Half Term to get in touch.  team@blythebarracudas.com

Many thanks

Sue

The Nuneaton and District Junior Swimming League is a fantastic swimming competition targeting swimmers aged 9 to 12 in the early years of their competitive swimming. The League offers swimmers and clubs the chance to demonstrate the ability and talent of their swimmers and coaches. The preparation for 2019 starts now as the NJL is very competitive and the swimmers are of the highest calibre, many of them already achieving regional qualification times. Some of these swimmers go on to swim at a national level.

Blythe competes in the NJL running two teams (Blythe A and Blythe B).  By running two teams it gives us an opportunity to compete at the highest level. Blythe A swim in Division 1 and Blythe B swim in Division 3. Running a B team gives many of our other swimmers an opportunity to compete and challenge for a place in the A team.

Unfortunately, it is sometimes very difficult to swim two teams as despite having more than enough club swimmers we find ourselves in a position where people do not accept the opportunity to swim. This makes it very difficult, especially for the B team, as we have not had a full and complete team on many occasions in the past making it difficult to get the results that we expect and desire.

After careful consideration we have decided that we still want to give as many swimmers as possible an opportunity to compete, therefore, we will be running with two teams again in 2019. This will require a significantly increased commitment in comparison to last year (one gala nearly had to be cancelled!)

Whilst we appreciate that there may be clashes in your diary it is vital for us as a competitive club that swimmers generally swim when asked to. We kindly ask that you please prioritise the NJL dates as far as possible so that we can swim two strong teams.

Initially the three key dates are as below:-

• Saturday 6 April 2019
• Saturday 11tMay 2019
• Saturday 15 June 2019

The galas usually start at 6.00 pm (warm-up) and finish around 8.30 pm and the venues are usually less than an hour’s drive away, although sometimes it may take a little longer.

Depending on how well the season goes there might be an opportunity, if we finish in the top six of each Division, to compete in the final qualifying round gala in September to determine the League winners and promotion.

If we do not see an improved commitment from swimmers this year, then we will be forced to commence the 2020 NJL with only one team which, unfortunately, means that many young swimmers will miss out on the opportunity to swim. We really do not want this to be the case so your full co-operation and support will be appreciated and needed to avoid this happening.

Please put these dates in your diary and keep them free  if you can.  If you have any questions or concerns, then please let me know and I will help as far as possible.

Mark Mooney

Junior Performance Coach

We are concerned about the number of cars coming on and off the car park at Eversfield during the 7.50 – 7.30 pm crossover of sessions.  The car park isn’t very well lit and we don’t want anyone accidents.

We would therefore request that all parents dropping off for the later session, park on Manor Road and walk their swimmer in.  It will be OK to park on site when picking up afterwards or cars can be moved to the car park once the rush is over.

Also,  please do not park on the grassed areas If the car park is full, use Manor Road.

Many thanks for your co-operation.

As you are aware, the Club is moving monthly payments away from Standing Orders and over to Direct Debit. Reconciling payments takes a huge amount of time, which will be simplified by Direct Debit and will also streamline our system.

Direct Debit has been successfully trialed by Junior Performance so we are now ready to move the rest of the groups over.  Lessons will follow in the near future.

You will shortly receive an invitation from Go Cardless to sign up for your Direct Debit mandate.  Please action this as quickly as possible as we aim to have the whole club moved over by 1st December.

If you have any questions, please email treasurer@blythebarracudas.com

We would like to draw parent's attention to the fact that the evening sessions at Eversfield on Mondays have become extremely busy. Consequently, where possible, we would encourage swimmers to take advantage of the other available weekly sessions as these are usually quieter.

Brian Cooke

Head Coach

Please see attached letter which contains details of how to order photos from the Boldmere Open Meet.

Open Photos-01 (002).pdf​

As most of you will be aware from the local press, Tudor Grange pool will be closed for approximately 5 months from the end of October/beginning of November.

We are not sure of the exact date but anticipate that sessions on Wednesday 31st October and Thursday 1st November will take place at TG as normal.  From the following week the Development and Junior session which is currently 5.30 - 6.30 pm at TG will move to George's Swim Academy, 2 Vulcan Road, Solihull at 7 - 8pm.

Senior Performance session on a Thursday will move to North Solihull Leisure Centre in Chelmsley Wood - 7 - 9pm - time to be confirmed.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. Swimmers can still use any of the other sessions for their group that take place most days of the week.

Thank you to those who have replied regarding Swim Camp. We have 2 spaces left so if you are interested please let me know ASAP.  The final payment can now be made by 10th January. 

if you need any further information please let me know. 

Sue Lindsay

We are still looking for volunteers for the Primaries. Thank you to those that have already emailed me with their availability. Your help is appreciated.

