City of Sheffield Swim Squad British Championships Report
Ponds Forge hosted the 2006 British Championships last week and most of the country’s top swimmers travelled back from recent successes at the Commonwealth games to compete at the meet. City of Sheffield's James Kirton (20) overcame his disappointment of missing the Commonwealth Games, by winning the 200m Breaststroke, and in doing so, qualified for the European Long Course Championships in Hungary. This was James' first National title.
James described his qualification for the Europeans as "amazing" after he sliced more than two seconds off his personal best to claim the 200m breaststroke crown in 2:12.97. The City of Sheffield swimmer will find his summer trip to Budapest a contrast to his normal job at Smith's Eggs, a farm in Barnsley, where he works part-time to fund his travel to and from training. Kirton said, "I went to the European Short Course last year, but that's no way as prestigious as the long course championships. It's amazing. It makes it all worthwhile." The 20-year-old is part of the emerging Sheffield squad run by Russ Barber at Ponds Forge, and he credits the coach with their success. "I am the first of many," he added. "Big things are happening. Russ has put together an awesome programme and we have got a great team. I am just one of the first to make the next step. The confidence I got from winning the silver on the 100m Breaststroke, set me up well for the 200m,” he said. “I didn’t expect a big PB, but I had hoped for it. My first aim was to make the team and anything else was just a bonus.”
Team mate Andrew Shepherd (21) also had a fantastic meet, winning the silver on the 50m Backstroke. Shepherd, who is a student at Sheffield Hallam University said “I am over the moon with my swims, and it’s great to finally get on the podium after all these years of hard training!” Max Partridge (16) and Chris Middleton (17) also swam well, qualifying for the European Junior Championships in Majorca in July. City of Sheffield paralympian James Crisp (23) had a fantastic meet, winning 3 golds and 1 silver, and setting a new European record in the 50m backstroke.
Russ Barber said “I am very happy with the swimmers. They have showed how tough they are this week and performed well. Things are looking good for the Olympics in 2008 with the swimmers we have now, and the young ones coming through, are really getting the bug, and are working towards London 2012! It would be fantastic to have some swimmers from Sheffield on the podium, and that is our focus!” Other Sheffield finalists included Debbie Hall on the 50, 100 and 200m Breaststroke, Amy Spencer in the 50m Breaststroke, and Zoe Clayton in the Multi Disability 100m Breaststroke. COSSS also had a number of other squad members who achieved the demanding qualification times in order to compete at the Championships
James Kirton |
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Andy Shepherd |
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James Crisp |
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