The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
The South Lincs swimmers have completed three weekends of Lincolnshire County Championships, held in January and February at Grantham and Louth.
The team of 40 swimmers collected an impressive 124 medals over the championships, comprising 47 gold, 44 silver and 33 bronze.
There were some very impressive swims and results from the South Lincs athletes.
Francesco Monaco led the way in the boys’ 12 years age group and collected nine individual gold medals.
Monaco swam excellently to win the 200m, 400, 800m and 1,500m freestyle events.
He also showed his prowess across all four strokes as he added gold medals to his personal haul in both the 200m and 400m individual medley, along with gold in the 100m breaststroke, 200m backstroke and a stunning 100m butterfly.
For good measure Monaco also collected four silver medals and two bronze to be the most successful South Lincs swimmer at County Championships.
Charlie Bisby has had a difficult start to the season through illness, however he rose to the occasion and bagged himself a total of 14 medals, six of which were gold, in the boys’ 13 years age group.
Bisby swept the backstroke events in his age group as he topped the podium in the 50m, 100m and 200m events.
He also took gold in both the 100m and 400m individual medley events and for good measure took gold in the 200m freestyle.
There were a host of new personal best times for Bisby, who frequently made the podium in the boys’ junior championships which is for swimmers 14 years and under.
Rico Bringeman was back from his studies and training at Loughborough University to represent South Lincs and showed further improvements in his swimming.
He swept to gold in six events winning both the boys’ 17 years and over age group and the men’s senior championship title.
Bringeman dominated both butterfly events as he stormed to the win in the 100m distance and cruised to victory in the 200m event.
He showed his abilities across all four strokes as he won the 400m, 200m and 100m individual medley events, in the latter Bringeman broke the 60-second barrier for the first time as he touched the wall in 59.48s.
He also took gold in the 100m breaststroke.
Oscar Goldsmith had a busy three weekends of competition as he claimed 11 medals in the boys’ 16 years age group and also made the podium in the men’s senior championship in a number of these swims.
Goldsmith swam to gold in the middle and distance events as he took first place in both the 400m and 800m freestyle.
There were also gold medals for him in the 100m breaststroke, 200m butterfly and the 400m individual medley.
Not to be outdone the girls were in fine form as well.
Emma Croker returned from her Loughborough University sprint training programme and swam to four gold medals.
She topped the podium in the girls’ 17 years and over age group and won the ladies’ senior championship in the 50m freestyle with a new season’s best time of 26.15s.
There was a new personal best for Croker in the 50m backstroke as she claimed gold in 30.05s and added gold in the 100m backstroke to her medal haul. Her final gold came in the 50m butterfly.
Lillie Hamilton had a tremendous outing as she claimed a hat trick of gold medals and secured her spot as Lincolnshire County Champion for the first time.
Hamilton struck gold in the 400m, 800m and 1,500m freestyle events and set some superb new personal best times – in the 400m freestyle, Hamilton lowered her best time by five seconds.
She was competing in the girls’ 16 years age group and also bagged three bronze medals, these came in the 200m freestyle and in true distance swimmer style in the 200m butterfly and the 400m individual medley.
Ellisha Cookson was back on the blocks after a break from swimming.
She showed she had not lost her competitive streak as she stormed to gold medals in both the 50m and 100m breaststroke events in the girls’ 17 years and over age group and also claimed the ladies’ senior championship title.
Cookson also took silver medals in her age group in the 100m and 200m individual medley events and collected a surprise bronze medal in the 50m butterfly.
Sigourney Bolton was a double gold medallist in the girls’ 15 years age group.
Breaststroke specialist Bolton, rather unsurprisingly, swept to victory in both the 100m and 200m breaststroke events with very determined swims that saw her set new personal best times in both distances.
She had to settle for the bronze medal in her age group in the 50m breaststroke event, but took her medal in a new personal best time of 36.28s.
For good measure Bolton also added a surprise bronze medal to her personal collection in the 50m butterfly.
Hannah Bruce had a tough championship as she fought against some very talented opposition in the girls’ 15 years age group.
However, not one to be defeated, Bruce struck gold in one of her favourite events as she topped the podium in the 200m freestyle in her age group.
She also won a staggering 11 silver medals across the freestyle, butterfly and individual medley events.
Aaron Sadler was competing in the boys’ 14 years age group and showed his butterfly skills over the course of the championships.
Sadler bagged a bronze medal in the 50m butterfly.
In a closely fought final he went one better in the 100m butterfly to take the silver medal in a new personal best time.
He saved his best performance for last as he swept to a gold medal in the 200m butterfly with a brilliant new personal best time of 2.29.63s, which also saw him win the boys’ junior championship in this event.
For good measure Sadler also added a bronze medal to his haul in the 200m individual medley.
Will Vere showed that perseverance and determination pay off in the sport of swimming.
In the boys’ 15 years age group, Vere not only captured his first county medals in the pool he also became a Lincolnshire County Champion.
He claimed bronze medals in both the 200m butterfly and the 400m individual medley events and went on to take a silver medal in the 800m freestyle event and topped the podium in the ever demanding 1,500m freestyle event.
Vere also set a host of new personal best times over the course of the championships as he continues to progress his performance results.
Orlaigh Greer and Connor Boyfield did themselves and South Lincs proud as they competed in the para swimming categories.
Greer managed to win five gold medals, and despite being unwell and having to miss some events, she set new personal best times in the 100m backstroke, 100m freestyle, the 100m individual medley and the 50m butterfly.
Her results saw her awarded the Lincolnshire County female para swimmer trophy.
Boyfield is making a return to competitive swimming and set new best times in both the 100m freestyle and the 50m butterfly to collect two gold medals and receive the County male para swimmer trophy.
