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They achieved six gold medals, 13 silvers and 11 bronzes in addition to three Midland qualifying times, one county record, four championship records, one club record and 58 personal best times.

Event one saw the girls tackle the 50m butterfly with Harley Maddison (9) winning her first ever county medal by taking silver in a new personal best time. Although just off her personal best statistic, Hannah Macleod (14) was the only other Boston swimmer to achieve a medal when also picking up silver in her age category.

The boys’ 100m breaststroke saw Boston pick up only one medal, thanks to James Hurley’s as his steady improvement continued in this stroke when recording a new PB to take silver in the 12 year age category.

Although 10 of the 14 girls picked up PBs it saw them struggle to achieve medals in the 100m individual medley. Charlize Arundell (11) took silver and it was left to Toni Keal (15) to be the only other girl to achieve a medal with bronze — although Susannah Yielding (16) did break the club record by half a second when recording a time of 1 minute 12.26 seconds.

It was in event four (the boys’ 400m freestyle) where medals came thick and fast. The nine-year-old boys again dominated their age category with Lewis McGarry continuing his fine form to take gold and smashing the championship record previously held by Boston’s James Hurley by six seconds and achieving a Midland qualifying time when recording a time of 5:39.66.

Isaac Reed again provided able support by taking silver and William Pettitt made it a clean sweep when finishing in the bronze medal position. In the 10 year age group Lewis Bontoft showed great determination to just miss out on the gold medal but recorded a 17-second PB to take silver and James Hurley took his second silver of the morning with a four-second PB.

In the final event of the morning, the girls’ 200m backstroke, things did not quite go according to plan as this became the first event that a Boston swimmer failed to gain a medal. The best chance fell to Amber Nuttman and Hannah Macleod in the 14 year age group as they enter the event as first and second fastest respectively. Unfortunately neither swimmer could lower their PB and they eventually finished in fourth and fifth place.

Fully refreshed after a break, things took a turn for the better starting in event six, the boys’ 50m butterfly,. Lewis McGarry took his second gold of the day when again setting county and championship records in a time of 38.87 with William Pettitt taking silver and Isaac Reed this time taking bronze.

Connor Spinks (14) picked up his first butterfly medal with bronze with a tremendous two-second PB. Sprint specialist Patrick Ikhena (18) showed being at university was no obstacle as he finished in equal second place in his age group and in the boys’ open age category as well as achieving his Midland qualifying time when setting a new PB of 27.68 seconds.

The girls’ 100m breaststroke saw Boston produce two more county champions as Charlize Arundell produced another outstanding swim to easily win her age group but it was a much closer fight for Amber Nuttman (14) who although not being at her best held on to take gold to continue her dominance in her favored stroke.

Event eight, the boys’100m individual medley, again saw the nine-year-old boys produce a 1-2-3 finish. Lewis McGarry kept up his 100 percent record, again setting a championship record time of 1:26.55. This time Isaac Reed gained revenge on William Pettitt by finishing in second and third places respectively. Lewis Bontoft took bronze in the 10-year age group and Connor Spinks kept up his good form for the day taking silver in his age group and bronze in the junior boys’ age category. Patrick Ikhena finished his day by adding another silver medal in both his age group and the boys’ open age category.

Event nine saw the last girls’ race of the day the 400m freestyle. Again the younger Boston girls produced some impressive PBs with Amber Blower and Kieva Clegg (10), Charlize Arundell (11), Bethany Holderness (12), Lauren Hurley and Amber Nuttman (14) all making big strides in this event. But it was left to Susannah Yielding to be the only girl to win a medal with a bronze medal finish.

Unlike the girls, event 10 saw the boys produce a host of medals in their final race the 200m backstroke. It was no surprise when Lewis McGarry took his fourth gold of the day again in a championship record and a Midland qualifying time of 3:01.73 and Isaac Reed again edged out William Pettitt to make it another clean sweep. Lewis Bontoft took his second bronze medal of the day and James Hurley also finished in the same position for his age group. Disappointingly for Connor Spinks, he was not at his best for his favoured event. Entering as favourite, he eventually finished in the bronze medal position in both his age group and junior boys age category but it still finished the day on a successful note for the club.

