LEANDER'S COACHING TEAMLeander's coaching team is as follows: Head Coach & Performance Squad - Alex Marinov, Platinum Squad - Stuart Brown, Junior Platinum - Jack Davidson, Gold - Roxana Roman, Junior Gold - Dave Elliot, Silver - Alex Denisov and Bronze - Caroline Findlay, Cami Faiella and Harry Wells. Lizzie Wells is unfortunately stepping back from full-time coaching as she's starting a new day job but will continue to take sessions from time to time. NATIONALS 2010Leander's three Nationals qualifiers proved they're among the best in the country with some fantastic performances at the Age Group and Youth Nationals held at Ponds Forge from 26th July to 7th August. First to take to the blocks were 11 year old Kane Rabanal-Hunt and 13 year old Julian Chan Quee Lin. Unfortunately Kane was disqualified in the 200 breaststroke, but more than made up for that in the 100 breaststroke final where he swam magnificently, finishing a close fourth and improving his PB by 5.6 seconds. Julian also had a good meet, qualifiying for four events and making the final of the 200 IM in a time or 2.25.38. 16 year old Ross Dibblin swam in the Youth event the following week, finishing fourth in the 200 breaststroke final with a massive 6 second PB of 2.20.91. He also came fourth in the 100 breaststroke improving his seeded PB by 2 seconds with a time of 1.05.42. Head coach Alex Marinov says "Overall, I'm really pleased with these performances after a difficult season. We did extremely well at Nationals and I believe this will be a turning point for the club. I'm expecting that with hard work and dedication from the swimmers we'll have more National qualifiers and a couple of medals at next year's event. It was a real pleasure working with Kane, Julian and Ross at this year's Nationals and I'm looking forward to the new season."
Click here to read Kane's account of his Nationals experiences. (11/8/2010) LONDON SPRINTS - 11TH JULY 2010Congratulations to Tyler Podmore, Alice Collins and Alex Lategan who all achieved medals in the London Region Sprints gala held at Crystal Palace - full results available on the Results Page. (19/11/2010) LEANDER BBQ - 10TH JULY 2010Thanks to everyone who came along to the Leander Summer BBQ - and special thanks to everyone who helped make the event such a success - we couldn't have wished for better weather, and the girls in the club should be savouring their comprehensive victory in the Tug'o'War! (14/7/2010) LONDON YOUTH GAMES - 1ST, 3RD & 4TH JULY 2010 Several Leander swimmers were selected to represent their boroughs in the London Youth Games held at Crystal Palace on 1st, 3rd and 4th July. First up were the primary school-age swimmers competing in the Mini Games. The Southwark representatives did particularly well, with all three Leander swimmers winning medals - Alice Collins got gold in the 50 breaststroke, Breagha Campbell took silver in the 50 backstroke and Maxim Tidmarsh went home with a silver in the 50 fly. Leander also had swimmers on the Wandsworth team (Ben Davis, Matthew Chan and Kasia Proctor) and the Lambeth team (Amelia Lategan, Zara Roche, Florence Craddock, and Ellie and Gus Colfer). At the weekend it was the turn of the older swimmers to step up to the blocks. Swimming for Wandsworth, Ross Dibblin won the 50 breaststroke and Julian Chan took bronze in the 50 fly, and Ross together with Jacob Snowden and Nick Lee helped Wandsworth's senior boys take silverand bronze in the relays. Connie Bunch, representing Lambeth, was Leander's other medallist on the day, taking bronze in the 50 freestyle. Wandsworth had the largest number of Leander swimmers in the team (Ross, Julian, Jacob, Nick, Dominic O'Hearn, Alex Archer, Rebecca Christie, Joy Stefaniszyn-Greenwell and Rhiannon Davies) with Lambeth close behind (Connie, Emma Ashton, Naomi Cotton, Charlotte Faiella, Millie Roche, Tilda Rogerson, Nick Moore and Matthew Colfer), with Southwark being represented by Ellie Mirchandani and Sarah Young. Finally on Sunday, Julian, Dominic and Elliot Manley took part in the Aquathlon (swimming and running), helping the Wandsworth aquathlon team to 9th place overall. (5/7/2010) LEANDER - CONVINCING WANDSWORTHS 2010 WINNERS!Congratulations to all the swimmers who took part in two days of tough racing. The event culminated in the nailbitingly tense boys' squadron relay - it was close all the way through but Leander held on to clinch the win. All the hard work paid off as at the end of Sunday's gala Leander had an unassailable lead, and our trophy cabinet now boasts not only the overall trophy, but also both the boys' and girls' team trophies. The following swimmers are Wandsworth Champions: Francesca Brown, Connie Bunch, Matthew and Julian Chan Quee Lin, Rebecca Christie, Gus and Matthew Colfer, Alice Collins, Alfie Cruttwell, Ross Dibblin, Nick Lee, Jayson Lynch, Nick Moore, Kane Rabanal-Hunt, Jacob Snowden, Hayley van Boegarts. Check out the results page for more details. (28/6/2010) SAXON CROWN 'FUTURE CHAMPIONS' 20TH JUNE 2010
On Sunday it was the turn of swimmers from Junior Platinum, Junior Gold, Silver and Bronze to shine as they took on competitors from across south London at the Saxon Crown 'Future Champions' meet in Lewisham. This meet is fast and furious as all the events are sprints - one length for the younger swimmers, two lengths for the older ones - and there are heats and finals which means there's a fantastic atmosphere. Leander had at least one finalist in virtually every event and the club came third overall. Zara Roche and Matthew Chan Quee Lin were named Best Girl and Best Boy in the Under 10s age group and a special mention goes to Harry Sugden and Lewis Astbury who were taking part in their first ever open gala. Thanks to coaches Dave and Cami and also to our Team Captains Hayley and Jayson who turned out to cheer on the team and keep everyone motivated all through the day. Click here for individual results and here for relays. (21/6/2010) SUMMER CLUB CHAMPS 19TH JUNE 2010
Well done to all the swimmers who turned out for the sprint events for this year's Club Champs at JAGs on Saturday. There were plenty of PBs and some fine swimming on display. As we managed to get through all the sprint events in one evening we will NOT now need the extra gala on Wednesday 17th July so training sessions will take place as normal. Click here for results. Thanks to all the parents who helped out on the night - these events wouldn't be possible without your support. (21/6/2010) LONDON BAGCAT REGIONALS 12TH & 13TH JUNE 2010Performance swimmer Julian Chan Quee Lin added another NQT - this time for the 200 free - earning a silver medal in the process. He also gained a bronze medal for his performance in the gruelling 400 IM. Julian has now qualified for four events at this year's Nationals (200 and 100 free, 100 fly, 200 IM) and will be joined by 11 year old Kane Rabanal-Hunt who has qualified for the 200 and 100 breaststroke. 16 year old Ross Dibblin will be travelling up to Sheffield the following week for the Youth Nationals, where he'll be competing in the breaststroke events. (14/6/2010) LONDON BAGCAT REGIONALS 5TH & 6TH JUNE 2010Congratulations to 13 year old Julian Chan Quee Lin who achieved no less than three National Qualifying Times (NQT) during the first weekend of the London Regionals held at Crystal Palace. Julian's NQTs are in the 100 free, 100 fly and 200 IM. He also came home with three silver medals (100 fly, 200 IM and 400 free) and a bronze for the 100 free. 11 year old Kane Rabanal-Hunt came sixth in the 200 breaststroke, managing to clinch his first ever NQT which also automatically qualifies him for the 100 breaststroke. Click here for results (6/6/2010) WOKING B/C GRADE OPEN 23RD MAY 2010Well done to all the swimmers who took part in the Woking Octopus meet on Sunday 23rd May - thanks to your efforts, Leander achieved 3rd place in the teams' competition. This meet was divided into B and C sections for each age group, with medals going to the fastest swimmers in each category. Congratulations to the following swimmers who received 'B' medals: Zara Roche (silver 200 free), Francesca Brown (gold 50 free, 100 free, 100 IM, silver 200 free & 50 back, bronze 50 fly), Alex Corbett (bronze 100 back), Millie Roche (silver 100 back), Amelia Lategan (bronze 50 breast), Alice Collins (gold 50 breast), Alex Lategan (silver 50 breast, bronze 50 free), Buzz Robb (silver 100 breast & 50 free, bronze 50 breast), Gus Colfer (bronze 50 fly), Matthew Chan Quee Lin (gold 50 fly, silver 100 IM), Tyler Podmore (gold 50 fly, 50 free, 100 free & 100 IM), Millie Parry (bronze 50 free), Owain Davies (gold 50 free & 100 IM), Florence Craddock (silver 100 IM), Nick Moore (silver 100 free). Congratulations also to the following swimmers who received 'C' medals: Polly Ruppel (gold 50 free, bronze 200 free), Millie Parry (silver 100 back), Zara Roche (bronze 100 back), Tilly Craddock (silver 100 back & 50 free), Buzz Robb (gold 50 fly, silver 100 back), Brooke Lowe (bronze 50 breast), Gus Colfer (gold 50 free, silver 50 breast, bronze 50 back), Tyler Podmore (gold 50 breast), Kasia Proctor (gold 50 fly, 50 free & 100 free, silver 100 breast, bronze 50 back), Amber Coulthard (silver 50 free, bronze 50 fly), Isabel Finlay (bronze 50 fly & 50 free), Joseph Metcalfe (gold 50 fly & 100 free, silver 50 back, bronze 100 IM), Amelia Lategan (gold 100 breast, bronze 100 IM), Alex Lategan (gold 100 breast & 100 free, bronze 100 IM), Rosanna Laine-Webster (gold 50 free), Zara Roche (gold 100 IM), Millie Roche (bronze 100 IM), Owain Davies (gold 50 back). There were also plenty of PBs so well done to everyone who took part and thanks to Dave for encouraging all the swimmers poolsid. Full results available here . (25/5/2010) GUILDFORD OPEN 15TH & 16TH MAY 