1 x volunteer session 1

2 x volunteers sessions 3, 4, 5 and 6

Please email blytheopenmeet@Hotmail.com with your availability.

Thanks

Lisa Pritchard

Hi all

Please find attached the eagerly awaited news on next year's swim camp. This is open to swimmers age 12 and over who train a minimum of 3 times per week. 

I am looking for expressions of interest by Friday please so I can hold off seats and hotel rooms.  Full details in the attached letter.

Many thanks

Sue Lindsay

Swim Camp 2019 Letter to Parents.docx​

Scarlett Llusca and Sarah King have very kindly offered to take over the club kit from Emma Harris.  If you have ordered kit, please bear with us whilst Sarah and Scarlett are going through orders.  If you haven't yet paid for an item you have ordered please do as asap so your order can be processed.

Please pay by bank transfer to account: 61459674, Sort Code-55-50-15 and use |YourName and Kit as reference.  This is important to identify your payment.

The link on the website is still going to Emma but we are trying to get this redirected to the new team as soon as possible.

Just to confirm lessons/teaching will remain the same from 1 - 3.30pm on a Saturday at Saint Martins and 1.30 - 2.30 pm at Newtown on a Sunday.

Just to confirm lessons/teaching will remain the same from 1 - 3.30pm on a Saturday at Saint Martins and 1.30 - 2.30 pm at Newtown on a Sunday.

Please find attached the latest newsletter from Swim England West Midlands.

Swim England West Midlands Club Newsletter July 2018.pdf

Swim England West Midlands Courses Newsletter July 2018 .pdf​

Nine  volunteers represented Blythe barracudas at the recent “British Blind Sport” swimming gala at Tudor Grange. Led by Head Coach Brian Cooke the team provided first class assistance at this incredible gala which give’s visibly impaired swimmers from across the UK the opportunity to swim together in a gala with a competitive edge. It’s an amazing experience and the ability of some of these swimmers is astonishing.  Blythe provided time keepers, tappers and guides to help the swimmers to their races and during the races, not to mention Head coach Brian Cooke providing on the day coaching to some of these incredible kids!

I also would like to make a special mention to some of the young volunteers from Blythe..... Issey Maloney “Tapper”  ( A tapper holds a soft rod and simply “taps” the swimmer as they approach the finish or turn so that they do not “bang” their head when doing so). Also Phoebe Mooney and Lottie Maloney as guides helping the Visibly Impaired (VI) swimmers get to their races. Then we had Emily Worrall as a  great Chief Time keeper  assisted by the superb Mollie Devenport ( Our youngest volunteer)

Finally we had the J1 Time keeping experience of Garyn Devenport and Sarah Maloney and we were thanked for our time, experience and expertise by the BBS organisers!

Is your swimmer 14 or over?  Would they like to gain experience of teaching children to swim?

Blythe runs a successful lessons programme at Saint Martin's school every Saturday from 1 - 3.30pm and we need more helpers to get in the water and assist the swim teachers.

If your swimmer would like to be considered, please email me on team@blythebarracudas.com for more details.

Many thanks

Sue Lindsay

A Blythe bag was left behind at Eversfield tonight. If you think this is yours please email blytheopenmeet@hotmail.com.

Hello everybody

There is a British Blind Sport Gala being held at Tudor Grange  on May 5^th as below. It’s afternoon only and will attract swimmers from all over the country. They are looking for volunteers including time keepers , Marshalls and general helpers. This gala is a rare opportunity for these swimmers to all compete together and a very successful competition was held over the same weekend last year at Tudor Grange where 6 representatives from Blythe attended and had a fantastic day ( 3 parents, 3 swimmers).

This year’s gala is being held at Tudor Grange again, on Saturday 5^th May with races starting from 2pm-6pm

 If anyone is interested in helping then it would be highly appreciated and a fantastic experience so please get in touch with myself (Mark Mooney) I am usually at all the JP sessions.

 Mark

Good luck to all to all he swimmers, coaches and chaperones who jetted off to Torremolinos for the first Blythe Barracudas Swim Camp.  Train hard and have fun.

Dear Parent/Guardian

Many thanks to those who have already paid their annual membership fee. 

Can I remind you that all fees are due by 31^st December 2017 at the latest. 

Many thanks for your help.

With so many open meets out at the same time please, please ensure you use a reference so I can distinguish between the payments.  for example Nuneaton use your swimmers name plus NB e.g. JSmithNB, for Derby it would be JSmithDE, for Corby JSmithCO etc.

If paying by cheque, please write the name of the meet on the back of the cheque.