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell (5), Jason Barnes (2), Myles Beagles, Amber Blower (2), Lewis Bontoft (3), Kieva Clegg (4), Libby Dean-Allen, Georgia Hodgkiss, Bethany Holderness (5), James Hurley (3), Lauren Hurley (3), Beth Hutchings, Ose Ikhena, Michael Keal (2), Harley Maddison (3), Lewis McGarry (2), Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt (3), William Pettitt (3), Becky Pimlott, Joe Reed, Isaac Reed (4), Connor Spinks (3), Jordan Ward (3).

First places: Charlize Arundell, Lewis McGarry (4), Amber Nuttman.

Second places: Charlize Arundell, Lewis Bontoft, James Hurley (2), Patrick Ikhena (2), Hannah Macleod, Harley Maddison, William Pettitt, Isaac Reed (3), Connor Spinks.

Third places: Lewis Bontoft (2), James Hurley, Toni Keal, William Pettitt (3), Isaac Reed, Connor Spinks (2), Susannah Yielding.

Report for March 18

Club youngsters in championship action

The opening day of competition in the 61^st annual Lincolnshire County Championships saw 32 youngsters from Boston Swimming Club in action.

They were competing for county honours as well as striving to take advantage of their best opportunity to gain Midland qualifying times for this summer’s Midland Youth and Age Championships.

The five events for the day saw swimmers compete in the 50m backstroke, 100m butterfly and freestyle, 200m breaststroke and individual medley.

In the first event, the girls’ 50m backstroke, medals were hard to come by. Charlize Arundell (11) — who went on to have a tremendous championship — achieved Boston’s best result when taking an amazing four seconds off her personal best time to finish in second place in her age group.

Hannah Macleod (14) entered the event as favourite to win her age group but could not improve on her PB time to eventfully finish in the bronze medal position.

Susannah Yielding (16) became the first Boston swimmer to break a club record when finishing in a time of 34.98 taking 0.3 seconds off the old record.

In event two, the boys 100m butterfly, James Hurley (12) was the only medal winner for Boston. James achieved the first Midland time of the day when taking silver in a time of 1 minute 14.17 seconds.

Event three, the girls’ 100m freestyle saw Charlize achieve her second silver medal of the day again recording an impressive five-second PB to be the only Boston girl to achieve a Midland qualifying time in this event when clocking a time of 1:10.45.

Susannah Yielding (16) came close to joining Charlize by lowering her PB by over a second to 1:02.95 to be within a second of achieving the necessary qualifying time.

Event four, the boys’ 200m individual medley, saw Boston’s nine-year-old boys compete for the first time. In a display of things to come, they dominated their age group with Lewis McGarry taking the first of his three gold medals of the day by gaining his first Midland time and breaking the club record by half a second setting a new time of 3:05.22.

Isaac Reed took the first of his three silver medals and William Pettitt made it a clean sweep when finishing in the bronze medal position. Lewis Bontoft made the step up into the 10-year age group look effortless by finishing in third place.

In the final event of the first session, the girls’ 200m breaststroke Charlize Arundell again set the standard for the Boston by achieving a three-second PB to finish in the bronze medal position.

In the battle between Boston’s top two breaststrokers, it was Amber Nuttman (14) who came out on top by taking first place in her age group and thrid in the girls open age category just missing out on breaking the club record by 0.06 of a second.

Unfortunately for Susannah Yielding, she struggled with her underwater stroke on her turns which hampered her race and time but she held on to finish in third place in her age group.

Fully refreshed after a break, the second session was the reverse of the morning.

Event six saw the boys tackle the 50m backstroke. Again it was Lewis McGarry that started off proceedings by taking first place with Isaac Reed closely following in the silver medal position. Lewis Bontoft improved his earlier position by also taking silver as did James Hurley in their respective age groups but it was left to Connor Spinks (14) to achieve the best result with bronze in his age group and overall in the junior boys competition.

