Masters Swimming Hub
Trafford Metro secure superb three-peat with Otter 150 Cup victory
October 27, 2024After scoring records in 19 events at the GoCardless Swim England Masters National Championships 2024, Trafford Metro have been awarded the Otter 150 Cup for the third year running.
It was a results that pleased an ‘absolutely elated’ Bob Bolton, the Club’s Chair and Masters’ coach, who described his team as an ‘incredible group of athletes’.
Having claimed six world records and numerous British and European records across three days of swimming at Ponds Forge, Bolton said it was hard to pinpoint just one standout performance from the Trafford squad. However, the 100+ years mixed 4x100m freestyle in session seven was a particular highlight.
“The times that those guys put together were just unbelievable and to just sneak that world record was fantastic.”
The team of James Simpson, Daniel Mills, Kathryn Greenslade and Victoria Cunningham produced an outstanding performance to swim seven seconds quicker than the former world record.
After a weekend where 119 British, 44 European and 17 world records were broken, Bolton was keen to emphasise what an ‘absolutely brilliant weekend of swimming’ it has been.
“All over the country the performances have just been absolutely unbelievable.”
“East Leeds breaking world record after world record, Woking, City of Sheffield, it’s been incredible.”
However, he encouraged masters swimmers who were hesitant to enter nationals this year not to view these performances as a sign that ‘I’m not good enough’.
“You certainly are … There’s a lot of great swimmers here today to aspire to. Just get in the pool and start swimming, then investigate the possibilities of getting more opportunities to go to training sessions and meets.”
The Trafford Difference
When asked what he thought enabled Trafford Metro to experience continued nationals success, Bolton focused on the sense of community within the club.
“We’re friends, we socialise, we train together and we compete hard together and that for me is the key. They’re just a great bunch of guys and it is very humbling for me to have the opportunity to coach them.”
He also highlighted the club’s offering of a ‘seamless transition’ from age-group swimming into masters.
“At 18, they’re not just thrown into the scrapheap! We automatically draw them through into the masters squads and we keep them in the water and swimming. Hopefully they continue to go on into their 20s and beyond.”
This certainly seems to have worked for the team so far and Bolton holds hope of winning the trophy for a fourth time next year.
“God willing! We’ll do our very best to retain the trophy again – but that standard gets better every year!”
Ending the Championships on a high
Despite having completed three days of competing, English masters continued to produce some outstanding swims in the final session of the GoCardless Swim England Masters National Championships.
Significantly, Georgina Pryor of Derby Excel swam her second world record of the meet in the Female 25-29 Years 50m Backstroke.
Her time of 27.27 takes the British and European record under 28 seconds for the first time and improves the world record by half a second.
In the same event, Bracknell’s Kirsty Johnson swam a European record for the 40-44 age group with a time of 29.47.
In the 400m freestyle, three new British records were swam in the open/male event. In the 30-34 age group, Daniel Mills from Trafford Metro added to the club’s exceptional performance with a British record for the 30-34 age category.
Jascha Hasson and Mark Reynolds, both from Barnet Copthall, established new records in the 50-54 and 60-64 age groups respectively. Their teammate, Cate Jackson, also recorded a new British record in the Female 60-64 age category in the same event.
In the 50m backstroke, Daniel Cross of Dartmoor Darts just missed out on breaking 25 seconds for the first time, finishing in a 25.00. However, he takes home a British record in the event for the 25-30 age category.
The final event of the meet was the 4x200m freestyle relay where Trafford Metro used this final opportunity to score one more world record to add to their collection from the weekend.
Their Female 100+ years team of Kathryn Greenslade, Alexandra Davies, Louisa Zolkiewski and Victoria Cunningham finished in an impressive 8:37.88 – bettering the previous record by more than 15 seconds with one of the performances of the competition.
Not to be outdone, Harrogate swimmers Julie Hoyle, Joanne Beardsworth, Nuala Muir-Cochrane and Karen Graham also won themselves a world record with a time of 9:46.31 – knocking off a massive 23 seconds from the former time in the 240+ age category
Individually, York City’s Emma Willis swam a British record for the 45-49 Years 200m Freestyle during the first leg of the relay – recording a fantastic time of 2:11.15.