Many thanks for your cooperation

Sue

The competition season is well under way but we are still sadly lacking in the number of poolside helpers needed.  Especially from parents of our younger swimmers. This club and all the competitions you enter are run by volunteers without whose help there wouldn’t be the level of galas and open meets you currently enjoy.  Your swimmers are the up and coming future stars of the club and to keep the level of officials and helpers up, we need more parents of young competitive swimmers, especially Junior Performance, to come forward.   If your swimmer is competing regularly, please offer your time.

Mark Mooney co-ordinates the judges and time keepers so please speak to him to find out more and he can then get you signed up for the next Judge 1 programme.  This won’t take up much of your time but it will enable you to learn more about this wonderful sport of ours and take the pressure off the small group of volunteers we currently have.  We also need more parents/guardians to team manage at galas and open meets.  This involves looking after the swimmers poolside and getting them to their races on time.  You just need to be ASA registered, hold an enhanced DBS (the club will sort this) and enthusiastic.  Mark will then arrange for you to attend a short Team Managers course (3 hours max) to complete your training.

Please, please get involved in your club – we need you J

Many thanks

Sue Lindsay

team@blythebarracudas.com

Please click the link below for the latest Blythe Barracudas Newsletter which contains forthcoming fixtures and the latest Club news.

Blythe Barracudas Newsletter 5

Blythe Barracudas  is a competitive club committed to improving the performance of our swimmers ​whatever their age or ability.  We encourage all of our swimmers to attend open meets and select many swimmers to represent Blythe in our teams that compete in the National Arena League as well as the Nuneaton Junior League and Mercian League.

 The competitions that we take part in could not function without the assistance of the many volunteers that attend galas and meets to carry out a range of duties including timekeeping/officiating and judging. At the moment we need to find another 5-6 volunteers whom would be prepared to attend open meets and gala’s and assist in the required duties.

 Formal training will be offered to all those interested. The training consists of 3 study sessions then poolside training with free mentoring that could lead to a full ASA J1 training qualification within 6 months.

 It does not cost much only an £8 administration fee, £15-£25 for a stopwatch and a clipboard.  There are many advantages such as preferential car parking and getting involved in your child's sport!! In addition you will avoid sitting on a hot balcony all day waiting for your swimmers and you can be keeping a closer eye on the events and proceedings as well as learning a lot about your child’s sport. There are often gifts as an appreciation gesture such as bottles of wine/ tee shirts/ chocolates.

 If you are interested then please contact Mark Mooney on  mmooney@laingorourke.com. Mark will organise the training and advise on what to do next.

 As a final note, if you have swimmers intending to regularly compete then you are an ideal volunteer and the club needs you!

 Give it a go it's easy! It’s fun! and the more officials we have the easier it will be for all of us!

Mark Mooney

Officials Coordinator

Now that the new website is up and running we will no longer be using the old email address of blythebarracudas@swimclubmanager.com and this email address will no longer be monitored.

To contact members of the committee, please go to the Contacts page on the website, choose the person you need to contact and use the link.

Welcome to our new website.  Some areas are still under construction so please bear with us.  All swimmers in Development and above should have been sent a log in, if not please contact the webmaster via the Contacts page.  The website will be kept up to date with all the latest news and pool sessions so please check it regularly.

Another well done to all the Blythe Barracudas who took part in the second week of the Warwickshire ASA Swimming Championships 2018 held at Coventry over the weekend.  There were more excellent swims.  A special mention goes to the following swimmers who made it to the finals of their events:-

A big well done to all the Blythe Barracudas swimmers who took part in the first week of the Warwickshire ASA Swimming Championships 2018 held at Coventry over the weekend.  There were some excellent swims.  A special mention to the following swimmers who made it to the finals of their events:-

Swimmers from Blythe Barracudas took part in the highly competitive City of Coventry September Sprint Meet recently held at Coventry Sports and Leisure Centre which culminated in them winning an amazing 8 gold medals, 13 silver medals and 11 bronze medals.

For the boys 10 year old Alex Fryer secured bronze in the 50m breaststroke whilst 11 year old Kai Turner secured silver in the 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m breaststroke.  It was bronze again for Kai in the 11 year old boys 200m IM final.

Superb swims from 13 year old Josh Golsby-Taylor earned him gold in the 50m backstroke, silver in the 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m breaststroke and 50m butterfly.  Josh went on to win silver in the 13 year old boys 200m IM final.  Jack Kirby also 13 earned silver in the 50m butterfly and bronze in the 50m freestyle.

James Carson won gold in the 50m butterfly and silver in the 50m freestyle.  James succeeded in picking up the silver in the 14 year old boys 200m IM final.

For the girls 9 year old Madeleine Brown collected silver in the 50m butterfly and Isabella Rowbotham bronze in the 50m freestyle. 10 year old Molly Vondrak collected bronze in the 50m freestyle, 11 year old Charlotte Maloney collected gold in the 50m breaststroke and 50m butterfly and 12 year old Beth Morris collected silver in the 50m breaststroke and Aahana Jain silver in the 50m freestyle.