2010The galas are coming thick and fast now - this weekend, Leander swimmers were in action at Guildford Spectrum. Again, there were plenty of PBs and medals went to the following swimmers: Hayley van Boegarts (gold 200 IM, 100 free, 200 free, silver 50 free), Sadie van Boegarts (silver 200IM, bronze 200 free), Shannon Matchett (gold 400 free, silver 200 Im, bronze 200 free), Alizee Lawson (gold 50 back, silver 100 IM), Kane Rabanal-Hunt (gold 50, 100 and 200 breast, 100 IM), Nick Lee (gold 50 breast, silver 100 breast & 50 fly, bronze 100 IM), Jayson Lynch (gold 50 fly, silver 50 & 100 breast, 100 fly, 200 IM), Alfie Crutwell (gold 200 free, silver 100 free, Matthew Colfer (silver 200 breast, bronze 100 breast), and Rolandas Radzius (bronze 50 & 100 fly). Click here for full results. WANDSWORTHS - 26TH & 27TH JUNE 2010You should all have received a copy of the Wandsworth Borough Entry Pack from your squad rep. If you haven't received one, click to download the entry form, programme of events and promoter's conditions . The forms need to be given to July Chan or Nick Cotton by Sunday 30th May. The entry fee is £2.50 per event. This year's championships will be very tough - the aim is to bring the trophy back to Leander but in order to do that we need everyone swimming. The more top 6 places we get, the more points we win, so please enter as many races as you can - if in doubt, please check with your coach. Times do not need to have been achieved at licensed meets for this event, but do make sure submitted times are sensible to ensure swimmers are placed in the correct heats. And make sure you put down the correct age - this event is unusual in that age group is determined by how old a swimmer is on 14th November 2010 (the date of the Junior Borough Championships) so swimmers may well find themselves swimming as an 11 year old when they still have several months to their birthday. Good luck and swim well! (14/5/2010) BECKENHAM OPEN 8TH & 9TH MAY 2010The racing season is well under-way with a large contingent of Leander swimmers at Crystal Palace for this year's Beckenham Open. Lots of PBs and medals for the following swimmers: Gold - Ross Dibblin (50 breast, 100 breast, 200 breast) and Jayson Lynch (50 fly); Silver - Julian Chan Quee Lin (200 free, 200 IM) and Jayson Lynch (100 fly) and Bronze - Alice Collins (50 breast), Kane Rabanal-Hunt (50 breast, 100 breast), Julian Chan Quee Lin (400 free, 100 fly, 100 free) and Jacob Snowden (100 free). Congratulations to all of you - and especially to Julian whose consistency over the weekend meant he received the prestigious Top Junior Boy Award. (11/5/2010) LONDON REGION YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIPS 1ST & 2ND MAY 2010The Leander team was depleted by illness and injury so results for this championship weren't as great as we'd hoped. However, Jayson Lynch came home with 2 medals, silver for the 50 fly and bronze for the 100 fly and both Jacob Snowden and Nick Lee made finals. Click here for full results. EASTER RESULTS ROUND-UPWhile most people were taking it easy, eating loads of chocolate over Easter, Leander swimmers were busy competing in one of the busiest periods in the swimming calendar. First up was the Derventio Excel Easter Meet which saw a small band of Leander swimmers heading up to Sheffield. Jayson came first in the 100 fly and second in the 50 fly, Ross took silver in the 50 breast and Julian took home two silver medals (200 IM, 200 free, 100 fly) and two bronze medals (100 free, 400 IM). Click here for full results. The following weekend saw a much shorter trip to Crystal Palace for the Bexley Open, with Jayson once again taking gold for the 100 fly, Julian came first in the 200 IM, 200 free, 200 fly and 100 free, Kane Rabanal-Hunt came second in the 200 breaststroke and Maxim Tidmarsh got a bronze in the 100 fly. Click here for full results (scroll down the page. The final meet of the holiday period was at the K2 in Crawley which hosted the extremely tough Crawley Spring Open meet - Jayson took gold in the 50 breast and silver in the 50 and 100 fly and Julian came first in the 200IM and second in the 100 fly - full results can be found here. Congratulations to all the swimmers who took part - there were plenty of fine performances and PBs as well as the medal winners. (20/4/2010) ROSS AT BRITISH CHAMPSRoss Dibblin swam superbly in both the 100m and 200m breaststroke in Sheffield, alongside the best swimmers in the country. He came third in his age group, which bodes well for the Youth Nationals in the summer. Congratulations from all at Leander. (1/4/2010) JUNIOR PLATINUM SUCCESSESCongratulations to two members of Junior Platinum who both missed training on Sunday - but both had very good excuses! Charlotte Faiella was busy doing a sponsored swim - in total she was in the pool for 7 hours, and covered 13 miles (20km) - and Dominic O'Hearn was competing for his school in the National Biathlon Championships at Crystal Palace. Together with his two team mates, he put in fantastic performances on the running track (1km run) and in the pool (100m swim) and they are now national champions for their age group. Remember, if you have any swimming-related news you'd like us to include on the website, please email
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
(22/3/2010) SURREYS 2010 Last weekend - 27th & 28th March - The highlight of the final weekend of this year's Surreys was Ross' second Surrey Junior record for the 100m breaststroke. He annihilated the field in the final, winning by more than 5 seconds and once again making a clean sweep of all the breaststroke titles for his age group. Jayson Lynch became a double Surrey champion, adding the 100m fly title to the 50m crown from last weekend. Julian Chan Quee Lin added three silver medals (200m freestyle, 200m IM and 100m fly) and three bronzes (100m back, 100m breast and 100m freestyle) to his medal collection and broke the 1 minute barrier for the 100m free for the first time. There were too many PBs to count and the following swimmers made finals in the 100m events: Ebrina Koster, Alizee Lawson, Ruby Curran-Jones, Matthew Colfer, Connie Bunch, Sadie van Bogaerts, Alex Archer and Rebecca Christie. Congratulations to everyone who took part- the club is very proud of you all. There's a brief break from training over the Easter weekend, although some of you will be competing instead, but the galas will be coming thick and fast from now on, so don't eat too many Easter eggs! Click here for full results from Day 7, and here for full results from Day 8. Sprints & relays weekend - as always, the Surreys sprints were fast and furious, and by the end we had two new Surrey champions - Ross (50m breast) and Jayson (50m fly). Ross Dibblin smashed the previous Surrey Junior record for 50m breaststroke with a genuinely outstanding swim coming in more than 3 seconds ahead of his nearest rival, which is an incredible margin of victory in a sprint! Jayson Lynch joined him on the top step of the podium when he took gold in the 50m fly after a thrilling final which saw Jayson come back strongly in the last few metres. 13 year old Julian Chan Quee Lin added a silver (50m fly) and a bronze (50m breast) to his ever-growing collection. Nearly every Leander swimmer PB'd and the following swimmers made finals, which considering the sheer numbers of swimmers involved, is a real achievement: Connie Bunch, Sadie and Hayley van Bogaerts, Alex Archer, Rebecca Christies, Alizee Lawson, Sarah Young, Ebrina Koster, Maxim Tidmarsh, Kane Rabanal-Hunt, Jacob Snowden, Jayson Lynch and Julian Chan Quee Lin. There were no more medals for the relay teams, but some pleasing results nonetheless. The 9-11 boys only just missed out on bronzel in the medley relay and many of our 12 and 13 year olds were also swimming up an age group in the under 16s, which saw them lining up on the blocks alongside swimmers who were physically much bigger and stronger, so well done for turning out for the club and giving everything you had. Julian Chan Quee Lin was Leander's sole representative at the 800m at the second weekend of the Surreys, gaining a bronze to add to his medals from the first weekend. Plenty of medals for Leander swimmers after the first weekend of the 2010 Surrey Championships. On Day 1, Ross Dibblin and Julian Chan Quee Lin both became Surrey 200m breaststroke champions, Julian also took two silvers (400m free and 200m fly) and Kane Rabanal-Hunt won his first Surreys medal - silver in the 200m breaststroke. Jayson Lynch got bronze in the 200m fly. On Day 2, Julian added two bronze medals to his collection (200m backstroke and 100m IM), Jayson Lynch was agonisingly close to gold in the final of the 100m IM (just 0.02 seconds separated first and second place) but had to be content with silver, Rebecca Christie took silver in the 200m breaststroke. Special mention goes to Alex Archer who was just outside the medals in the 200m breaststroke but swam a massive PB. Congratulations to all the swimmers who took part - there were PBs aplenty, and let's hope there are more to come. Click here for full results so far. (15/3/2010) LEANDER FORUMWe now have a dedicated Leander forum, so that parents and swimmers can get in touch with one another. If you've got space in the car on the way to a gala or your child needs a lift home from training, stick a post on the forum and it will reach all the Leander parents/swimmers who've registered. Click here to go straight to the forum and to register. UPDATING CLUB DATABASEWe urgently need to update the club database to ensure we have the correct contact details for everyone. The coaches will be handing out forms to all members of their squads during the next few sessions. Please can you fill this out and return to your