Event seven, the girls’ 100m butterfly saw nine out of the 10 Boston girls achieve new personal best times but it was only Hannah Macleod that managed to pick up a medal when finishing in the silver medal position agonisingly missing her Midland time by just 0.05 of a second.

Event eight, the boys 100m freestyle again saw James Hurley finish in the silver medal position. Reuben Reed (15) just missed out on his Midland time when finishing in third position but it was Patrick Ikhena (18) who had the team cheering wildly as he produced a tremendous swim in the final heat. Leading for the first 75 metres, a poor final turn allowed one of the Lincoln Vulcans swimmers to snatch victory away from him and Patrick had to settle for second place in his age category and second in the open age group — although his time of 53.74 seconds was good enough to gain Midlands qualification and set a new club record.

In the final girls’ event of the day it was no surprise to see Charlize again set a blistering time in the 200m individual medley, recording a nine-second PB, gaining her Midland qualifying time and finishing in the bronze medal position.

Susannah Yielding picked up her second bronze of the day to finish the girls day off on a high.

The final boys’ event the 200m breaststroke again saw the nine year olds setting the pace as Lewis McGarry kept up his 100 percent record by taking gold again followed by Isaac Reed in second. It was left to James Hurley to pick up Boston’s final medal of the day as his ever improving breaststroke enabled him to finish in the bronze medal position.

In total, the team picked up a respectable four gold medals, 11 silvers and 10 bronzes along with five Midland qualifying times and three club records.

First places: Lewis McGarry (3), Amber Nuttman.

Second places: Lewis Bontoft, Charlize Arundell (2), James Hurley (3), Patrick Ikhena, Hannah Macleod, Isaac Reed (3).

Third places: Charlize Arundell (2), Lewis Bontoft, James Hurley, Hannah Macleod, William Pettitt, Reuben Reed, Connor Spinks, Susannah Yielding (2).

Report for March 11

Club dozen tackle long distance event

The Meres Leisure Centre, Grantham hosted the 61st annual Lincolnshire County Championship and age group long distance competition.

Representing Boston Swimming Club were three boys competing in the 1500m freestyle and nine girls in the 800m freestyle.

In the boys’ competition, James Hurley (12) was the only Boston boy to achieve a medal when finishing in third place. James competed in heat two and beat his personal best time by nearly 12 seconds.

Heat three saw Harry Dean-Allen (13) and Jordan Ward (14) go head-to-head with Harry easily finishing ahead of Jordan when recording a four-second new personal best time to finish fifth place in his age group with Jordan also in fifth.

In the girls’ event, Libby Dean-Allen (10) competed in heat one and was the only Boston swimmer to achieve a medal when finishing third in her age group, just failing to achieve a personal best time.

Heat two saw Nesta Baxter and Chloe Baldry battle it out to be Boston’s top 11-year-old. Both girls achieved big personal best times with Chloe breaking the 11-minute mark for the first time when knocking 29 seconds off while Nesta improved by 34 seconds. They finished fourth and fifth respectively in their age group.

Heat four saw two of Boston’s most improving swimmers; Bethany Holderness (12) and Lauren Hurley (14) battle it out over the 32 lengths. Both girls achieved good PBs with Bethany taking 20 seconds off and Lauren 21 seconds to finish in sixth and seventh places respectively in their age group.

Four Boston girl swimmers entered the competition with the chance of becoming the first to break the magical 10-minute mark. Up first was Hannah Macleod (14) in heat five. She produced a consistent swim, churning out 38 second 50m splits but just faded fractionally in the last 200 metres to record a new 12-second PB in setting a time of 10 minutes 02 seconds.

Heat six saw Jessica Pettitt (12), Amber Nuttman (14) and Susannah Yielding (16) all next to each other with the hope that they would pull each other along to break the mark.