Isabelle Maloney aged 13 accomplished gold in the 50m breaststroke and 50m butterfly whilst her team mate Rosie Franklin accomplished gold in the 50m breaststroke and 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m butterfly, Isabelle and Rosie both made it to the final of the 13 year old girls 200 IM final and in a hard-fought race took silver and bronze respectively.

14 year old Emily Worrall won silver in the 50m breaststroke and went on to pick up silver in the 14 year old girls 200m IM final. Grace Galligan also 14 won bronze in the 50m backstroke.

Outstanding swims also merited Louise Baynham, Mohammed El Khayyaat, Carys Hayes, Kyle O’Grady and Rebecca Prosser a place in the 200m IM finals.

Saturday 2^nd September 2017 saw the Warwickshire County  Junior Team (10-13 yrs)  competing in the Bedfordshire ASA Junior Intercounty Gala, at the Inspire Competition and Community Swimming Pool in Luton.

The Competition was against 6 other county teams from across the country including Suffolk, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Lincolnshire, Essex County and Leicestershire. The whole evening was an enjoyable experience, with a fantastic opportunity for all involved. Every single one of the 31 swimmers who represented their county swam amazingly well, with several fabulous personal bests and a handful of regional times achieved.

The Gala started off with a convincing win for Annabel Crees (Rugby), Thomas Hudson (Nuneaton), Charlotte Gledhill (Nuneaton) and Dominic Simpson (Nuneaton), who lead from the start of their 10 years mixed 4x50 Freestyle relay beating the competition by over 30 seconds. The evening continued in much the same vain with the team consistently placing with in the top four teams. Other notable 1^st place finished included: Thomas Hudson’s (Nuneaton) wins in both his individual races in the 10 years 50m freestyle (31.80) and the 50m Backstroke (37.56), Connie Palmer (Boldmere) also won her 10 years 50m freestyle in a time of 32.44. Erin Davis (City of Birmingham) secured a win in her 13 years 100m Freestyle individual in a time of 1:02.16, while Charlotte Gledhill (Nuneaton) won her individual in the 10 years 50m Backstroke with a time of 38.27 and Finally George Smith (Leamington Spa) Finishing of the individual races with a win in the 13 years boys 100m Breaststroke in a time of 1:13.93. The gala was an overall success for Warwickshire with over 80% of the races seeing the team place 4^th or above with these 8 impressive first place finishes enabling to the team to finish in a comfortable 2^nd place.

Finally we would like to say a massive thank you to the local teams: Rugby, Nuneaton and Bedworth, City of Birmingham, Boldmere, Blythe Barracudas, City of Coventry, Leamington Spa, Orion and Solihull who providing swimmers for the event. As well as the Volunteers, Graham Nash (Head Coach from Leamington Spa), Jessica Ford (Coach from Coventry) Joey Stanger (Coach from Boldmere), Elaine Gale (Team Manager from Boldmere), and the officials, Rachel Cutler (Rugby), Andrew Herbert (Leamington),Kerry Hancock (Kingsbury) and Lucy Gale (Boldmere). As well as a huge congratulations to all who swam and represented their County.

(If anyone would like to see the overall results and times for all swimmers including relay splits please follow the link below: http://bedscountyasa.com/results/2017/InterCounty/index.php )

Blythe Barracudas teenager, Saad Qayyum, came home with four medals after representing Birmingham Children’s Hospital at the British Transplant Games (the flagship event of Transplant Sport) recently  held in North Lanarkshire.

The talented 13 year old, who had a liver transplant in February 2008, won a gold medal in the 25m butterfly and three silver medals in the 25m backstroke and the 25m and 50m freestyle.

The games have taken place annually since 1978 in cities across the UK and encourage those who have received a transplant to lead active and healthy lives, whilst showcasing the benefits of transplantation at the same time as increasing public awareness of the needs for more people to join the NHS Organ Donation Register.

Blythe Barracudas made a splash at the Boldmere Water Carnival held over two days last weekend at Stechford Cascades.

For the boys in the 9 year old age group, Alex Fryer secured gold in the 50m and 100m breaststroke, silver in the 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle and bronze in the 100m freestyle.

Joseph Franklin achieved gold in the 50m freestyle and 200m breaststroke, silver in the 50m backstroke and 100m freestyle and bronze in the 50m butterfly in the 11 year old age category.

Elsewhere, there were impressive swims for 13 year old Thomas Beech who won gold in the 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle, the 200m breaststroke and 200m IM and silver in the 400m freestyle and Josh Golsby-Taylor who won gold in the 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke and the 400m freestyle and bronze in the 200m freestyle and 200m IM.  Mohammed El Khayyaat won bronze in the 50m breaststroke.