In the Open/Male event, City of Sheffield and Crawley both broke British records to round out the meet.
Swimming on home turf, Ken Flett, Jamie McHale, Ian Swift and Paul Callis set an 8:34.02 to take around three seconds off the record.
That beat East Leeds’ effort from this competition two years ago as the Sheffield quartet ended their national championships on a high.
And the Ponds Forge crowd cheered home one of the stars of the meet in Otter’s Derek Parr as he anchored home the clubs 320+ Years team to a new European record.
Crawley meanwhile achieved a similar feat in the 240+ Years age group.
Their time of 9:31.82 beat the Warrington Masters quartet from two years to the day tomorrow, taking around 3.50 seconds off their effort.
Mark Robertson, Nigel McDonald, Alan Parkins and Ade Belcham made up the quartet that added another British best to the clubs collection.
He was joined by Roger Lloyd-Mostyn, Anthony Ray and Peter Vider as they combined for a time of 14:13.13 to complete the record hall at Ponds Forge.
You can find the full results from the GoCardless Swim England Masters National Championships here and you can check out all the medallists below with our roll of honour.
Images: Will Johnston photography
Article written by Clementine Butler Brown.
Day Three, Session Two, Medal Roll of Honour
Open/Male 400m Freestyle
18-24 Years
1. Matthew Rogers, Bromley, 4:05.88
2. Kris Moodley, Nottingham Leander, 4:21.58
3. Andrew Dobbing, Bebington, 4:27.92
25-29 Years
1. Matthew Evans, Walsall, 4:07.97
2. James Lowder, Hearts of Midlothian, 4:14.07
3. Elliot Routledge, Workington, 4:19.44
30-34 Years
1. Daniel Mills, Trafford Metro, 4:02.37
2. Ewan Jackson, Borough of Newham, 4:10.31
3. James Dickinson, Guernsey Water Polo, 4:21.94
35-39 Years
1. Dan John, Reading, 4:20.52
2. Chris Millard, Medway Maritime, 4:45.30
3. Matt Wan, Out To Swim, 4:56.77
40-44 Years
1. Jonathan Giles, Trafford Metro, 4:33.20
2. Andrew Rourke, Rugby, 4:36.57
3. Nicholas Barber, Otter, 4:37.14
45-49 Years
1. Mark Wallace, Matlock, 4:25.48
2. Tristan Hymers, York City, 4:26.84
3. Shaun Harrison, Stowmarket, 4:37.39
50-54 Years
1. Jascha Hasson, Barnet Copthall, 4:19.37
2. Robert Wood, Darlington Masters, 4:36.54
3. Richard Symons, Trafford Metro, 4:48.22
55-59 Years
1. Peter Dixon, Borough of Newham, 4:31.49
2. Andrew Carr, East Leeds, 4:44.84
3. Simon Emm, Colchester, 4:47.97
60-64 Years
1. Mark Reynolds, Barnet Copthall, 4:33.57
2. Sean Kinsey, Gloucester Masters, 4:52.22
3. Kevin Smith, Newcastle, 4:57.73
65-69 Years
1. Colin Stephenson, Gloucester Masters, 5:02.01
2. Simon Veale, Totnes, 5:14.09
3. Neil Weatherburn, Teddington, 5:50.04
70-74 Years
1. Trevor Clark, Birmingham Masters, 5:47.76
2. Ian Urquhart, City of Lincoln Pentaqua, 5:59.77
3. Lionel Spittle, Black Country and Potteries, 6:24.64
75-79 Years
1. Peter Stephens, Spencer, 7:32.68
2. William Sampson, Melton Mowbray, 8:05.95
80-84 Years
1. Derek Parr, Otter, 6:41.81