squad rep or coach as soon as possible, including details of any allergies, disabilities or special needs. The information will not be passed onto anyone outside the club and will be used solely to make our coaching and communication more effective. If you mislay the form, click here for a spare form. Surrey Development Meet 16th & 30th January 2010 Well done to all the swimmers who took part in the Surrey Development meets aimed at swimmers who were just below County times. Several swimmers achieved their times and will now be swimming at the County Championships over the next couple of months. Special mention goes to Buzz Robb who came first in both the 50 freestyle and 50 breaststroke and also added a gold medal for the 200IM. There were also medals for Francesca Brown, Florence Rogerson, Florence Craddock, Ellie Mirchandani and Nick Moore. Click here to see full results (link can be quite temperamental, so if it doesn't work straight away, please try again later) (1/2/2010) Geneva International Meet 15th-17th January 2010 15 year old Ross Dibblin had a taste of swimming at an international level this week when he was asked to go to Geneva to represent London Swimming in the Geneva International Meet. There were swimmers from 34 different clubs competing from all across Europe. Ross had a great time even though it was hard work - the swimmers were up at 6am every day, and after the last session it was dinner, packing bags for the next day and then straight to bed! Ross came home with two medals - gold for the 100m breaststroke and bronze for the 200m breaststroke, which is a fantastic achievement, considering he's only 15 and will still be able to swim in the same age group next year - Ross has also qualified for the British Championships in March. (19/1/2010) Black Swan Open 9th Jan 2010
Congratulations to all the swimmers who took part at the weekend. There were plenty of medals, PBs and several more qualifying times for the Surreys and the swimmers' behaviour and team spirit were exemplary. A special thank you goes to Dave for his hard work organising the swimmers and cheering them onto even greater heights. You can see the full results here please make a note of any new PBs as you will need them when entering future galas. (11/01/2010) Leeds Christmas Cracker - 19th-20th December 2009A very small band of swimmers escaped the Christmas shopping crowds to take part in this prestigious long-course gala. 12 year old Julian Chan Quee Lin did spectacularly well, coming first in all his races - 100m fly, 100m backstroke, 100m & 200m freestyle and 200m IM. Full results available here . Redhill & Reigate Open 13th December 2009Congratulations to all the swimmers who took part - you can check out the results here. There were some fantastic individual swims, with many PBs and medals, but also Redhill would like to pass on their thanks to all the Leander swimmers for helping to clear up afterwards (we're the only club to get a special mention for this, so well done!) (20/12/2009) WINTER CLUB CHAMPS RESULTS Results from the Winter Block of the 2009 Club Champs are now online. Click here for full results and here for an A-Z list of each swimmer's results. Please make a careful note of your times as you will need to know them in order to enter galas over the next few months. (9/12/2009) Junior Gold & Silver session changeFrom Wednesday 6th January 2010, Silver and Junior Gold will swap their Wednesday session, so Junior Gold will swim at Balham from 7:30pm-8:45pm and Silver will swim at Alleyn's from 7:30pm-9:00pm. If you have any questions please email
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
or talk to your coach. (13/12/2009) Guildford Open - 5th-6th DecemberLeander swimmers pulled out some fantastic performances over the weekend in their bid to get as many Surrey qualifying times as possible. Swimmers from across the competitive squads competed, with some tackling an open meet for the very first time. There was a really encouraging number of PBs and the following swimmers came home with medals: Gold - Julian Chan Quee Lin (100 free, 200 free, 400IM), Jacob Snowden (50 free, 100 free), Jayson Lynch (100 fly, 50 breast) and Shannon Matchett (100 fly); Silver - Hayley van Boegarts (50 free), Abigail Bainbridge (200 breast, 100 IM), Ebrina Koster (50 fly), Alfie Cruttwell (100 free, 200 free) Julian Chan Quee Lin (200 breast), Matthew Chan Quee Lin (50 fly), Jayson Lynch (50 fly, 200 IM); Bronze - Hayley van Boegarts (100 free), Abigail Bainbridge (100 breast), Rhiannon Davies (50 free), Shannon Matchett (400 free), Ebrina Koster (50 back, 200 back, 100IM), Rebecca Christie (50 breast). Thanks to the coaches for all their hard work and it was great to see all the Leander swimmers cheering their team mates on. Click here for full results. (8/12/2009) Monday night sessionsThe continuing closure of Ernest Bevin means that the club has had to juggle some of the sessions in order to make sure that each squad is getting an appopriate share of pool time. For the time being, Bronze squad will no longer swim at JAGS on Monday nights, however now we have Battersea Park Pool on Saturday mornings, Bronze squad swimmers still have four sessions from which to choose their two swims a week. This week (Monday 16th November) Junior Platinum will swim at JAGS, with Platinum doing land training at Ernest Bevin and from next week Platinum will swim at JAGS with Junior Platinum land training at Ernest Bevin. (16/11/2009) London Region Winter Champs - 7th-8th NovemberSeveral members of Platinum squad were in action at Barnet Copthall over the weekend, competing in the London Region Winter Championships. Ross Dibblin came home with a silver medal for the 200m breaststroke and there were plenty of PBs. Congratulations to all of you for making the tough qualifying times for this competition. Click here for the full results. (10/11/2009) Dorking Open - Sun 8th NovemberFull results for Dorking available here Results Round-upAlthough it's been fairly quiet as far as team events go (that's about to change, however ...), individual swimmers have been very busy. Ross Dibblin was picked to represent Surrey at the Inter-Counties Championships in October and swam briliantly, coming 5th overall and even more importantly already gaining his NQT for 100 breaststroke for next summer's Nationals. Both Ross and Julian Chan Quee Lin were representing London schools in the ESSA Divisional championships held at Crystal Palace. They both made the finals for their respective events (100 breast and 100 free), Ross came 5th and Julian came 7th, which considering he was swimming against boys up to a year older than him is a very creditable result. Julian was also picked to represent London Region swimmers in a "Duel in the Pool" against swimmers from Southeast Region. Competing in a different aquatic discipline, Junior Platinum member Dominic O'Hearn (representing his school, Whitgift) was part of the winning team at the South-East Region Schools Biathlon Championships. Well done to all of you - and if you have any news which you'd like to share with the rest of the club, please let us know by sending it to
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Leander Juniors win Bracknell 3M Diddy GalaLeander's younger swimmers put on a terrific performance at Saturday's Diddy Gala at Bracknell. The squad was competing against four other talented teams - Henley, Sutton & Cheam, Slough & Eton and Bracknell & Wokingham. Leander was just ahead for the first half of the gala, but Bracknell edged ahead in the second half, which made for a nail-biting conclusion to the evening. None of the swimmers gave up however, and kept pushing right up until the final squadron relay. In the end Leander was victorious. As soon as the swimmers heard the results they all jumped in the water before being awarded the trophy. Well done to everyone who swam and special thanks to Caroline and Dave who kept everything running smoothly. Click here for Leander's results and here for a photo of some of the winning team with their trophy. Final scores were Leander - 180 points, Bracknell - 168, Sutton & Cheam - 165, Slough & Eton - 108, Henley - 88 (29/9/2009) Black Swan Level 3 Meet - Jan 2010Swimmers without county times (especially younger swimmers) should be entering the Black Swan Meet at Elmbridge Leisure Centre on Saturday 9th January. This is a Level 3 meet so there are upper and lower qualifying times. Click here for the entry form, here for the programme and here for the qualifying times. If you're not sure if you should enter this meet, please talk to your coach. Forms need to be handed in to July by Sunday 11th October. (23/9/2009) Epsom 'Trade Paints' Gala - Sat 19th SeptemberThe new season got off to a promising start with the squad's performance at this pre-Speedo league event. Leander had a mix of seasoned swimmers together with younger squad members who are still getting used to what it takes to succeed. Leander was in third place behind Epsom and Kingston throughout the night, and the final score reflected this - Epsom had 156 points, Kingston had 151, Leander had 123 points with Edenbridge Piranhas coming in fourth with 62 points. There were some outstanding individual swims, including wins for Jacob, Ross, Hayley, Becky, Julian and Ebrina and the boys' 15 and under medley relay team of Jacob, Ross, Julian and Matthew won their race by miles. All in all, not a bad night considering this was the first gala of the season, and many of the swimmers know what they need to work on in order to improve over the next few weeks and months. Thanks to Caroline and Alex for organising and encouraging the swimmers and to the parents for cheering them on. Click here for Leander's results. (20/9/2009) Surreys 2010It may seem a long time till the Surreys come round, but you need to be thinking about the times required now, so you have a target to aim for at galas in the next few weeks. This year, the format is slightly different, with two development galas in January for swimmers who've not made County qualifying times, with the main championships a few weeks later in February and March. Check carefully if this affects the age group you'll be competing in, as what counts is how old you are on the last day of the competition. The dates are all on the diary pages and calendar and you can check the qualifying times here (on the last page) (14/9/2009) Beacon ProgrammeFive Leander swimmers have been chosen to take part in the Beacon Programme at Crystal Palace. This is a great honour and reflects the hard work and dedication of both the swimmers and their coaches. Ross Dibblin, Julian Chan Quee Lin, Ebrina Koster, Maxim Tidmarsh and Leo Pashov will all start with two sessions at week at Crystal Palace and undertake the rest of their training with their normal squads at Leander. Junior Platinum coach, Chris Treanor and Platinum coach, Alex Marinov have developed a training programme for all the club's swimmers which is compatible with the Beacon Programme's training and will continue to work very closely with this centre of excellence so that all the swimmers can benefit from its expertise. (14/9/2009)