Unfortunately things did not pan out that way with Jessica having a somewhat disappointing race right from the off to record a time of 10 minutes 18 seconds. Amber and Susannah started off well but unfortunately Amber could not keep up the pace and started fading as early as the 200-metre mark and eventually finished in a time of 10:10. This left Susannah out on her own. But unperturbed, she determinedly produced 37 second 50-metre splits to record a 10-second PB and be the first of the current crop of girls to beat the 10-minute mark when recording a time of 9:50.

These times left Jessica in fourth place, Hannah and Amber in fourth and fifth places and Susannah in fourth place in their respective age groups.

Report for February 26

A-team dominate league opening round

Round one of the Anglian Swimming League saw the A and B teams from Boston drawn together at the Geoff Moulder swimming pool.

They were pitched into a group that Boston A went on to dominate.

The team got off to a strong start with Susannah Yielding winning the girls’ open 100m individual medley.

Further wins quickly followed by Jordan Ward and Amber Nuttman (15/u boys’ and girls’ 100m butterfly), Lewis Bontoft and Chloe Baldry (13/u boys and girls 100m freestyle), Susannah Yielding (girls open 50m backstroke) and Harry Dean-Allen (15/u boys 100m breaststroke) meant the team had won seven of the first ten races to give themselves a healthy seven-point lead.

A further six wins in the next 10 races by Joe Reed and Bethany Holderness (boys’ and girls’ 13/u 100m individual medley), Amber Nuttman (girls’ open 50m butterfly), Jordan Ward (15/u 100m freestyle) and Lewis Bontoft and Chloe Baldry (boys’ and girls’ 13/u 100m backstroke) stretched the lead to 15 points after 20 races.

Boston A continued to dominate in the final 11 races as Harry Dean-Allen and Charlize Arundell (boys and gilrs 15/u 200m individual medley), Chloe Baldry (girls 13/u 100m butterfly), Hannah Macleod (girls open 50m breaststroke) and James and Lauren Hurley (boys and girls 15/u 100m individual medley) all achieved race wins.

The team rounded off the evening in fine style as the freestyle relay team of Ose Ikhena, Susannah Yielding, Jordan Ward, Hannah Macleod, James Hurley and Charlize Arundell comfortable won the relay race by over a length to record an impressive 22-point win on the evening.

Boston B were expected to finish as runner-ups to their A team counterparts although a close battle would ensue with Fenland Flyers. In the first race Lewis Moses (boys’ open 100m individual medley) got the better of his A team team-mate when finishing second.

Although they could not achieve a win in the first 10 races seven second place finishes meant the team were just one point behind Fenland Flyers in third place. Oliver Street produced a tremendous series of swims over the next ten races, achieving first place finishes in the boys’ open 50m butterfly and freestyle and second in the 50m backstroke.

With Toni Keal winning the girls’ open 50m freestyle, Boston B had built a four-point cushion over their rivals to be in second place after 20 races.

Although the team could only manage one further race win by Isaac Reed in the 13/u boys’ 100m butterfly in the final 11 races the B squad held on the second place just five points in front of Fenland Flyers.

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell, Chloe Baldry (2), Jason Barnes, Lewis Bontoft, Kieva Clegg, Harry Dean-Allen, Bethany Holderness, Samuel Humberstone, James Hurley (2), Lauren Hurley (2), Beth Hutchings, Gwion Joyce (2), Michael Keal, Chloe Mallett, Amber Nuttman, Isaac Reed (3), Holly Sauntson, Oliver Street.

Report for February 19

Good haul of medals and best times

Eleven hardy youngsters from Boston Swimming Club braved the recent wintry weather to attend the Thetford Dolphins Open Meet.

Nineteen new personal best times were set culminating in 10 golds, seven silvers and seven bronze medals.

As expected, nine-year-old Lewis McGarry achieved a clean sweep in his age group by winning the 50m backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle and 100m individual medley.

Pasquale Fiore, also nine, picked up his first ever medal with silver in the 50m freestyle, but the Boston swimmer of the meet was 11-year-old Edward Proctor. Although not the most natural of swimmers, Edward’s determination this year has shown a big improvement which enabled him to achieve three personal best times and he won his first ever swimming medals for the club when finishing second in the 50m backstroke and butterfly and third in the 50m breaststroke.