Myles Harris was the star of the show for the 14 year old boys picking up gold in the 100m and 200m breaststroke, the 50m butterfly, the 100m and 200m freestyle and the 200m IM.  James Carson also excelled coming first in the 200m backstroke and 200m butterfly, second in the 50m and 100m backstroke, the 50m and 100m butterfly and third in the 200m freestyle.

In the 15 year and over age category, Jordan Lakin took home gold in the 200m breaststroke and silver in the 100m breaststroke, Leo Sarigins took home gold in the 100m backstroke and silver in the 50m backstroke backstroke and Callum Mitchell took home silver in the 200m freestyle and bronze in the 100m backstroke.

For the girls in the 9 year old age group, Madeleine Brown came away with gold in the 200m freestyle and bronze in the 50m backstroke and 200m IM, whilst Isabella Rowbotham came away with gold in the 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m butterfly and 100m freestyle and Ruby Joyce with bronze in the 100m backstroke.

10 year old Tiana Greenshields claimed silver in the 50m freestyle whilst Molly Vondrak claimed bronze in the 100m backstroke.

There were bronze medals for 11 year old Aahana Jain in the 50m backstroke and Carys Hayes in the 50m freestyle.

13 year old Isabelle Maloney took home silver in the 50m and 100m butterfly and bronze in the 50m freestyle Rosie Franklin took home silver in the 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m and 200m breaststroke and Grace Galligan took home silver in the 50m backstroke.

14 year old Emily Worrall collected silver in the 200m breaststroke and 400m freestyle and bronze in the 50m breaststroke and Freya Lindsay bronze in the 50m backstroke.

There were also notable swims and medals for Sonny Butcher, Max Clinton-Tarestad, Oliver Haywood, Kai Turner, Harry Worrall, Lucy Beech, Darcie Flynn, Ciara Jones, Charlotte Maloney, Beth Morris and Becky Prosser.

Competing against Boldmere, Fox Hollies, Kingsbury, Orion, Pershore, Solihull and Stratford Sharks, Blythe Barracudas were crowned “Top Visiting Club” at the Boldmere Junior Invitation Meet held recently at Stechford Cascades.

It was 11 year old Joseph Franklin who shone achieving first place in the 100m IM, 50m breaststroke, 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle and third place in the 50m backstroke.

8 year old Daniel Roche finished third in the 25m butterfly and 25m freestyle and 9 year old Seth Vondrak finished third in the 25m backstroke.

10 year old James Baynham came second in the 50m breaststroke whilst Alex Fryer came third in the 50m breaststroke and 50m freestyle. 

For the 8 year old girls. Cleo Hayes triumphed in the 25m butterfly and finished second in the 25m freestyle whilst Molly Devenport finished second in the 25m butterfly. 

9 year old Maddie Brown finished third in the 25m butterfly and 10 year old Darcie Flynn finished third in the 25m breaststroke. 

11 year old Carys Hayes secured second place in the 50m breaststroke.

Teenager James Carson stole the show for Blythe Barracudas Swimming Club at the Team Mercia Spring Open Meet held at Pingles Leisure Centre last weekend.

The talented 14 year old came first in the 50m, 100m and 200m butterfly, second in the 200m IM and third in the 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke achieving several Midland District qualifying times

For the boys, 11 year old Joseph Franklin gained third place in the 50m and 100m freestyle whilst 12 year old Josh Golsby-Taylor gained first place in the 200m freestyle and the 200m IM, second place in the 50m breaststroke and the 400m freestyle and third place in the 100m and 200m backstroke and the 50m butterfly.

13 year old Thomas Beech finished first in the 50m and 200m breaststroke and second in the 100m breaststroke.  14 year old Myles Harris finished first in the 100m breaststroke and the 50m and 100m freestyle.

15 year old Leo Sarigins came first in the 50m and 200m backstroke and second in the 100m backstroke, the 200m breaststroke and the 50m freestyle whilst team mate Callum Mitchell came first in the 50m butterfly, second in the 100m butterfly, the 200m and 400m freestyle and third in the 50m backstroke.

For the girls, 10 year old Darcie Flynn gained third place in the 100m breaststroke.

Hannah May O’ Leary was another swimmer in fine form with the 13 year old securing first place in the 50m breaststroke and 200m freestyle, second place in the 100m breaststroke and 200m IM and third place in the 100m butterfly and 50m freestyle.

16 year old Victoria Long finished second in the 50m and 200m freestyle.

Blythe Barracudas were well represented at the Warwickshire County Championships, one of the most important competitions on the swimming calendar, with over 40 swimmers taking part in the event held over two weekends at the 50m swimming pool at Coventry.