Summer Club Champs results online ALL the summer club champs results are now online on the results page. Apologies for the delay, it was a compatability problem between the computer which generates the results and my home computer (which is more information than you needed!), however it has now been sorted and I should be able to get results up more quickly from now on. Please do check your times, especially if you got PBs as you will need them to enter galas in the new season. (15/8/2009) London Region 50m Sprints GalaCongratulations to Maxim Tidmarsh who cleaned up in the 10 years age group at this event! Maxim went home with 3 gold medals (freestyle, butterfly and breaststroke) and a silver for the 50 backstroke. Other swimmers who did well were Kane Rabanel-Hunt, who made it a Leander 1-2 in the 50 breast, Julian Chan Quee Lin who won the 50 fly, Sadie Bogaerts who came second in both the 50 back and 50 free and third in the 50 breast and Hayley Bogaerts who got bronze medals in the 50 back and 50 free. Click here for full results. (12/7/2009) Wandsworths 2009The borough championships are always an exciting event, and this year's was no exception. Leander was missing several key swimmers so it was always going to be tough and by the end of the weekend Wandsworth had done enough to clinch the girls' and combined team scores to take the trophy. It was by no means all doom and gloom - there were some fantastic performances from swimmers in all age groups, especially the younger ones. As well as winning every event in his age group, 12 year old Julian Chan Quee Lin set an amazing six new records in the 66m fly, 100m freestyle and backstroke and the 200m freestyle, backstroke and breaststroke. 10 year old Harvey Dennis broke Julian's old record in the 33m fly. Both the boys under 13 and 15 and over relay teams won both relay events in convincing style and also took the squadron relay gold. The following swimmers came home with individual medals. Golds were won by Harvey Dennis, Julian Chan Quee Lin, Ross Dibblin, Alfie Cruttwell, Jacob Snowden, Nick Lee, Jayson Lynch, James Webster, Joy Stefaniszyn-Greenwell and Rebecca Christie. Silvers went to Ben Davies, Matthew Chan Quee Lin, Dominic O'Hearn, Adam Lennon, Ross Dibblin, Alfie Cruttwell, Jayson Lynch, Nick Lee, Rolandas Radzius, Ebrina Koster, Sadie van Bogearts, Hayley van Bogearts and Shannon Matchett. Bronze medals went to Ben Davies, Freddie Suther-Jones, Dominic O'Hearn, Adam Lennon, Elliot Manley, Kadeem Watson, Nick Lee, Ross Dibblin, Jacob Snowden, James Webster, Rolandas Radzius, Ellie Colfer, Rosanna Laine-Webster, Ebrina Koster, Sadie and Hayley van Bogearts and Shannon Matchett. Congratulations to all of you and a big thank you to all the parents who helped out poolside or shouted themselves hoarse during the relays. Full results are available here (28/6/2009) Saxon Crown Future Champions - 21st June Well done to all the swimmers who took part in the Saxon Crowns Future Champions gala at Bromley. It's a fast and furious affair with all the races one length, and it's a great way for some of the younger swimmers to get competition experience. Several made finals and Jake White was very proud to win his first ever swimming medal in one of the relays. Click here for results for Leander swimmers and here for the relay results. London RegionalsThe second weekend of the BAGCats saw more success for both Ross and Julian. Ross won the 100m breaststroke and Julian got gold in the 200m freestyle and another NQT and took bronze in the 100m backstroke. 10 year old Maxim Tidmarsh, swimming in his first regionals, put in a brilliant effort to make the final of the 200m freestyle. Ross Dibblin and Julian Chan had a very successful first weekend at the London Regionals. Ross took gold in the 14 year old boys 200m breaststroke and silver in the 200m IM, while Julian came home with three silvers - 100m freestyle, 100m butterfly, 200m IM - and a bronze - 400m freestyle - but more importantly gained two NQTs for 100m freestyle and 200m IM. Full results available here . (7/6/2009) Guildford May Open - 23rd & 24th MayA large team of Leander's swimmers from Platinum, Junior Platinum and Junior Gold headed to the Guildford Spectrum for this very popular gala. There were some very exciting races and medals galore. The following swimmers came home with gold medals: Julian Chan, Ross Dibblin, Jayson Lynch, Nick Lee, Rebecca Christie, Rhiannon Davies and Abigail Bainbridge. Silver medals went to Rhiannon, Julian and Jayson and Jacob Snowden, Abigail Bainbridge, Shannon Matchett, Connie Bunch and Ebrina Koster all took bronze. Plenty of swimmers got big PBs, even if they didn't win a medal - so a special mention goes to Jacob for getting under 56" for the first time in 100 freestyle (a big milestone) and to Junior Gold's quintet of 9 year olds - Ben Davies, Matthew Chan, Zara Roche, Hannah Subraman and Amelia Parry - many of whom were competing in an Open meet for the first time. Full results are available here (29/5/2009) Edenbridge Piranhas Relay Gala - 16th MayLeander's swimmers and supporters turned out in force to compete in the Edenbridge Piranhas Relay Team Gala at Beckenham Spa. Everyone put in fantastic performances to come third on the night out of six teams. There was an amazing team effort with the older swimmers supporting and cheering on the younger ones, some of whom were only 8 & 9 years old and competing in their first relay gala. the team was well organised, with every swimmer in the right place at the right time - no mean feat! At times the cheering was deafening and the behaviour exemplary throughout - they all did themselves proud. Well done to everyone for turning up and swimming your hardest and cheering your loudest. Although it doesn't seem right to single out anyone, particular mention must got to Charlotte for her fantastic help at the blocks and to Nick Moore who swam in both the boys U12 and U14 races, and of course not forgetting Caroline who put the teams together and organised everyone on the night. (21/5/2009) Beckenham Open, Crystal Palace 9th & 10th MaySwimmers from Platinum and Junior Platinum competed in the Beckenham Open at the newly re-opened Crystal Palace. At first glance, not much has changed considering the length of time the pool has been closed. There are fancy new changing rooms, but the seats are still the same and apparently the pigeons are still in residence, however most of the £17 million budget has been spent behind the scenes. Leander swimmers came away from the weekend with a clutch of medals and PBs. Gold medals went to Ross Dibblin (100 and 200 breast), Jayson Lynch (100 breast, 200 fly), Rebecca Christie (200 breast); silver medals to Ross (50 breast), Rebecca (50 breast) and Nick Lee (50 fly) and bronze medals to Nick (50 breast), Jayson (100 breast, 50 fly) and Ebrina Koster (50 fly and 200 back). Congratulations to all of you and to all the other squad members who swam their hearts out! (14/5/2009) Online Club Shop now open!Leander's very own online club shop is now open - click on the online shop button on the left-hand menu and you'll be taken straight to our website. Run in conjunction with Swimrite who supply all our zoomers, costumes etc, a percentage of every purchase made will go back to the club helping us raise much-needed funds. Prices are no more expensive than before, and in some cases items are actually cheaper and your purchases will be delivered directly to your door. You don't need to be a member of Leander to take advantage of the online shop, so if any of your friends fancy a new swimming costume ask them to come to the website too. Orders for personalised items such as hats and hoodies still need to go through Rachel or Ali. (5/5/2009) London Youth Regionals - 2nd & 3rd MayThe club's older swimmers had a packed weekend of racing at the London Youth Regionals held at the newly re-opened Crystal Palace. Louisa Farrer Fisher dominated the freestyle events, coming first in the 100m, 200m and 400m races. Jayson Lynch came third in the 50m breaststroke and there were good swims too from Rolandas Radzius, Nick Lee, Rebecca Christie, Rhiannon Davies and Jacob Snowden who all swam well in the heats to make it through to the finals. Click here for full results. (5/05/2009) Derventio Excel Easter Meet - SheffieldA small, hardy band of swimmers headed north over the