In the girls’ events, 10-year-olds Kieva Clegg and Libby Dean-Allen shared the majority of the main medals between them. Kieva was the most successful with gold in the 50m breaststroke and 100m individual medley, silver in the 50m butterfly and bronze in the 50m freestyle while Libby won gold in the 50m butterfly, silver in the 50m backstroke and freestyle and bronze in the 100m individual medley.

In the 11-year-old age group, Chloe Baldry took bronze in both the 50m backstroke and 100m individual medley.

In the older girls’ age category sisters Becky (13) and Gemma Pimlott (15) both won their respective 100m breaststroke age groups with Becky adding silver in the 100m freestyle and bronze in the 100m backstroke and individual medley.

The swimmer who achieved the most personal best times throughout the meet was Issy Olsen (10). Competing in her first open meet, Issy set PBs in all four of her events, the 50m backstroke, butterfly, breaststroke and freestyle and was unlucky to miss out on a medal when finishing in fourth place twice.

Personal best times: Rosanna Abbott, Kieva Clegg (2), Libby Dean-Allen (2), Pasquale Fiore, Lewis McGarry, Issy Olsen (4), Becky Pimlott, Edward Proctor (3), Grace Roberts (3).

First places: Kieva Clegg (2), Libby Dean-Allen, Lewis McGarry (5), Becky Pimlott, Gemma Pimlott.

Second places: Kieva Clegg, Libby Dean-Allen (2), Pasquale Fiore, Becky Pimlott, Edward Proctor (2).

Third places: Chloe Baldry (11), Kieva Clegg, Libby Dean-Allen, Becky Pimlott (2), Edward Proctor.

Report for February 12

Mixtures fortunes for Boston squad in league opener

The Geoff Moulder Swimming Pool played host to a new season of Fenland League action.

A much changed, youthful and inexperienced Boston squad was aiming to improve on last season’s fourth place league finish.

Over the evening, a total of 26 new individual personal best times were set from 43 races ensuring the team put themselves in with a very good chance of starting the season off with a win.

Race victories came thick and fast at the start of the evening with six wins from the first 10 races. Joe Reed got the team off to a perfect start by winning the first race, the boys 12/u 100m individual medley. Further race wins by Bethany Holderness (girls 13/u 50m backstroke), Cavan Chambers (boys 9/u 50m freestyle), Kieva Clegg (girls 10/u 50m breaststroke), William Pettitt (boys 11/u 50m butterfly) and Libby Dean-Allen (girls 11/u 50m butterfly) ensured the team had an eight-point advantage over Wisbech with Deepings a further two points behind.

Although the momentum slowed over the next 10 events, Boston still managed to extend their advantage to 12 points.

This was mainly achieved by four race wins through Lewis McGarry and Chloe Baldry (boys and girls 12/u 50m freestyle respectively), Isaac Reed (boys 10/u 50m backstroke) and Chloe Baldry’s second win of the evening (girls 12/u 50m backstroke).

Disaster struck over the next 10 races as two disqualifications from the teams more senior swimmers cost the team valuable points, especially as they both “won” their respective races, much to the displeasure of coach Ian Wells.

This enabled Deepings to close to within four points after 30 races and for the first time put pressure on the Boston team. During this period valuable race wins by Lewis McGarry (boys 13/u 50m butterfly), William Pettitt (boys 10/u 50m freestyle), Kieva Clegg (girls 11/u 50m backstroke) and Archie Bulman (boys 12/u 50 breaststroke) ensured Boston just managed to keep their noses in front.

A further disqualification enabled Deepings to take the lead for the first time after 33 races and although Lottie Street (girls 9/u 50m backstroke) quickly reduced the arrears the team’s inexperience started to show as they struggled to put together a series of consistent swims to challenge Deepings.