There were outstanding swims from Alisha Greenshields who came first in the 12/13 yrs 400m IM.  She also came first in the finals of the 13 yrs 100m backstroke, the 50m and 100m butterfly and the 200m freestyle, second in the finals of the 13 yrs 50m freestyle and third in the finals of the 13 yrs 50m and 100m breaststroke, the 50m and 100m butterfly and the 100m freestyle.

Hannah May O’Leary came second in the final of the 14 yrs 50m breaststroke and third in the final of the 14 yrs 50m freestyle.  She also made it to the finals of the 14 yrs 100m breaststroke, the 100m butterfly and the 100m freestyle.

Charlotte Rigg also shone coming first in the finals of the 15 yrs/over 50m and 100m breaststroke. She was crowned Open Championship winner and Junior Champion winner for the 100m breaststroke.  Charlotte also came first in the final of the 14 yrs/over 200m breaststroke and was crowned Open Championship winner for this event.  She also came second in the 14 yrs/over 400m IM and was awarded second place in the Open Championship for this event.

The boys were also triumphant with Joseph Franklin coming first in the finals of the 10/11 yrs 50m and 100m butterfly and the 50m and 100m freestyle and third in the finals of the 10/11 yrs 50m breaststroke and the 200m freestyle.  He also made it to the finals of the10/11 yrs 50m and 100m backstroke and the 200m breaststroke

Toby Allen came third in the final of the 10/13 yrs breaststroke, whilst Aidan Mitchell came third in the final of the 14 yrs 100m butterfly.

Myles Harris came second in the finals of the 15 yrs 50m and 100m breaststroke and third in the the final of the 15 yrs 50m freestyle.

James Morris came first in the 14 yrs/over 200m breaststroke and was crowned Open Championship winner for this event. He also came third in the final of the 16 years/over 100m breaststroke and was awarded third place in the Open Championship for this event. James also made it to the final of the 16 years/over 50m breaststroke.

There were also notable swims from Lucy Beech, Charlotte Maloney, Isabelle Maloney, Erin Molloy, Emily Worrall, Thomas Beech, James Carson, Josh Golsby-Taylor, Leo Sarigins and Val Sarigins who secured places in various finals throughout the Championships.

An abundance of swimmers from Blythe Barracudas took part at the Wyre Forest “Rock the Blocks” Open Meet held at Wolverhampton Central Baths on Saturday 3 December and Sunday 4 December.

For the girls Hannah May O’Leary (13) stole the show winning a gold in the 100m breaststroke, the 100m butterfly, the 100m and 200m IM, the 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle and a silver in the 50m backstroke and the 50m butterfly. 

10 year old Charlotte Maloney collected a silver in the 100m and 200m breaststroke and a bronze in the 50m freestyle and Lucy Beech a silver in the 200m backstroke.

Aahana Jain (11) and Isabelle Maloney (12) both accomplished a silver in 100m butterfly, Emily Worrall (13) a gold in the 50m breaststroke and Poppy Jones (13) a bronze in the 200m freestyle.

14 year old Freya Lindsay gained a bronze in the 100m backstroke and the 50m butterfly, Jessica Deans a silver in the 50m freestyle and Hannah Devenport a silver in the 200m backstroke and a bronze in the 200m freestyle.

For the boys Sonny Butcher (9) acquired a bronze in the 200 IM.

13 year old Myles Harris picked up a gold in the 100 IM and a silver in the 50m freestyle whilst Thomas Beech picked up a silver in the 50m butterfly and James Carson picked up a bronze in the 50m, 100m and 200m butterfly and the 100 IM.

Callum Mitchell (15) secured a gold in the 50m backstroke and a silver in the 200 IM whilst team mate Leo Sarigins (15) secured a gold in the 50m butterfly and the 200 IM.

For the 16 year olds Jack Wilson earnt a gold in the 50m breaststroke and a bronze in the 50m freestyle and Jordan Lakin a gold in the 200m breaststroke.

The youngest members of Blythe Barracudas were recently in action at the Birmingham SAG Water Festival held at Stechford Cascades getting their first taste of competition.

Organised by the Swimming Action Group, this is an important event in the swimming calendar as it gives novice gala swimmers experience of competing.

Blythe Barracudas were well represented at the event with 16 swimmers taking part and achieving some outstanding swims.

For the girls, eight year old Christine O’Grady collected silver in the 100m individual medley. 

Nine year old Mariam El Khayyaat won silver in the 100m individual medley and 25m freestyle while Madeline Brown picked up a gold in the 25m freestyle and a silver in the 25m backstroke.  Ruby Joyce gained a bronze in the 25m butterfly.

There was a silver for 10 year old Grace Mullen in the 50m breaststroke and 50m breaststroke and bronze in the 25m butterfly.