Easter weekend for two long, hot days of racing in the 50m pool at Ponds Forge. Both medals and PBs were hard to come by. Ross Dibblin won gold in both the 50m and 100m breaststroke, but unfortunately got DQ'd in the 200m, showing how important it is to make sure all your turns are perfect! Both Jayson Lynch and Julian Chan Quee Lin took silver in the 100m fly. Click here for the full results. (22/04/2009) Wandsworth Sports AwardsTwo of Leander's swimmers have been honoured for their contribution to sport in the borough at this year's Wandsworth Sports Awards. Louisa Farrer Fisher was named Sports Personality of the Year and Ross Dibblin received the David Burns Award for his outstanding performance in the London Youth Games where he not only won the 50m breaststroke event, but also came 6th out of 140 competitors in the Aquathlon. Louisa was unable to collect her award in person as she has been competing in the British Championships, coming 6th in the 400m free and 8th in the 200m free, competing in a world-class field in both events. Congratulations to both of them! (21/03/2009) Wandsworth Borough ChampionshipsThis year's Borough Championships will be held on Saturday 27th and Sunday 28th June at Tooting and Putney. Put these dates in your diaries now!!! There is a 3-line whip for this event so even if you don't make many other galas during the year, the club expects every swimmer in the competitive squads to take part in as many events as your coach suggests. This is a fiercely competitive weekend, last year we drew with Wandsworth, this year we want to win, but we can only win if every swimmer plays their part. (14/03/2009) Surreys 09 - Final WeekendLeander swimmers kept up their good form on the final weekend with another rush of medals. 11 year old Julian Chan Quee Lin won all the 50m sprint events for his age group, thereby winning every single individual event he entered, and achieving first place in the BAGCat awards. 14 year old Ross Dibblin took gold in the 50m breaststroke, once again making a clean sweep of the breaststroke events and also taking first place in the BAGCats. Other sprint medals went to Louisa Farrer Fisher (gold in the freestyle, silver in the backstroke, breast and fly), Jayson Lynch got gold in the 50m breast, Ebrina Koster and Jacob Snowden both took bronze in the 50m backstroke,and special congratulations go to 9 year olds Buzz Robb and Harvey Dennis who were swimming in their first ever Surreys - they both went home with a silver medal for breaststroke (Buzz) and fly (Harvey). The 14-15 year old boys' medley relay team (Jacob Snowden, Ross Dibblin, Nick Lee and Alfie Cruttwell) took bronze in both the 4x50m and the 4x100m events. At the end of this year's event, Leander is 4th in the medal table, ahead of some much larger clubs, and also 4th in both the boys' and girls' team points competitions. You can check out the full results here . Well done to everyone who's swum this year - gaining qualifying times is an achievement in itself - and thanks also to the coaches for their hard work and to the parents for all their logistical and emotional support. (updated 1st March 2009) Surreys - Week ThreeLots more medals for Leander swimmers during the third weekend of competition, two new club records for Ross Dibblin together with his first NQT. Louisa Farrer Fisher took gold in the 100m and 200m backstroke, the 100m IM and the 100m freestyle; Julian Chan Quee Lin won the 200m fly, the 200m backstroke and the 100m IM and Ross won both the 100m and 200m breastroke, gaining his NQT in the 100m. There were silvers for Nick Lee in both the 100m and 200m breaststroke and for Alfie Cruttwell in the 200m fly. Alfie also took bronze for the 200m backstroke and 100m free, as did Jayson Lynch for the 100m IM and Rebecca Christie for the 200m breaststroke. (updated 15/02/2009) Surreys - Week TwoThere were some fine performances on display during the second weekend of this year's Surreys. Louisa Farrer Fisher took gold in the 400m IM as well as the 200m and 400m freestyle. Julian Chan Quee Lin won the 200m and 400m freestyle and the 200m IM, with Ross Dibblin taking silver in his age group in the 200m IM. Alfie Cruttwell took silver in the 15 year old boys 400m freestyle in a new club record time and bronze in the 400 IM. Hayley Boegaerts finished just outside the medals in the 200 IM, as did Nick Lee and Jayson Lynch in the 200m fly. There were also some great individual swims, which while they may not have won medals were an enormous achievement for the swimmers involved, notably Maxim Tidmarsh who managed a 43" PB in the 400m freestyle, Buzz Robb who swam brilliantly in the 200m IM and Dominic O'Hearn's heats in both the 200m and 400m freestyle. (updated 08/02/2009) Surreys - Week OneAs always, the Surreys start with the gruelling endurance events, the 800m and 1500m freestyle. This year, the club only entered swimmers in the 800m event, which Louisa Farrer-Fisher won in convincing fashion. Click here for the full results. (updated 08/02/2009) Black Swan Open MeetSeveral of Leander's junior swimmers made their way to Walton-on-Thames on Saturday for a marathon day of swimming. They all swam really well, with most gaining P.B.s in nearly every event - not bad considering they'd only been back at training for a week. Leander came 6th overall out of 19 clubs. Alizee Lawson went home with golds for both the 100 free and the 100 back, while Naomi Cotton won the 100 breast. A special mention goes to Francesca Brown, Ellie Colfer, Naomi Cotton, Ben Davis, Heather and Rosanna Laine-Webster, Alizee Lawson and Kane Rabanal-Hunt who all got issued with "speeding tickets" for being too fast! Silver and bronze medals also went to the following swimmers: Nick Corbett, Camilla Roche, Matthew Colfer, Nick Moore, Alexandra Lategan, Louis Williams, Sam Bainbridge and Charlotte Faiella. The behaviour of all the squad was exemplary which made Tracy's job as the only coach on duty that much easier - well done everyone! Click here for the full results. (updated: 16 January 2009) Club Championships 2008It's been a record-breaking year for Leander swimmers - no fewer than 33 championship records were smashed this year, and there were also 20 new club records. Julian Chan Quee Lin now holds the Under 12 boys 100m free and 100m backstroke records, Ross Dibblin has the Under 14 boys 50m breaststroke and Under 16 boys 200m breaststroke records, and Louisa Farrer Fisher broke 20 records in the Over 16 girls category in almost every strok/distance possible. Congratulations also go to the following swimmers who broke championship records this year: Julian, Ross, Matthew Colfer, Alfie and Joe Cruttwell, Louisa Farrer Fisher, Jayson Lynch and Heather Laine-Webster. Click here for the updated club records and here for an updated list of championship records. (updated 18th December 2008)
Calling all would-be officials!We are in desperate need of more officials, particularly timekeepers and judges. If anyone (parent or older swimmer) would like to find out how to train, please contact Diane Manley via
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
. The training is mostly online, with brief practical elements which can be done while your child is swimming at a gala. Helping in an official capacity is a great way to give something back to the sport and makes the time spent at galas pass by much more quickly - it's also usually much cooler poolside than in the gallery! (updated 13/12/2008) Beckenham Rising StarsSwimmers from Junior Platinum, Junior Gold and Gold squads took part in the Beckenham Rising Stars meet at Crook Log leisure centre in Bexleyheath at the weekend. There were plenty of fine performances, several PBs and a clutch of swimmers went home with new additions for the mantlepiece. 9 year old Ellie Colfer came first in the 100IM and 50 breast, second in the 200 free and third in the 50 free; Hayley Bogaerts came second in the 100 free and 50 back and third in the 200 free, Rosanna Laine-Webster was second in the 50 free and both Buzz Rob and Heather Laine-Webster came third in the 50 fly. Click here for full results. (updated 30/11/2008)
Squad RepsTo help promote communication between club, parents and swimmers the AGM decided to try out a system of having a parent representative for each squad. The squad reps will make sure information about training sessions or galas gets to the people who need to know and will also be a conduit for passing on messages etc to the committee and coaches. The current reps are: Junior Platinum - Jacqui Collins (Charlotte Faiella's mum); Gold - Amanda Rogerson; Junior Gold - Lorraine Colfer (Matthew, Ellie and Gus' mum). Lorraine is also temporarily taking on the role of squad rep for Silver and Bronze but it would be better if people with children in those squads could take over. (updated 30/11/2008) Clifford Trophy Gala - AldershotOn Saturday 15th November a group of Senior and Junior Platinum swimmers together with a sprinkling of Gold and Junior Gold swimmers represented Leander at the Clifford Trophy Gala held at the Aldershot Garrison's impressive 50m pool. Leander's swimmers did exceedingly well, especially since most of them had not raced in a 50m pool for some time, if at all. This was a team event, there were no medals for individual winners, just points to collect. Leander trailed in seventh place when the first points total was announced, but by the end of the evening had clawed their way back to joint second place. This was an enormous achievement, made possible by some fantastic swims, especially in the relays, and several PBs. The last event was the eagerly-awaited Squadron Relay which Leander won in fine style, with all the rest of the team lining the side of the pool cheering their team mates on. Well done to all the swimmers who represented the club, but the two youngest swimmers on the night deserve a special mention: 7 year old Gus Colfer and 8 year old Matthew Chan Quee Lin were drafted in at the last minute, literally 30 minutes before the coach left Balham, and rose to the occasion, swimming extremely well in their events. (updated 17/11/2008) Convincing win for Leander's JuniorsLeander's younger swimmers had a fantastic time at the Junior Borough Championships, beating Wandsworth soundly and gaining more than twice as many points as our rivals. This brilliant result was achieved by every single swimmer who turned up and raced, even though many had never taken part in a gala before. The atmosphere pool-side was great - it was hot, noisy and exhilarating and all the swimmers showed excellent team spirit, cheering and encouraging each other. Several Leander swimmers went home with a clutch of medals, notably Leo Pashov, who made a clean sweep of the 10 year old boys' events, Heather Laine-Webster, Ellie Colfer and Billy Roberts. 