A total of over 50 COSC swimmers headed for Cardiff last week-end, for a 3-day marathon of long course high adrenaline racing. 330 events were swum, leading to numerous finals and a solid medal tally for our club, considering the high number of withdrawals due to injury and exams.
The age groups split made this event very tough, divided into two categories: 14 and under, and 15 and over. With the exceptional calibre and volume of competitors being present at this international meet, it was difficult to reach a final unless you were in the sweet spot of being 14, or a seasoned adult swimmer! City of Oxford swimmers weren’t phased and performed well at this event, achieving five gold medals in the 50, 100 and 200m free style (Chris Currie), 200m breaststroke (Natasha Fenton) and 100m breaststroke (Safiya Sillah), one silver medal in the 100m freestyle (Max Bolcato) and three bronze medals in the 50m freestyle (Ellie Millington), 400m IM (George Rudd) and 200m breaststroke (Callum Smart).
But Cardiff was in fact a crucial meet for a lot of our swimmers simply chasing a last minute long course PB; it was the final opportunity to climb up the rankings to access the sought-after top 24 British and top 20 English, guaranteeing a spot at Nationals for this summer! Fingers crossed for them all as we stare at the rankings website for a few days to see what the rest of the country has been up to this last weekend of the qualifying window.
Here is a short breakdown of results, with highlights on finalists and medalists:
Finalists: 45 (top 10 finish in prelims or direct finals like 400s/ 800 & 1500)
Medals: 9 – 5 gold, 1 silver, 3 bronze
Gold
Chris Currie (MC, 50, 100 & 200 Free)
Natasha Fenton (200 Br, 14-)
Safiya Sillah (100 Br, 14-)
Silver
Max Bolcato (100 Fly, 14-)
Bronze
Ellie Millington (50 Free, 15+)
George Rudd (400IM, 14-)
Callum Smart (200Br, 15+)
Finalists (top 4>10):
Max Bolcato (200 Fr, 200 Bk, 200 Fly, 100 Bk, 100 Fr, 200 IM, 100 Fly)
Connor Bryan (50 Br, 200 Br)
Theo Cooke (400 IM, 200 Br )
Erin Gilchrist (100 Bk, 200 Bk)
Lewis Gilchrist (200 Bk, 1500 Free, 400IM)
Maia Little (100 Br, 200 Br)
Evie McLean (400IM)
Ellie Millington (100 Free, 200 free, 200 Bk)
Kate Mills (50 Fly, 100 Fly)
Tiana Porter (100 Fly)
George Rudd (100 Br, 200 Fly, 200 IM, 100 Fly)
Callum Smart (200 IM)
Megan Smit (400 IM, 200 Free, 400 Free)
Luke Wilby (50 Bk)