For the boys, eight year old Seth Vondrak succeeded in winning a gold in the 25m backstroke, silver in the 100m individual medley and bronze in the 25m butterfly and 25m freestyle.

There was also a gold for nine year old Musa Ahmed in the 25m butterfly, a silver in the 25m backstroke and 25m breaststroke and a bronze in the 100m individual medley.  Oliver Haywood secured bronze in the 25m breaststroke and 25m freestyle.

Blythe Barracudas were well represented at the recent Coventry and District Primary Galas held over two weekends at Pingles Leisure Centre, Nuneaton.  

The girls were in exceptional form qualifying for 27 places in the finals. For the 10 year old girls Charlotte Maloney won a bronze medal in the 50m backstroke and the 100m breaststroke finals whilst Molly Vondrak won a bronze medal in the 100m butterfly final.

11 year old Beth Morris gained a bronze medal in the 50m breaststroke final.

13 year old Emily Worrall secured a bronze medal in the 100m breaststroke final whilst Hannah O’Leary secured a gold medal in the 50m freestyle final, a silver medal in the 50m breaststroke final and a bronze medal in the 100m butterfly final. Hannah also obtained a gold medal in the 200m freestyle, a silver medal in the 400 IM and a bronze medal in the 200m IM. 

14 year old Darcy Burnham acquired a gold medal in the 200m freestyle and 400m freestyle and Freya Lindsay a bronze medal in the 200m backstroke.

The boys earned 36 places in the finals.  For the 10 year old boys Joseph Franklin achieved a silver medal in the 100m freestyle final and a bronze medal in the 100m butterfly and 50m freestyle finals.

11 year old Lukas Whaley collected a bronze medal in the 50m breaststroke final and a bronze medal in the 200m breaststroke.

13 year old James Carson gained a silver medal in the 200m backstroke and 200m butterfly and a bronze medal in the 100m butterfly final whilst Thomas Beech won a silver medal in the 50m breaststroke and 100m freestyle finals.  Thomas also obtained a silver medal in the 200m breaststroke.

14 year old Myles Harris secured a gold medal in the 50m breaststroke and 50m freestyle finals, a silver medal in the 100m freestyle final and a bronze medal in the 50m backstroke final. Myles also received a silver medal in the 200m breaststroke.

15 year old Leo Sarigins acquired a silver medal in the 50m backstroke final whilst Callum Mitchell acquired a silver in the 100m freestyle.

There were also notable swims from Jess Deans, Darcie Flynn, Scarlett Flynn, Rosie Franklin, Joshua Golsby-Taylor, Carys Hayes, Jack Kirby, Isabelle Maloney, Samuel McLoughlin, Isla Mitchell and Matthew Wilkinson who secured places in various finals throughout the gala.

A busy few weeks has seen Blythe Barracudas Swimming Club produce a series of outstanding swims at both the Profab Trophy Gala and the City of Coventry September Sprint Meet.

At the Profab Trophy Gala held at Wolverhampton Central Baths there were first place finishes for 11 year olds Toby Allen in the 50m backstroke and Joseph Franklin in the 50m freestyle,  12 year olds Thomas Beech in the 50m backstroke and 50m freestyle, 13 year olds Simon Duffy in the 50m butterfly, Myles Harris in the 50m backstroke and the 50m breaststroke and Hannah O’Leary in the 50m breaststroke and 14 year old James Morris in the 100m backstroke There were also first place finishes for the 11 years girls in the 4 x 1 medley relay, the 12 years boys in the 4 x 1 freestyle relay and the 4 x 1 medley relay, the 13 years boys and girls in the 4x 2 medley relay and the boys in the 8 x 1 freestyle relay.

At the City of Coventry September Sprint Meet held at Coventry Sports and Leisure Centre Blythe Barracudas were crowned Top Visiting Club.

A total of 37 swimmers took part in the highly competitive event which culminated in them winning an astounding 11 gold medals, 9 silver medals and 11 bronze medals.

Superb swims from 9 year old Molly Vondrak secured her a silver in the 50m freestyle and a bronze in the 50m butterfly. It was a bronze medal for Molly in the 200m IM final.

10 year old Lukas Whaley earned him gold in the 50m breaststroke, 50m butterfly and 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m backstroke.  Lukas went on to win silver in the 200m IM final.

12 year old Josh Golsby-Taylor picked up silver in the 50m breaststroke and bronze in the 50m backstroke, 50 butterfly and 50m freestyle. Josh succeeded in picking up silver in the 200m IM final.

13 year old Hannah O’Leary was awarded gold in the 50m breaststroke, 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m backstroke and 50m butterfly.  It was gold for Hannah in the 200m IM final.

15 year old Grace Dowse gained gold in the 50m backstroke and bronze in the 50m freestyle. Grace went on to win bronze in the 200m IM final.

