July 2012
- Newport Primary Schools Gala 2012
On Thursday 5th July this annual event took place at
the South East Wales Regional Pool, Newport. The council has
witnessed 2000+ primary school children benefit from both our
intensive and weekly swimming instruction which has allowed them to
experience and develop a variety of aquatic skills in a positive
setting. This event is a celebration of all their achievements and
hard work within the City of Newport.
A total of 18 teams (200+ children) took part in the gala and
participated in a variety of team relay based activities including
Mini Water Polo, Woggle, kick boards and specific strokes. The
event was officially opened by his Right Worshipful the Mayor of
Newport, Cllr John Guy, with the eventual winners being Marshfield
Primary School. Congratulations to them!!
June 2012
- Let's swim 2012 - An Olympic Challenge
To celebrate the 2012 London Olympics, Monnow Swimming Club
has launched a club challenge. The objective is for the
club as a whole to swim 2012km before the end of the Olympics on
12th August. 2012km equates to 80,480 lengths of a 25m
pool.
The challenge started Sunday 20th May. Each club
member will be keeping a record of how many lengths they swim each
week and this will be logged on charts held by the coaches at the
two pools where Monnow SC train.
The coaches and the committee will be tracking progress and
posting regular updates on the Monnow Swimming Club website. There
will be Olympic gifts for all participants who swim at least 500
lengths (250 for Group 5 swimmers) and prizes for the swimmers
achieving the most lengths in each training squad.
Fiona, the Club Treasurer, came up with this idea and thought it
would be an excellent way to fire up the swimmers and get them
thinking about the Olympics.
- Celtic Novice Cup - Aberdare Comets
Fifteen athletes from Aberdare Comets Diving Club where selected
to represent Wales as part of a National Novice diving team at the
inaugural Celtic Novice Cup in Bangor, North Wales. Twenty athletes
selected from 3 clubs across Wales competed against teams from
Ireland and Scotland in the Celtic Tri-Nations style event.
The competitions new and exciting format offered divers multiple
opportunities to compete, gain points for their team as well as
take individual medals. The conditions require participants to
select dives from designated skills categories and compete in four
circuit style events across the weekend. Each diver is required to
demonstrate Control, Confidence, dive group coverage, entry skills
and compete in a 6 skill novice circuit to display the diver's full
range of technical abilities.
Event organiser, Swim Wales Diving Consultant and Aberdare Coach
Ben Fox said about the event
'It s great that diving in Wales has developed far enough
over the last two years to be able to invite international teams to
compete in here. The Celtic Novice Cup aims to energise novice
diving, providing a focus event for novice divers across each of
the countries represented'.
'Aberdare is the only professional diving programme in Wales
and we have worked hard with the support of the council lead learn
to dive programme at the Aberdare Pool to develop the standards
required to perform on a national level so quickly. I'm really
happy with how all the Aberdare divers performed under the Welsh
banner and hope the experience will help to motivate them further
within the sport'.
Ten individual top 3 sports where taken in total across the
weekend by Aberdare divers. Scotland took the overall team trophy
with 451.00 points, Wales second with 429.00 points and Ireland in
third with 426 points.
The Aberdare Comets Diving Club are actively looking for
sponsors from the local community to help provide training and
competition opportunities for our athletes. If you are interested
in supporting ACDC please contact Ben Fox on 07943508496.
Aberdare team divers: Kojo Terrile, Megan Davies, Ewan Purnell,
Shaun Baker, Garin Beams, Daniel Cook, Caitlin Thomas, Daniel
Hourihan, Jamie Richards, Callum Williams, Kiera Pritchard, James
Richards, Keiran Williams, Seren Watkins, Ffion Watkins.
- Llantrisant sharks swim their way to the Olympics!
Llantrisant Sharks Swimming Club marked the start of the London
2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games by completing a sponsored swim
the equivalent 266 km distance from Llantrisant to the Olympic Pool
in London.
The highly successful and popular swimming club joined forces
with Rhondda Cynon Taf Council Leisure Services and the Royal Air
Force to undertake the spectacular feat at Llantrisant Leisure
Centre, swimming 10640 lengths of a 25m pool.
Llantrisant swimmers aged from 6 to 20, were joined by members
of the RAF swim squad, as they reached the final 200 metres of
their challenge on Thursday, June 7, celebrating in style exactly
50 days until the start of London 2012.
Cheered on by Rhondda Cynon Taf Mayor Cllr Doug Williams and his
consort, wife Carol, who were joined by Cllr Robert Bevan, Cabinet
Member for Sustainable Development, Leisure and Tourism at Rhondda
Cynon Taf Council, Mr George Jones, Group Director, Environmental
Services and Aquatic Development Officer Mrs Jean Davies, the
swimmers completed their feat.
Corporal Gary Daniels, an ex-RAF champion swimmer who now
competes in triathlons, led off with 84 of the Sharks swimmers
swimming in relay to finish off the remaining distance.
Each swimmer who took part also helped raise much needed money
to support Llantrisant Sharks Swimming Clubs' programme of
long-term athlete development and received a commemorative towel
and hat from the RAF Careers Office, where Corporal Gary Daniels
now works.
Cllr Doug Williams, Mayor of Rhondda Cynon Taf, said: "We are
very proud of our Olympic Links, which saw us welcome the iconic
Olympic Torch to our county borough in May.
"We are also one of the Councils that have been awarded an
Inspire Mark for our commitment to the legacy of the Olympic Games,
ensuring all residents are inspired by the global sporting
spectacle and get involved themselves.
