Neves stars while others secure Hampshire times

KRISTINA NEVES has excelled at a level one meeting in Harrogate. The young Guernsey Swimming Club star competed in a total of 12 events and easily came away with the best girl award, clocking 10 lifetime bests in the process.

Her involvement in Yorkshire meant Neves was unable to compete at the popular AIB Tigers Meet at Les Quennevais in Jersey, but her clubmates did her proud with one of their best performances in years.

More than 260 swimmers from 13 UK and Channel Island clubs took part over the six-session event, which comes early in the season and gives swimmers the opportunity to see how their preparations are going in readiness for forthcoming major competition.

Many had their sights set on securing Hampshire County qualifying times in order to compete at a higher level early in the new year.

In total the GSC squad of 30 returned with 15 gold, 14 silver and 12 bronze medals from 181 swims with 127 of those in new lifetime-best times. Ninety of those were Hampshire qualifying times.

Nicole Hewlett was the top performer in the 11-and-under age group.

She won six golds and four silvers and also walked away with the 11-year-old girl award for best swim in her age group.

Hewlett was often joined on the podium by teammate Ellie Ogier who won two gold, two silver and three bronze medals.

In the top age group, Ben Lowndes showed remarkable fitness despite a lack of training with three golds and four silvers.

The Commonwealth and Island Games star always puts on a show for the spectators and this was demonstrated in his effortless win in the 200m butterfly.

Lowndes used his trademark underwater fly kick up to the maximum 15m as the rules allow.

His three golds came in the 200 butterfly, 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke, which is not considered to be one of his better events.

Lowndes and Simon Le Coulliard of Tigers provided further entertainment in the final of the Skins race.

Skins are a sprint race with two swimmers eliminated in each round, swum in a different stroke.

In the final round and with only the pair left, it was up to the electronic timing to separate them, with Lowndes touching first only 0.01sec. ahead of Le Coulliard.

Also swimming in the 16-and-overs, Island Games swimmer Christine Hume dominated the 100 and 200 breaststroke. In the 50m sprint she was second to the more powerful Sarah Jane Smith of Tigers.

Matt Girard has shown a remarkable return to form after taking a break from swimming and is showing how powerful he is in the shorter events. He was rewarded with bronze medals in the 50 freestyle and 50 butterfly.

GSC's other gold medal winners were Dan Brittain and Luke Winberg competing in the 12/13 200m breaststroke and 200m butterfly respectively.

Young Alex Butt was rewarded in a weekend of swimming by winning the 10-year-old girls' best-swim award.

Matt Butt, James Hewlett and Stewart Hume were the other medal winners for the GSC.

n THE Beau Sejour Barracudas went into the open without many of their senior members so it was left to their youngers swimmers to fly the flag for the club.

Personal bests and Hampshire County qualifying times came fast and furious for the young Barracudas immediately the event got under way and by the end of an exciting weekend, a large proportion of team members can now look forward to competing at county level in March.

In the boys' events, outstanding performances came from Miles Munro who achieved four gold, three silver and three bronze medals in the 11-and-under age group in addition to being named best boy for his performance in the 400 freestyle, which earned him 392 points under the GB points system.

Competing at the top of the 14/15 age group, James Jurkiewicz's maturity begins to pay dividends as he improved on his personal-best times while picking up two gold, three silver and two bronze medals.

His gold medals came in the 50 and 100 backstroke but he had to concede defeat to Tom Gallichan of Tigers Jersey at the 200m distance.

Joe Ogier topped the rostrum in the 50 butterfly after he recorded a time of 32.39 in the 12/13 age group. He also produced excellent performances in the 50 freestyle, 200 breaststroke and 200 individual medley to claim silver and two bronze medals respectively.

In the same age group, Charles Holbrook-Sanderson won silver in the 50 breaststroke, with Jamie Salmon winning a bronze at the 100m distance.

Harry Parfit, competing at the bottom of the 10/11 age group, won a well earned bronze in the 50 backstroke with a time of 40.47.

In the girls' section, Island Games star Victoria Parfit, still only 14, continues to impress, winning three gold, two silver and a bronze medal in the 14/15 year group.

Also placing in medal position was sister Lotte, who picked up bronze medals in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events, while teammate Alicia Munro showed promising early form in the 50 freestyle where her time of 30.63 placed her in bronze-medal position.

Competing at the bottom of the 12/13 age group, George Moss had a great swim in the 400 freestyle, his time of 5-03.63 earning him a total of 405 points under the GB points system and best 12-year-old boy award.

In addition to swimmers achieving Hampshire County qualifying times, Barracuda members produced 123 personal-best times, some of the most impressive coming from Cody Butcher, Alicia and Miles Munro, Harry Parfit, Matthew Tostevin, Ben Greening, Holbrook-Sanderson and Jamie Salmon.