On their first outing to the Meet, 9 years olds James Baynham, Sonny Butcher, Max Clinton-Tarestad, Becky Prosser and Molly Vondrak earned a place in the 200m IM finals by finishing in the top eight for their age group. Outstanding swims also merited Thomas Beech, Jess Deans, Grace Dowse, Scarlett Flynn, Rosie Franklin, Grace Galligan, Myles Harris, Ciara Jones, Freya Lindsay, Charlotte Maloney, Isabelle Maloney and Sam McLoughlin a place in the 200m IM finals.

A special well done to all the swimmers who took part in the Harvey Novice Gala at Pingles Leisure Centre, Nuneaton - especially to some of our younger swimmers who represented the Club for the first time.  It was a very exciting night with Blythe Barracudas finishing in fifth place.

Swimmers from Blythe Barracudas Swimming Club made a splash at the two day Boldmere Water Carnival held at Stechford Cascades last weekend.

For the boys in the 9 year old age group there were impressive swims from James Baynham who secured gold in the 100m and 200m breaststroke and silver in the 50m breaststroke.

10 year old Joseph Franklin was the star of the show accomplishing gold in the 50m and 100m backstroke, the 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle and silver in the 50m and 100m breaststroke, the 50m and 100m butterfly and the 200m IM.

12 year old Josh Golsby-Taylor got a silver in the 100m breaststroke.

Myles Harris excelled for the 13 year olds picking up silver in the 50m backstroke, the 50m and 100m breaststroke, the 50m and 100m freestyle and bronze in the 50m butterfly and the 200m breaststroke.

In the 14 year old age group Leo Sarigins took gold in the 50m and 200m backstroke and the 50m butterfly, silver in the 100m butterfly and the 200 IM and bronze in the 50m butterfly and the 200m freestyle while James Morris picked up gold in the 200m freestyle and the 200m IM, silver in the 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke and bronze in the 50m and 100m butterfly.

For the 15 years and over age group Callum Mitchell achieved a silver in the 400m freestyle and bronze in the 100m freestyle and Matthew Wilkinson a bronze in the 200m backstroke.

9 year old Darcie Flynn came away with bronze in the 100m breaststroke, Lucy Kirby a silver in the 200m breaststroke and Tiana Greenshields a bronze in the 50m freestyle.

10 year old Lottie Maloney claimed bronze in the 50m breaststroke.

For the 13 year old girls Freya Lindsay received bronze in the 50m and 100m backstroke and Jess Deans bronze in the 50m freestyle.

14 year old Scarlett Flynn claimed gold in the 50m and 100m breaststroke and bronze in the 200m breaststroke and 50m freestyle.

In addition there were also medals for Carys Hayes, Charlotte Maloney, Phoebe Mooney, Ciara Jones and Gabe Avery.

A fantastic performance from 33 swimmers saw Blythe Barracudas Swimming Club come away from the Coventry and District Secondary Galas, held over two days at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Centre, Rugby with a staggering 86 medals.

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The girls were in fine form with Charlotte Maloney (10) winning gold in the 50m freestyle and bronze in the 50m butterfly and Ciara Jones (10) winning gold in the 50m butterfly. For the 13 year olds Jess Deans secured gold in the 50m and the 100m freestyle and silver in the 50m butterfly, Freya Lindsay gold in the 100m and the 200m backstroke and silver in the 50m backstroke, Emily Worrall gold in the 50m and the 100m breaststroke and bronze in the 200m breaststroke, and Poppy Jones silver in the 50m freestyle. Hannah Devenport (14) gained silver in the 200m backstroke.

Not to be outdone, there were top performances by the boys with Joseph Franklin (10) picking up silver in the 50m backstroke. Josh Golsby-Taylor (11) collected gold in the 50m and the 100m breaststroke and bonze in the 200m IM. Thomas Beech (12) came away with gold in the 100m breaststroke and the 100m freestyle, silver in the 200m freestyle and bronze in the 50m backstroke. For the 13 years olds Simon Duffy seized gold in the 50m butterfly, silver in the 50m and the 200m breaststroke and bronze in the 100m breaststroke, the 50m freestyle and the 200m IM and Myles Harris silver in the 50m breaststroke, the 50m and the 100m freestyle and the 200m IM and bronze in the 200m breaststroke, 50m butterfly and the 200m freestyle. Leo Sarigins (14) accomplished gold in the 50m butterfly, 200m freestyle and 200m IM, silver in the 200m backstroke and the 200m breaststroke and bronze in the 400m freestyle.

An exhilarating fun filled day was had by all (big kids included!) at Drayton Manor last Sunday. The sun shone as did the children’s exemplary behaviour.  A big thank you to Simon Greenhill for organising and for not losing anyone along the way!