2. Michael Read, City of Bolton, 7:43.50
Female 400m Freestyle
18-24 Years
1. Sophie Bairstow, Trafford Metro, 4:31.21
2. Almudena Visser Velez, City of Cambridge, 4:49.76
3. Annabelle Wright, Bishop Stortford, 4:50.95
25-29 Years
1. Amie Buttle, Kenilworth Masters, 4:33.75
2. Zoe Gidden, Northampton, 4:34.22
3. Eliza Grace, Walsall, 4:55.63
30-34 Years
1. Carly Fraser, Silver City, 4:45.74
2. Charlotte Begg, City of Cambridge, 4:48.56
3. Laura Hibberd, Hillingdon, 4:50.79
35-39 Years
1. Lauren Willcox, Spencer, 4:42.51
2. Dorianna Pirozzi, Basingstoke, 4:44.74
3. Kelly McIntosh, Silver City, 4:48.30
40-44 Years
1. Georgina Heyn, Woking, 4:36.18
2. Sarah Hunt, Basingstoke, 4:50.93
3. Victoria Williams, Bath Dolphin, 4:52.61
45-49 Years
1. Rebecca Smith, Tigersharks W, 4:54.47
2. Samantha Lake, Tavistock, 5:01.98
3. Joanna Farrow, York City, 5:18.33
50-54 Years
1. Janet McLean, Carnegie, 5:00.38
2. Larissa Davies, City of Sheffield, 5:04.44
3. Melanie Sayed, City of Liverpool, 5:21.30
55-59 Years
1. Bridget Bewick, Bracknell, 5:25.24
2. Elizabeth Shaw, Otter, 5:30.84
3. Suzanne Maidment, Spencer, 5:38.93
60-64 Years
1. Cate Jackson, Barnet Copthall, 5:04.66
2. Deborah Arnott, Sandwell, 5:22.89
3. Karen McBeath, Silver City, 5:25.77
65-69 Years
1. Joan Edwards, Derwentside & Gateshead, 5:38.07
2. Amanda Doyle, Kings Cormorant, 6:26.15
3. Barbara Boxall, Black Country and Potteries, 6:28.03
70-74 Years
1. Jayne Stephenson, Gloucester Masters, 5:58.82
2. Anne Bourne, Birmingham Masters, 6:09.17
3. Valerie Thorp, Derby Excel, 7:00.89
75-79 Years
1. Alison Gwynn, Mid Sussex, 7:06.53
2. Rose Dudeney, Mid Sussex, 7:16.39
80-84 Years
1. Elaine Bromwich, Birmingham Masters, 10:11.04
Open/Male 50m Backstroke
18-24 Years
1. Ashley Donaldson, Altrincham, 26.36
2. Tom Gambold, University of Manchester, 26.51
3. Daneel Louw, University of Manchester, 26.67
25-29 Years
1. Daniel Cross, Dartmoor Darts, 25.00
2. Andrew Sawkins, Borough of Newham, 26.36
3. Matthew Evans, Walsall, 26.41
30-34 Years
1. Kalon Veale, Totnes, 26.11
2. Joe Northover, Borough of Newham, 26.45
3. Daniel Wass, Portsmouth Northsea, 27.12
35-39 Years
1. Warren Barrett, Exe Masters, 27.28
2. Liam Small, Basingstoke, 27.46
3. James Edmonds, Bristol Henleaze, 27.64
40-44 Years
1. Oliver Espinasse, Basingstoke, 27.99
2. David Messenger, Bristol Henleaze, 28.48
3. Alex Thurston, Nottingham Leander, 29.09
45-49 Years
1. Neal Smith, Kenilworth Masters, 28.11
2. Conor Osborugh, Beau Sejour, 28.44
3. Martinus Marx, Crawley, 28.96
50-54 Years
1. Marcus Smallbone, Newquay, 28.88
2. John Fitzgerald, Sheerness, 29.73
3. Andrew Squires, Team Anglia, 31.25
55-59 Years
1. Ben Winter, Totnes, 29.92
2. Ian Wilkes, Loughborough, 32.23
3. Simon Buchan, City of Norwich, 32.31
60-64 Years
1. Alec Johnson, Trafford Metro, 30.96
2. Michael Brett, Nottingham Leander, 31.13
3. Guy Emerson, Spencer, 33.28
65-69 Years
1. Simon Veale, Totnes, 32.95
2. Graham Powell, Team Luton, 34.13