8 year old Alex Corbett took the gold in the girls' backstroke even though it was not only her first ever gala, but her first ever race! But it's not just the medallists who should be proud of themselves - without everyone turning up and swimming their best we wouldn't have won, so thank you to each and every one of you. For full results click here (updated 13/11/2008) Louisa's ESSA successLouisa Farrer Fisher followed her success at the Commonwealth Youth Games by winning the 400m free in convincing style at the ESSA Inter-divisional championships held at Enfield on 24th and 25th October. Louisa was representing Division 9 alongside Jacob Snowden and Ross Dibblin who both swam well, narrowly missing out on making the finals. Click here to see the full results. (updated 01/11/2008) Alfie swims for SurreyCongratulations to Alfie Cruttwell who was selected to swim for Surrey in the Inter County Championships held at Ponds Forge in Sheffield on Sunday 19th October. Surrey improved on last year's performance to come 6th in the Premier Division. (updated 20th October 2008) Surrey QualifiersA contingent of swimmers from Junior Platinum, Junior Gold and Gold Squads headed to Elmbridge Leisure Centre at the weekend (18th/19th October) to take part in the Surrey Qualifiers aiming to make the qualifying times for the Surrey County Championships next year. It was a tough competition so early into the new season and many of the times are faster this year so quite a few swimmers came away empty-handed. However there will be other opportunities to make the times and several swimmers were only just outside the qualifying mark, so with a bit more training and a lot of confidence they should be fine. The following swimmers qualified for at least one event, so well done: Sophie Bennett, Naomi Cotton, Dominic O'Hearn, Leo Pashov, Kane Rabanel-Hunt, Buzz Robb and Maxim Tidmarsh. And a big thankyou to Chris and Tracy for encouraging the swimmers all weekend. Full results available here . (updated 20th October 2008) More Commonwealth Youth Games medals for LouisaLouisa Farrer Fisher has won another medal on the final day of the Commonwealth Youth Games - this time it was bronze for the freestyle leg of the women's medley relay. This brings Louisa's medal tally to 2 individual silvers, and a silver and 2 bronze medals for relay events. She's had some excellent swims this week and has gained more valuable international experience which will stand her in good stead for the future. Everyone at Leander would like to congratulate Louisa on her fantastic swimming in India. (updated 17th October 2008) Louisa medals at Commonwealth Youth GamesLouisa Farrer Fisher has won two silver medals for England at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India. She was agonisingly close to gold in the women's 200m freestyle, missing out by just 0.02 of a second. She followed this up with fantastic first leg in the women's 4x100m freestyle relay - England eventually came a close second to Australia. Louisa's tally of two silvers makes her England's most successful swimmer of the meet so far. For full results click here. (updated 15th October 2008)
Bracknell 'Diddy' Gala On Saturday 27th September some of Leander Swimming Club went to Bracknell Diddy Gala “A” Grade. We were competing against Bracknell and Woking, Sutton and Cheam, Chalfont Otters and Slough and Eton. We took the coach from Balham Leisure Centre to Bracknell Sports and Leisure Centre. When we got there, we got changed and then went on to poolside. After about five minutes we started our warm up and then at quarter to seven we started the races. It was very exciting as the competition was very tough. Lots of the parents came to watch, so there was a good atmosphere. We did well and in the end and came fourth by one point. Slough and Eton won but we came back with some good results particularly in the relay. Gala report from Alex Lategan - click here for results (updated 06/10/2008) New Junior Platinum CoachWe'd like to welcome the newest member of the coaching staff, Chris Treanor, who's joined Leander from Hereford SC. Chris will be working alongside Ty, primarily taking responsibility for Junior Platinum Squad. Chris previously worked as head coach at Hereford SC and as an age-group coach at City of Bradford and has experience of coaching in Australia and the USA. He used to swim for Bridgwater ASC, making it to the National Open Water 2km event three times and as a coach has guided swimmers to National Age Group medals. Chris says he'd like all his swimmers to be hard-working, respectful and determined as that's the route to success. (updated 04/09/2008) Louisa's Tri-Nations Medal HaulLouisa Farrer-Fisher has marked her first stint representing Great Britain with three silver medals and a bronze at the Tri-Nations meet in Canada. She took silver in the 200m freestyle, bronze in the 400m freestyle and two more silvers as part of the 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays, helping GB top the points table at the end of the two day meet competing against the best young swimmers from Canada and France. Click here for a full report from British Swimming. (updated03/08/2008) Julian's First NationalsThis year was my first Nationals, and the atmosphere at Ponds Forge was fantastic. As my first race approached I got more and more nervous, but I remembered all the words of encouragement from my coaches Tracy and Mandy and above all I tried to enjoy the moment. I knew I had to swim the heats as a final as all the other guys were physically stronger than me. My first event was my favourite, the 200 freestyle, and I gave everything I had - the next minute I was in the final! When it was time for my final a lady in a black dress led all the finalists to their starting blocks. The commentator announced all the swimmers and our names appeared on a big screen next to our picture, so I got a chance to see myself on the screen before the race and it felt just like being in the Olympics. Before every final the swimmer representing GB at the Olympics in that event would give us advice on how to swim the race and wish us good luck. I am really pleased with my race as I came 7th in the finals of the 200 freestyle. I also made the finals of the 100 and 400 freestyle and came 9th in both races. I really enjoyed going to the Nationals and racing against other very good swimmers. It was a fantastic experience and gave me the motivation to train even harder next year as I very much hope to go back!! Julian Chan Quee Lin (updated 02/08/2008)
Results - summer club champs and Fareham Nomads summer meetFull results from both the Fareham Nomads summer meet and all the galas which made up Leander's Summer 2008 club championships, including the new Junior Gala, have now been uploaded to the results page
(updated 22/07/2008)
Wandsworth Borough Champs - Joint Winners! | After two days of intense competition at Tooting and Putney, Leander were neck and neck with Wandsworth going into the last couple of races.
Unfortunately, Wandsworth won both the squadron relays, so there was a nail-biting wait as the scores were totted up to see if we had managed to hold our rivals off this year. When the final points were announced both Leander and Wandsworth had exactly the same score, so both teams were proclaimed joint overall winners. Leander took the boys' trophy convincingly, while Wandsworth held onto the girls' trophy. |
There were some fantastic performances during two days of racing - Louisa Farrer-Fisher won all her races and broke championship records in the 100 free, 200 free, 200 back and 200 fly. There were also records for Julian Chan Quee Lin in the 100 and 200 free, Jacob Snowden in the 200 free, Ross Dibblin in the 200 breast and Rebecca Christie in the 200 breast. Remarkably both the boys' under 13 and 13-14 relay teams swept the board in both the freestyle and medley relays, setting new records in each event.All the following swimmers went home with individual medals, which is a fantastic achievement: Ebrina Koster, Sadie Boagaerts, Rhiannon Davies, Shannon Matchett, Rebecca Christie, Alicia Manley, Louisa Farrer-Fisher, Hannah Cannell, Kane Rabenel-Hunt, Nick Moore, Julian Chan Quee Lin, Elliot Manley, Dominic O'Hearn, Sam Ratcliffe, Jacob Snowden, Alfie Cruttwell, Joe Cruttwell, Jayson Lynch, Oliver Samy, Rolandas Radzius and Ross Dibblin. All the swimmers (not just the medallists) showed fantastic team spirit and at the end jumped into the pool for a joint victory splash. The younger swimmers who didn't get a medal this time have another chance at the Junior Borough Championships in November - make sure you enter as soon as the form comes round. Click here for the results from the event.