Two further race wins by Kieva Clegg (girls 11/u 50m breaststroke) and Holly Sauntson (girls 12/u 50m butterfly) kept the team in contact but it proved in vain as Deepings ran out winners on the night by nine points, with Boston in second and Wisbech third. This result leaves Boston in fourth place in the league after round one.

Race winners: Chloe Baldry (2), Archie Bulman, Cavan Chambers, Kieva Clegg (3), Libby Dean-Allen, Bethany Holderness, Lewis McGarry (2), William Pettitt (2), Joe Reed, Isaac Reed, Holly Sauntson, Lottie Street.

Personal best times: Chloe Baldry (3), Myles Beagles, Bethany Chambers, Cavan Chambers (2), Kieva Clegg, William Craven, Libby Dean-Allen, Bethany Holderness (2), Gwion Joyce, Xristina Keeler (2), Lewis McGarry (3), Joseph McGarel, Samantha Millington, William Pettitt, Isaac Reed, Joe Reed, Holly Sauntson (2), Lottie Street.

Report for February 5

Amber leads way at open meet

Boston Swimming Club took 19 swimmers to contest the 13th Biggleswade open meet.

This event gave swimmers one of their best opportunities to gain Midland qualifying times for this summer’s championships. The team needed to be in peak condition as the three sessions on both weekend days promised to test their stamina as well as speed.

A total of 54 new personal best times and six Midland times were set, which enabled the team to come away with 18 gold, 16 silver and 10 bronze medals.

Leading the way was 14-year-old Amber Nuttman who paced both the 100m breaststroke and 200m backstroke to perfection by gaining the exact Midland qualifying time needed for this summer’s championship. Amber also gained qualifying times in the 200m and 400m individual medley and has now qualified for five events. Throughout the weekend Amber achieved gold medals in the 200m backstroke, 100m and 200m breaststroke and 400m individual medley as well as silver in the 200m individual medley.

Boston’s other swimmer to gain Midland qualification was Lewis Bontoft (9). Lewis will be competing at Midlands for the first time in the 200m backstroke and freestyle when taking first place in both events. Lewis also achieved silver in the 200m individual medley.

Although no other Midland times were gained several swimmers came within a few tenths of achieving their times. With a couple of months hard training this should be achievable at the County Championships in March.

Several swimmers maintained their season’s good form, in particular Jessica Pettitt (12) and Charlize Arundell (11). Jessica achieved gold in the 100m and 200m butterfly, 200m breaststroke and 400m individual medley and bronze in the 200m individual medley while breaststroke specialist Charlize gained gold in the 100m and bronze in the200m.

After a difficult year last year Bethany Holderness’ (12) recent improvement continued. Bethany gained the most PBs over the weekend with eight from nine races which helped gain silver medals in the 200m butterfly and 400m individual medley.

Although suffering from illness over the past couple of weeks both Hannah Macleod (14) and Susannah Yielding (16) produced a series of determined swims to take home medals. Susannah won three medals with gold in both the 200m breaststroke and butterfly and bronze in the 200m individual medley with Hannah achieved silver medals in the 200m backstroke, 100m and 200m butterfly and bronze in the200m freestyle, 50m and 100m backstroke.

In the main the boys found conditions difficult and struggled to achieve the same level of consistency as the girls although the nine-year-old boys did enhance their growing reputation mainly led by Lewis Bontoft’s achievements. Although just missing out on a couple of Midland times Lewis McGarry claimed gold in the 200m butterfly and individual medley and silver in the 200m backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle. William Pettitt showed his improving stamina by taking first place in the 400m freestyle and Isaac Reed bronze in both the 200m and 400m freestyle, both boys achieved four new PBs although not as many as Jason Barnes (13) who achieved six and appears to be turning into a good late developing swimmer.

In the older boys age groups Connor Spinks (14) took silver in the 200m breaststroke, 100m and 200m backstroke, butterfly specialist Jordan Ward (14) silver in the 200m and bronze 100m butterfly while Michael Keal (13) finished third also in the 100m butterfly. Although far from being at his best Sam Macleod (12) still achieved first place in the 200m butterfly, second in the 100m butterfly and 200m backstroke.

