Stocksbridge Pentaqua strike gold at Yorkshire championships

SWIMMERS from Stocksbridge Pentaqua Swimming Club are celebrating success after striking gold at the Yorkshire Swimming Association championships with a fantastic win by the boys’ 13/14 years freestyle relay team.

The county championships, which took place over three weekends during February at both John Charles Centre for Sport in Leeds and Ponds Forge International in Sheffield, saw qualifying swimmers take part in a packed programme of events. Stocksbridge Pentaqua Swimming Club were thrilled that over 50% of the club’s swimmers achieved qualifying times for this year’s county championships and earned a place competing against the best swimmers in the region.

All of the club’s swimmers swam brilliantly over the three rounds of the competition, achieving a 71% PB (personal best) rate during the last weekend alone. Swimmers also secured an amazing 37 top-10 placings, 18 of which were top-five placings which included bronze medals for Ben Croft in the 14 years 50m breaststroke and 50m butterfly, and a bronze medal for Logan Price in the 13 years 200m breaststroke.

Finishing the last weekend of the Yorkshire championships on the ultimate high,

Stocksbridge Pentaqua’s boys 13/14 years relay team stormed to success with a fantastic firstplace win and a gold medal in the 200m freestyle team event.

The team were clear winners in both their heat and the final, beating off stiff competition from other elite clubs from across the county. Congratulations to Ben Croft, Makyle Iqbal, Logan Price and Finley Mc- Nicholas for a very exciting race and a well-deserved gold medal!

This New Year success follows hot on the heels of a successful 2018 which culminated in the club’s presentation evening back in December. As well as celebrating achievements throughout the year, swimmers were awarded trophies and medals that they’d won at the club’s internal gala which took place in October.

The internal club gala, which is a licensed ASA meet, saw members compete in 50m and 100m distances for all strokes, plus a 200m or 400m freestyle challenge. Swimmers were ranked by age group and awards given to the first three in each age group. Awards were also given to swimmers with the highest achievement in the challenge events.

Special congratulations go to the following swimmers for achievements in 2018…

Phoebe McNicholas - Top Senior Girl

Layla Wright - Top Junior Girl

George Galloway - Top Senior Boy

Finley McNicholas - Top Junior Boy

Ben Croft – winner of the Cressy Award, a special award given to the swimmer with the most success at county and regional championships

For more information on Stocksbridge Pentaqua Swimming Club, visit https:// www.stocksbridgepentaqua.co.uk/