(updated 03/07/2008) Future ChampionsLeander's mixed relay teams did very well in the Saxon Crown Future Champions gala, with both the 10 and unders and the 12 year olds getting silver in the 4x25m freestyle events. Individually, Kadeem Watson came second in the 12 year olds' breaststroke and Adam Lennon came third in both the backstroke and freestyle races for 10 and under. It is extremely hard to get a medal at this gala as there are so many entries and as all the races are 25m the difference between winning and not making the final can be fractions of a second, so well done to both Adam and Kadeem and all the swimmers in the relay teams. For relay results click here and for individual results click here
(updated 26/06/2008) London RegionalsAnother great weekend at Ealing for Leander's age group swimmers - Julian Chan Quee Lin took gold in both the 11 year old boys' 200 free and 200 fly, along with his 3rd NQT (for 200 free), and Ross Dibblin once again proved himself to be the best breaststroker in his age group in the region, adding 100m breaststroke gold to the 200m gold he won last weekend. Jacob Snowden won a bronze in the 100m backstroke and both Alfie Cruttwell and Rebecca Christie made finals, coming 5th in the 200m free and 4th in the 100m breaststroke respectively with Alfie also coming a creditable 4th in the very tough 400m IM. Once all the BAGCat points were totted up Julian was 3rd in his age group, Alfie 6th and Ross 7th. There've also been good swims from Ebrina Koster, Naomi Cotton, Sadie van Bogaerts, Kadeem Watson and Matthew Colfer.
(updated 18/06/2008) London Regionals - BAGCatsJunior A squad member Julian Chan Quee Lin will be heading for the Nationals this summer after a fantastic first weekend at the London Regionals. Julian came first in the 11 year old boys' 100m freestyle and 100m fly and second in the 400m freestyle and 200m IM and qualified for the Nationals in style for both the 400 free and 200 IM posting times well inside the qualifying mark. This is a huge achievement and we wish him the best of luck with his training for the rest of the season. Ross Dibblin once again proved unstoppable in the 13 year old boys' 200m breaststroke adding to his stack of gold medals in this event, and Rebecca Christie made the final for the 13 year old girls' 200m breaststroke. Alfie Cruttwell, Jacob Snowden, Ebrina Koster, Naomi Cotton and Sadie van Bogaerts also had good swims with plenty of PBs in a very tough competition.
(updated 09/06/2008) Time Trial ResultsThe results of May's time trials are now on the website (click hereor go to the results page). Check your times and use them for your entries to the Wandsworths.
(updated 04/06/2008) Junior GalaLeander's new Junior Gala was held for the first time at the weekend. This was a chance for the club's younger swimmers to gain valuable gala experience - and have fun at the same time. There was a great atmosphere with most events having heats and finals - there'll be a full report soon. Medals will be handed out at the Summer BBQ.
(updated 02/06/2008) Guildford Spring OpenLeander's boys had a fantastic weekend at Guildford City's Spring Open at the weekend. Julian made a clean sweep of all the freestyle events in his age group, coming 1st in the 50, 100, 200, and 400 freestyle as well as the 50 fly, 200 fly and 200 IM and 2nd in the 50 backstroke and 200 breaststroke. He is now only a whisker away from getting his National Qualifying time for the 200 free. Ross continued his domination of the 13 year old breaststroke events with golds in the 50, 100 and 200 to add to his 2nd in the 200 IM and 3rd in the 100 back.
Jayson took gold in the 50 breast, silver in the 100 breast and 100 fly and 3rd in the 200 IM. Alfie came 2nd in the 200 fly and 3rd in the 200 free, with Oliver picking up a bronze in the 50 breast. Jacob was just outside the medals in the 200 free. Not to be outdone, the girls' medal tally was pretty impressive too. Hannah came 1st in the 200 back and 2nd in the 100 back, Ruby took 2nd in the 200 and 3rd in the 100 IM, 100 back and 50 back, Rhiannon came 3rd in the 100 IM and 200 IM, Rebecca came 2nd in the 200 breast, Sadie was 2nd in the 400 free and Shannon came 3rd in the 100 fly. This was a highly competitive gala so this success bodes well for June's BAGCat Regionals. All of Leander's swimmers put everything they had into their events and even if they didn't get a medal there were many PBs so congratualations to you all. Click here for the full results.
(updated 27/05/2008)
London RegionalsThe club's older swimmers had a very successful weekend at the London Regionals held at Ealing Leisure Centre over the Bank Holiday weekend. Louisa Farrer Fisher, Hannah Cannell, Ruby Curran-Jones, Alicia Manley, Shannon Matchett, Rhiannon Davies, Hayley van Boegaerts, Jayson Lynch and Oliver Samy had all made the qualifying times to represent Leander at the two day gala. As they are all in the middle of hard training, they weren't expected to produce PBs - nonetheless there were some fantastic performances. Louisa won gold in the 200 free and 100 back, and silver in the 100 free; Hannah took silver in the 50 back and bronze in the 200 back, and Shannon won her first ever regional medal in the 800 free, taking a well-deserved bronze and putting in a 4 second PB.
Jayson and Oliver both made finals and Rhiannon just missed out on a spot in the 200 IM final. It was a tough weekend for the swimmers, as all the events were squeezed into two days, and on top of that they had to make the trek over to Ealing as Crystal Palace is still closed, however they should all be proud of themselves as just making the qualifying times is a big achievement in itself. For the full results click here.
(updated 17/05/2008) Club Night - Wednesdays at BalhamCalling all former swimmers: we're starting a *Club Night* for over 16s on Wednesdays at Balham. The session will be taken by Helen from 8:45pm to 10pm and will be ideal for any swimmer over the age of 16 who no longer has the time to devote to competitive swimming, but doesn't want their technique to get too rusty. It costs just £12 a month (payable by standing order) and you don't have to commit to coming every week.
(updated 02/05/2008) Oxford BlueLeander swimmer, Joe Cruttwell, who is in his first year at Oxford university, has been awarded a Swimming Blue for representing the university in the annual Varsity match against Cambridge in February 2008. Joe, who swam the 400m freestyle and was a member of the 4x100m freestyle relay, was part of a victorious Oxford team who won for the first time in ten years. Joe has since been elected Oxford university men's swimming captain for 2008/09.
(updated 02/05/2008) Louisa Selected for GB SquadLouisa Farrer Fisher impressed British Swimming so much with her performances at last month's British Championships that she has been asked to represent her country for the first time at a high-profile international meet in Canada this August. Ty has also been asked to travel to Canada as part of the squad's coaching team. Everyone at the club is thrilled that Louisa's talent and hard work have been recognised at the highest level and wish her every success.
(updated 24/04/2008) Moyce CupLeander's junior swimmers headed to Dorking at the weekend for the Moyce Cup, competing against four other clubs. A few swimmers got speeding tickets for going too fast, however all the swimmers showed great team spirit and ended up coming third, behind Dorking and Sutton Atlantis.
Click here for Leander's full results
(updated 16/04/2008) Louisa creates a storm at the British ChampionshipsLouisa Farrer-Fisher has had a brilliant first two days swimming at the British Championships and Olympic trials. On Monday she qualified for the B final in the 100m freestyle, coming 12th in the country with a fantastic swim of 56.80 seconds, a big personal best. On Tuesday night she clocked a time of 4.15.48 in the 400m freestyle, a huge P.B. for Louisa and good enough to place her in Wednesday morning's A final. As these are the Olympic trials the finals are being swum in the mornings in order to be able to mirror the conditions of Beijing and are being contested by Britain's very top swimmers. The best 400m swimmers in the country – including Olympians and European champions - lined up for what promised to be a thrilling final as the times being achieved were matching and bettering the British record. Louisa, in lane 1, went out hard and came fifth in a time of 4.17.08, sharing fifth place with Rebecca Cooke who is one of our most seasoned and experienced Olympic campaigners. Everyone at Leander would like to congratulate both Louisa and her coach, Tyrone, who says he's 'delighted' with her achievements. Follow Louisa's progress for the rest on the week here:
http://www.swimmingresults.org/liveevent/webpages/index.htm
(updated 02/04/2008) Reading Easter MeetWith the club's usual Easter stamping ground of Crystal Palace still out of action, a small band of swimmers braved the ice and snow to head west along the M4 to Reading. Ross Dibblin continued his domination of the 13 year old breaststroke events, winning both the 100m and 200m, and came 3rd in the 200 backstroke. Rhiannon Davies came back with a clutch of medals: 1st in the 100 backstroke, 2nd in the 100 fly, 200 backstroke and 200 and 400 freestyle, and 3rd in the 200 IM. Alfie Crutwell came 2nd in the 100 and 200 fly and 3rd in the 200 free and Rebecca Christie came 2nd in the 200 breaststroke. There were good swims too from Jacob Snowden, Oliver Samy and Sadie and Hayley Bogaerts with most of Leander's swimmers going faster than their entry times. Congratulations to all of you. You can check out the club's full results by clicking here.
