Swim team coach is given golden birthday

The Guernsey swim team manager has seen so many outstanding performances from her charges over the years, but she will never tire of seeing them with gongs hanging around their necks – the only difference nowadays being that modern technology has her videoing the medal ceremonies for prosperity.

The fantastic Faroes dominated the first half of opening night in the pool, with their anthem ringing out four times in succession after the opening four medal presentations, but it was the super Sarnians who finished the night off in spectacular style.

Unsurprisingly, it was Tom Hollingsworth who got the ball rolling.

The backstroke king was just happy to be back competing again after a lengthy spell out injured on the poolside, but there was to be no catching him over two lengths of the confined five-lane pool.

To supplement his 50m backstroke gold won in 25.72sec., Hollingsworth was joined on the podium by teammate Ollie Nightingale, who surprised himself with a new personal best of 26.64 to claim bronze.

Hollingsworth would be back later to win his second gold of the evening, but in between his two victories came arguably the performance of the night from a young quartet of highly promising Guernsey female swimmers.

Laura Le Cras, just 14, had already showed tangible signs of her undoubted potential with a brilliant swim to claim silver in the first of what will surely be many Island Games individual finals, the 400m individual medley.

Orla Rabey did likewise in taking 100m butterfly bronze in 1-03.63 just a few minutes later, but it was when those two teenagers joined forces with another two – Tatiana Tostevin and Courtney Butcher – in the 4x50m freestyle relay that they literally came to the fore.