3. Peter Gilpin, Exe Masters, 37.99
70-74 Years
1. Trevor Clark, Birmingham Masters, 36.57
2. Chris Fidler, Teddington, 37.97
3. Stephen Braine, Otter, 38.22
75-79 Years
1. Brian Hunt, RTW Monson, 38.77
2. Lee Curtis, Brighton Dolphin, 54.23
80-84 Years
1. Roger Billing, Guildford City, 43.32
2. Derek Gore, Chelmsford, 59.92
Female 50m Backstroke
18-24 Years
1. Brodie Judge, Wycombe District, 29.78
2. Jessica Mellor, City of Stoke, 30.35
3. Lija Radziunaite, Stowmarket, 30.42
25-29 Years
1. Georgina Pryor, Derby Excel, 27.27
2. Zoe Cawsey, Dartmoor Darts, 28.59
3. Emma Scobie, Kirkintiloc, 28.64
30-34 Years
1. Louisa Zolkiewski, Trafford Metro, 30.00
2. Yolande Speare, GB Police, 31.14
3. Gabrielle Kennedy-Hill, GB Police, 31.80
35-39 Years
1. Kellyn Caldwell, Wycombe District, 31.42
2. Vicki Payne, Gloucester Masters, 31.79
3. Emma Challis, Totnes, 32.85
40-44 Years
1. Kirsty Johnson, Bracknell, 29.47
2. Rebecca Newson, Exe Masters, 31.40
3. Rebecca Walker, Stocksbridge, 33.91
45-49 Years
1. Elizabeth Godfrey, Basingstoke, 31.42
2. Rebecca Smith, TigersharksW, 33.45
3. Lisa Dawson, Barnet Copthall, 36.11
50-54 Years
1. Jill Groves, Kenilworth Masters, 34.03
2. Jane Grant, Dundee City Aquatics, 34.74
3. Karen Quinn, Trafford Metro, 35.10
55-59 Years
1. Allie Price, Bridgend SC, 34.79
2. Amanda Rush, City of Southampton, 36.13
3. Jennifer Powell, Black Country and Potteries, 36.32
60-64 Years
1. Suzanne Linton, Kenilworth Masters, 35.77
2. Phillipa Williams, Wycombe District, 38.40
3. Janet Williams, Team Anglia, 40.17
65-69 Years
1. Eileen Luther, Rochford, 39.25
2. Kathleen Bidnall, Mid Sussex, 41.27
3. Amanda Doyle, Kings Cormorant, 45.69
70-74 Years
1. Kathleen Tunnicliffe, Black Country and Potteries, 41.06
2. Margaret Bickley, Dartmouth SC, 50.36
3. Sally LeLean, East Anglian, 55.39
75-79 Years
1. Rachel Barton, Trafford Metro, 42.62
2. Rose Dudeney, Mid Sussex, 51.17
3. Susie Breslin, Barnet Copthall, 57.53
80-84 Years
1. Jose Adam, Brighton Dolphin, 1:00.23
Open/Male 4x200m Freestyle Team
100+ Years
1. Dartmoor Darts, 7:45.78
2. Trafford Metro, 8:02.14
120+ Years
1. Borough of Newham, 8:07.89
2. Crawley, 8:14.37
3. Bristol Henleaze, 8:33.48
160+ Years
1. East Leeds, 8:36.97
2. City of Sheffield, 8:47.50
3. Preston, 8:56.42
200+ Years
1. City of Sheffield, 8:34.02
2. Nottingham Leander, 8:37.65
3. Basingstoke, 8:40.12
240+ Years
1. Crawley, 9:31.82
2. Harrogate, 9:35.02
3. City of Sheffield, 9:40.12
280+ Years
1. Teddington, 11:34.89
320+ Years
1. Otter, 14:15.13
Female 4x200m Freestyle Team
72+ Years
1. Otter, 9:36.33
2. Birmingham Masters, 9:52.59
3. Medway Maritime, 9:53.61
100+ Years
1. Trafford Metro, 8:37.88
2. Birmingham Masters, 9:11.84
120+ Years
1. Birmingham Masters, 9:20.61
2. Silver City, 9:24.85
3. City of Norwich, 9:36.42
160+ Years
1. York City, 9:33.75
2. Exe Masters, 9:37.03
3. Gloucester Masters, 9:41.60
240+ Years
1. Harrogate, 9:46.31
2. Bracknell, 11:09.78