"Well done to all the swimmers for inspiring us all with
their efforts."
Cllr Bevan added: "Leisure for Life is the ongoing campaign
from the Council to ensure each and every resident finds a leisure
activity they enjoy and that assists them to have a healthier way
of life. There really is something for everyone in our Leisure
Services, from modern gyms, classes, swimming, dedicated sports
development and outdoor activities.
"The sensational swimmers from Llantrisant Sharks Swimming
Club have shown us just what can be achieved and have kept the
Olympic and Paralympic Celebrations in Rhondda Cynon Taf alive -
why don't you get involved?!"
Keith Morgan, Head coach, from Llantrisant Sharks said:
"Everyone at the club we would like to thank our guests for
attending the event and so enthusiastically supporting our future
Olympic talent. We are so proud of each of them for completing this
challenge.
"We would especially like to thank Sergeant Steve Perham
from the RAF Careers office in Cardiff and his staff for such a
great donation.
"Llantrisant Sharks Swimming Club is a competitive Club that
aims to provide a safe, positive and supportive environment.
Our swimmers experience training at the highest level in order to
gain the confidence and skills to enable them to perform with
excellence and reach their full potential, but we also realise that
swimming is a life skill and delivers a new experience, training
and skills through the Club."
Sergeant Steve Perham said, "The RAF is delighted to
have been able to sponsor Llantrisant Sharks Swimming
Club.
"Seeing the swimmers in action tonight as they finished
their challenge of swimming to the London Olympics really
highlights the hard work that each swimmer must have put into their
training and their clear commitment to achieving excellence. These
are exactly the values that the RAF look for from its service men
and women."
May 2012
- South East Swimming Development Officers Make a Big Splash -
some bigger than others!
Recently some of the Swimming Development Officers in the South
East Region took a deep breath and took on a challenge as part of
the Big Splash. The challenge was to participate in a diving
session in Aberdare Swimming Pool. This was not the sort of diving
that any of these people were used to, it was the type of diving
that Tom Daley and Tonia Couch take your breath away with from the
platforms and springboards.
Under the guidance of the Swim Wales Diving Consultant, Ben Fox,
who co-ordinates the Diving programmes in Wales and is helping
budding Welsh talent develop, six officers stepped out of their
comfort zones, namely Jean Davies (RCT), Natalie Parfitt
(Monmouthshire), Andy Walker (Bridgend), Barrie Swift (Newport),
Chris Kibby (Blaenau Gwent) and Hanna Guise (Swim Wales).
Ben spent time going over basic techniques from the side of the
pool such as hand positions, entries and different shapes - tuck,
pike and backwards, before the group moved on to perform these
skills off of the 1 metre platform.
Once confidence had been gathered, the group moved onto the
higher platforms where they attempted a jump from the 3 metre
springboard. This gave the group a different problem to overcome -
not only did some have to take a deep breath to walk to the end of
the springboard, jumping off of it gave jumping and maintaining a
straight body position in the air a whole new challenge. Jean,
Barrie and Chris bravely attempted a dive from the 3 metre
springboard. The reactions of the crowd were positive with everyone
applauding each other's attempts. Andy Walker likened the
experience to 'walking the plank'.
From there it was up to the 5 metre platform. This was a whole
new experience for some of the group, a couple of which were
overcoming fear of heights! Everyone managed to execute a jump from
the 5 metre platform. Motivational comments and instructions from
Ben assisting everyone to take their leap! Aberdare Swimming Pool
has a video playback facility installed for the divers to make use
of in their training. This facility is invaluable to the coaching
process and the divers gaining feedback on their performance. Ben
gave each of the group feedback but it was not until each saw the
video playback that they could fully comprehend what Ben had
said!
Gold star for the session went to Chris Kibby. He fearlessly
performed dives from the 5 metre platform that sent gasps of awe
and wonder through the rest of the group! Although he did have a
slight advantage that he is based at Ebbw Vale - the only other
facility in the South East region that has diving boards!
The session enabled the group to fully appreciate the skill and
hard work that club divers put into their sport and also enabled
them to experience how adult learners feel when trying a new skill
for the first time such as learning to swim, which is a meaningful
emotion to be able to pass onto teachers in their programmes. There
may also be an extra participant at the adult diving sessions that
Ben runs in Aberdare - Barrie was very keen to further improve his
skills and learn more!
Thank you to Barrie who initially suggested the Challenge, to
Jean for confirming the arrangements for the session and to Ben for
patiently teaching us.
The Big Splash provides an opportunity for people of all ages
and abilities from across the country to join the 13 million people
in the UK who are already making a splash, by taking part in
swimming events, finding out what local pools have to offer,
benefitting from fantastic money saving offers and winning some
great prizes. You can help us to make the Big Splash a great
success by helping to convert all those people who are inspired to
get swimming to have a great experience in your pool! Enjoying the
water is something open to people of all ages and abilities.
Everyone has a Big Splash in them and we all have different reasons
for jumping in. More quality time with the kids, the
companionship of an Aqua Aerobics class, training to be the best or
just splashing about for a laugh, our Big Splashers have a range of
reasons for making ripples. All of which could take place in your
pools! For more information about the Big Splash visit www.bigsplash.co.uk
Aberdare Comets are one of Swim Wales' registered diving clubs,
the others are in Bangor and Llanelli, and all have members ranging
across all abilities. Rhondda-Cynon-Taf, Carmarthenshire and
Gwynedd Local Authorities all run learn to dive schemes. For
further information about joining a club or learning to dive in
Wales ben.fox@swimming.org