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell (4), Chloe Baldry (4), Jason Barnes (6), Nesta Baxter (4), Lewis Bontoft (3), Bethany Holderness (8), Hannah Macleod, Lewis McGarry (3), Amber Nuttman (2), Jessica Pettitt (5), William Pettitt (4), Isaac Reed (4), Joe Reed, Connor Spinks, Jordan Ward (2), Susannah Yielding (2).

First places: Charlize Arundell, Lewis Bontoft (2), Michael Keal (200 fly), Sam Macleod, Lewis McGarry (2), Amber Nuttman (4), Jessica Pettitt (4), William Pettitt, Susannah Yielding (2).

Second places: Lewis Bontoft, Bethany Holderness (2), Hannah Macleod (3), Sam Macleod (2, Lewis McGarry (3), Amber Nuttman, Connor Spinks (3), Jordan Ward.

Third places: Charlize Arundell, Michael Keal, Hannah Macleod (3), Jessica Pettitt, Isaac Reed (2), Jordan Ward, Susannah Yielding.

Report for January 21

Medals feast and haul of best times

Boston Swimming Club held their seventh annual open meet at the Meres Leisure Centre, Grantham.

This gave competitors their final opportunity to gain county qualifying times for this spring’s championships.

As expected, Boston swimmers dominated the competition by winning 68 gold medals, 68 silvers and 66 bronzes, this also included 231 new personal best times from the 15 events.

Competition was fierce for the winners of the top boy and girl prizes. These were eventually won by Boston’s James Hurley (12), winner of eight races, and Amber Nuttman (13), 10 races, in their respective age groups.

Having entered all 15 events, both swimmers picked up top three finishes in all of their contests. They were closely followed by Connor Spinks (14) and Hannah Macleod (14) who finished in third place. Hannah was the only Boston swimmer to have a 100 percent winning record when coming first in all nine events that she competed in while Connor achieved top three finishes in all 10 of his races.

A total of eight new club records were set. Lewis Bontoft (9) again showed his dominance in his favoured backstroke and freestyle. He set club records in the 50m 39.66 (40.31), 100m 1.23.26 (1.27.39) and 200m backstroke 2.58.37 (3.00.83) plus 50m 34.14 (34.43), 100m 1.14.50 (1.15.85) and 200m freestyle 2.38.09 (2.43.52).

Fellow nine year old Lewis McGarry smashed the 200m breaststroke record when recording a time of 3.32.43 (3.38.32) with the final record coming from Hannah Macleod who lowered her own 200m butterfly record by a further second with a time of 2.32.95.

Boston swimmers also showed their dominance by not only winning their individual age category but also by winning the event outright. Hannah Macleod produced the first surprise in the first event, the girls 200m backstroke, by beating top seed Amber Nuttman. And later on, she followed this up in the 200m butterfly by beating top seed Susannah Yielding (16).

On the second day of the open meet, Hannah also won the 100m butterfly outright. Although feeling under the weather Susannah did live up to her top seeding by winning the 200m individual medley, 50m and 100m breaststroke events on the first day. In Susannah’s absence on the second day Amber took full advantage to win both the 400m freestyle and 200m breaststroke.

It was not only the expected Performance squad swimmers such as Charlize Arundell, Lewis Bontoft, James Hurley, Michael Keal, Hannah and Sam Macleod, Lewis McGarry, Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt, Jordan Ward and Susannah Yielding who won the majority of medals.

Arguably three of Boston’s most improved senior swimmers this season again demonstrated their improvement. Georgia Hodgkiss (15) has not only gained several county qualifying times for the very first time this season but also took first place in her age group in the 200m backstroke and third in the 200m freestyle. Oliver Street (15) set seven new PBs as well as winning the 100m backstroke and achieved a second and two third place finishes while Lauren Hurley (14) recorded eight new PBs with six seconds and one third place finish.