(updated 27//03/2008) Results from EpsomLeander swimmers took to the Rainbow Pool at Epsom on Saturday night to compete against five other clubs. The team was made up of swimmers from all the squads so there was a wide range of ability and experience, with some only called up at the last minute (a special thanks to them for making such a great effort). Everyone swam well, with no disqualifications for anyone throughout the night, and after the first 12 races Leander was already in 2nd position. Team spirit was high and the swimmers in the pool got plenty of encouragement from their friends. The points mounted up and when the final results were read out Leander were convincing winners. Well done to everyone who swam and, as always, thanks to the coaches and parents who helped out on the night. Final results: Leander - 1st – 267 points
Sutton & Cheam - 2nd – 242 points
Epsom BL - 3rd – 235 points
Sevenoaks - 4th – 203 points
Edenbridge - 5th – 168 points
Epsom Yel - 6th – 128 points Click here for full results.
(Added 16/03/2008) Louisa takes International Schools competition by stormLouisa Farrer-Fisher was privileged to be made captain of the English schools' team contesting the WISE cup last weekend. This international competition with schools' teams competing from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales takes place annually and England had a convincing win. Louisa’s contribution was huge. Not only did she captain the squad, but she won the 200 and 400m freestyle events, came second in the 100 free, taking the 200m free in an English schools' record time. She was also part of the winning freestyle and medley relays which gained new schools' records and she gave the closing speech for the country. We are all extremely proud of her achievements and wish her luck at the Olympic trials next month.
(Added 16/03/2008) Surreys Final Round UpThe final weekend of the Surreys was one of mixed fortunes. Saturday belonged to the younger swimmers. This was incredibly long, incredibly hot and incredibly crowded which made for difficult conditions in which to excel. There is no doubt that Leander’s younger swimmers who do not train to anything like the intensity of the other clubs in the county suffer at this level of competition and this is to some extent reflected in our results. Having said that there were still some superb swims on the day. Ebrina Koster medalled yet again in the 50m backstroke getting silver, Jacob Snowden and Ross Dibblin continued their utter domination of the breaststroke taking gold (Ross) and silver (Jacob), and Jacob medalled in both freestyle and backstroke. The relay teams in the younger ages did not fare quite so well achieving respectable but not startling places, but interestingly all swam to their entry times or faster so as individuals they should be very proud. There were some disqualifications which will be carefully examined and worked on by the coaches. On Sunday the older swimmers had a ball. They won so much it is hard to list it all. They came second in both the relays for the 16 and over girls and Hannah Cannell finished an impressive Surreys with a final total of 17 medals, 3 of them Gold. She also collected the club trophy (The Coronation Cup) for the girls coming second in the whole championships, an amazing result above the giants of Kingston, Haslemere and Leatherhead. Hayley Van Bogaerts won her first medal of the championships with a bronze in the 50m breaststroke. The boys were not quite as strong coming in just behind the medals but have still finished the championships a hugely impressive 7th place overall. Finally, a special mention for the really hard work of Alicia Manley in coming both first and second in the 200m breaststroke and 100m breaststroke. Her achievements (her first gold) in the Surreys were overlooked last week and more than deserve a mention. We also omitted the fantastic bronze medals won by Julian Chan Quee Lin and Alfie Crutwell in the 200 Fly. Leander’s final placings were as follows: 5th in the medal table with a total of 58 medals (20 more than last year)
2nd in the girls placings for top 8 swims
7th in the boys placings for top 8 swims
7th in the overall results for 9-16 yr olds Leander would like to extend thanks to the coaches, the parents and most of all the swimmers for having such a great time, being so sporting and above all enjoying yourselves. Probably the best Surrey results for the club ever
!(Added 16/03/2008) New Club PhoneWe now have a dedicated phone number for the Club - 07518 956695. So if you need to get in touch about anything regarding Leander, please call or use the following emails:
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
and
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Surreys 2008Another extraordinary weekend at the Surreys for Leander Swimmers This weekend saw dozens of superb swims by everyone. Almost all swimmers had personal best times in most if not all their events. The medals piled on, making Leander the fifth highest medal scorers in the county with a total of 46 medals so far; 15 golds 14 silvers 17 bronzes. The girls points table shows Leander to be an amazing second overall, with 183 points so far, second only to Guildford and the boys table finds us fifth. These are by far the best results the club has ever had and coaches and swimmers (and their chauffeurs!) are to be congratulated. Notable swims this weekend were Ross Dibblin’s extraordinary 100 and 200m breaststroke knocking 15 seconds from his previous 200m best time and over 6 seconds off his 100m time and putting him within a few seconds of a National qualifying time. Louisa Farrer-Fisher gained another county record in the 100m IM (her third of the championships). Golds were won this weekend by Louisa (5), Ross (2), Hannah Cannell (1), Jacob Snowden won 2 silvers and 1 bronze, Ebrina Koster continued her amazing 1st ever Surreys with another bronze in the 100m IM and Oliver Samy pressed hard for the 100 and 1200m breaststroke winning bronze in both. Louisa finishes her campaign here (with a resounding 11 gold medals!) as she is off to swim for England in the International schools championships next weekend. We wish her luck. For the results click here Wey League, 2nd RoundWhile many of the older swimmers were competing at the Surreys, some of Leander's younger swimmers took part in the second round of the Wey League on Saturday 1st March. There was a wide variety in the amount of experience in the team, and for some it was the first time they had represented the club at a gala. All the swimmers swam well and a few surprised us with how fast they were! The competition was tough and Leander managed to hold onto third place. The final result was: Andover in 1st place with 145 points, Barracuda in 2nd with 137 points, Leander in 3rd with 127 points, Cheam Marlins in 4th with 121 points and Isle of Wight in 5th place with 120 points. Surreys SuccessThe second weekend of this year's Surreys has brought more medals and P.B.s. Saturday morning started with the boys undertaking 8 tough lengths in the 400 freestyle. Every Leander swimmer recorded a PB, with Alfie Cruttwell winning bronze in the 14s age group. The girls had an even harder event, tackling the 400 IM – Louisa Farrer Fisher won gold, Hannah Cannell and Alicia Manley took silver and Shannon Matchett and Rhiannan Davies both achieved a PB. The afternoon saw some more good swims from the boys in the 200 IM and the 200 backstroke while the girls raced the 200 free. 9 year old Ebrina Koster had a fantastic start to her Surreys career, taking a well-deserved bronze with Louisa and Hannah again winning gold and silver. Sunday started with gold and a new Surrey record for Louisa and silver for Hannah in the 400 free and bronze for Alfie in the 400 IM. Ruby Curran Jones celebrated her return from injury with a gold in the 200 back, Louisa and Hannah took gold and silver in their age group. Louisa gained another Surrey record and a gold in the 200 IM, Hannah took silver, Alicia got bronze and Ebrina added to her medal tally with two more bronzes (IM and backstroke). For the boys, Alfie and Julian both took bronze in the 200 free, and Jacob Snowden, Ross Dibblin and Max Tidmarsh all managing good P.B.s. To round off the afternoon, Hannah and Louisa contested the skins event in the medley skins and Louisa won it with Hannah coming fourth – both girls did brilliant times for 6 50's in a row after 3 major events. Alfie, Jacob, Ebrina, Ross and Julian are all doing well in the BAGcat points competition as well – Alfie, Jacob and Ebrina are all third in their age group, with Ross currently fifth and Julian seventh. (For an explanation of BAGcats click here) All in all, it's been a very successful weekend – Ty is delighted with you all. We now have a short break before the next lot of events in two weeks' time.
Wey League - 19th JanuaryLeander's younger swimmers were out in force for the first round of this year's Wey League at Woking. Leander came 5th out of six clubs, however this was partly because many of our swimmers swam too fast – this was a time restricted gala – so ended up not being placed. However, this puts us in a good position for the second round in March. Click here for results for Leander's swimmers.
Exeter Meet - 12th/13th JanuaryA small band of dedicated swimmers braved the snow to make the long journey down to Millfield school in Somerset, for the Exeter meet. Unfortunately the weekend wasn't as successful as we'd hoped. The atmosphere in the pool was extremely hot, and the crowd thin on the ground. However some swimmers were pleased with their performances - Ross Dibblin swam a number of PBs and made the junior final in 100m breaststroke, and Shannon Matchett swam well in the 100m butterfly. Louisa Farrer Fisher won four gold medals. Beckenham Rising Stars' Winter MeetA smaller than usual contingent of Leander swimmers attended this rescheduled gala, coming as it did the morning after the Xmas disco ... However, despite the lack of sleep many swimmers managed PBs and there were several medals with Kadeem Watson, Abigail Bainbridge, Oliver Samy and Eve Stefaniszyn-Greenwell all winning events in their age groups. Click here for results highlights.
|
News Articles 
