LEAMINGTON Spa Amateur Swimming Club (LSASC) had three swimmers in action at the prestigious British Swimming Championships at Ponds Forge in Sheffield.
The trio of Annabel Crees, Joshua Golsby-Taylor and Teia Hendley competed against the best swimmers from across the United Kingdom which included Olympic champions.
All three swimmers achieved difficult qualification times to compete at the Championships with Crees in the 100m and 200m backstroke, Golsby-Taylor in the 50m backstroke and Hendley the 50m and 100m breaststroke.
The trio were up against fierce competition with times from the Championships used in the selection process for senior and junior international competitions which includes the World Championships later this year.
And LSASC’s 15-year-old star Crees was in impressive form in Sheffield despite racing against swimmers considerably older.
She qualified for the Priority Paris finals in both of her events, for swimmers aged 23 and under, as she achieved a new personal best (PB) time in her 100m backstroke heat and improved her time again in the final to break her own club record in the process.
And Crees achieved another PB time in the 200m backstroke heat as she qualified for the final as the fastest swimmer.
The teenager kept her composure in the final to smash the Warwickshire County record, which had stood since 2012, with a new PB as she finished second behind a university swimmer some six years her senior.
And her time of 2:16.50 puts her first in Great Britain for her age and 93rd in the world rankings for the fastest 200m backstroke this season for women of all ages.
Graham Nash, LSASC’s head coach, said: “It was great to have swimmers competing against the best in Britain at such a high-profile event, they’re a credit to themselves and the club.
“I am particularly impressed with Annabel’s performances – the times she swam were exceptional but, as a coach, it was great to see her step up both times from heat to final and keep her nerve under such pressure. She absolutely delivered when it mattered.”