The younger swimmers dominated the list for most new personal best times. Leading the way for the boys were nine-year-olds William Pettitt and Isaac Reed who both achieved 13 new PBs although probably the most impressive swimmer of the weekend was Connor Spinks who again showed why he is now the leading boys swimmer in the club with nine PBs, winning the boys 100m and 200m backstroke outright as well as six further first place finishes. For the girls Rosanna Abbott (10) achieved 12, Kieva Clegg (10) and Bethany Holderness (12) with 10 each.

Two swimmers who turned back the clock were Patrick Ikhena (18) and Sam Wright (19). Both swimmers are away at University these days but both rolled back the years. Patrick again showed his dominance for the 50m sprints by taking first place in his age category and overall in the breaststroke, butterfly and freestyle as well as winning the 100m freestyle and coming second in the 100m individual medley, while Sam finished first overall in the 100m breaststroke along with five second and two third place finishes.

The club would like to thank the vast army of volunteers, especially those outside of the club who without their help the club would not be able to hold this meet and to everyone who provided much-needed sponsorship and investment that can be viewed on the swimming club’s website.

First places – Charlize Arundell (4), Lewis Bontoft (3), Georgia Hodgkiss, James Hurley (8), Patrick Ikhena (4), Michael Keal (3), Hannah Macleod (9), Sam Macleod (8), Lewis McGarry (3), Amber Nuttman (10), Jessica Pettitt (2), Connor Spinks (8), Oliver Street, Jordan Ward, Sam Wright, Susannah Yielding (5).

Second places – Charlize Arundell (2), Chloe Baldry, Nesta Baxter,Lewis Bontoft (4), Kieva Clegg), William Craven, Harry Dean-Allen (9), Libby Dean-Allen (3), Samuel Humberstone, James Hurley (6), Lauren Hurley (6), Ose Ikhena (2), Patrick Ikhena, Michael Keal (3), Toni Keal (3), Sam Macleod, Lewis McGarry (7), Amber Nuttman (2), Jessica Pettitt, William Pettitt, Becky Pimlott, Isaac Reed (2), Connor Spinks (2), Oliver Street, Jordan Ward, Sam Wright (5).

Third places – Charlize Arundell (2), Chloe Baldry (3), Jason Barnes, Myles Beagles, Lewis Bontoft (3), Kieva Clegg (2), Libby Dean-Allen (2), Harry Dean-Allen, Georgia Hodgkiss, Bethany Holderness (3), James Hurley, Lauren Hurley, Beth Hutchings, Ose Ikhena (2),Michael Keal (3), Toni Keal (4), Harley Maddison, Chloe Mallett, Lewis McGarry (5), Amber Nuttman (3), Jessica Pettitt (2), William Pettitt (3), Becky Pimlott, Isaac Reed (3), Joe Reed, Reuben Reed, Lily Ross, Connor Spinks, Oliver Street (2), Jordan Ward (8), Sam Wright (2).

Personal best times 231: Rosanna Abbott (12). Charlize Arundell (5), Chloe Baldry (9). Jason Barnes (7), Nesta Baxter (6), Myles Beagles (5), Amber Blower (8), Lewis Bontoft (8), Jordan Clare (2), Kieva Clegg (10), William Craven (3), Harry Dean-Allen (5), Libby Dean-Allen (8), Bethany Holderness (10), Samuel Humberstone (3), James Hurley (5), Lauren Hurley (8), Beth Hutchings, Ose Ikhena (3), Gwion Joyce (4), Michael Keal (5), Hannah Macleod (5), Harley Maddison (7), Chloe Mallett (4), Lewis McGarry (4), Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt (5), William Pettitt (13), Becky Pimlott (3), Gemma Pimlott (2), Edward Proctor (6), George Proctor, Isaac Reed (13), Joe Reed (7), Lily Ross (5), Jessica Sauntson (5), Connor Spinks (9), Oliver Street (7), Jordan Ward (5), Sam Wright.

Report for January 7

Boston swimmers rise to the occasion

Boston Swimming Club took nine swimmers to Corby for Northampton’s distance level one open meet.

Also competing at this meet were several Olympic hopefuls including double world champion and world record holder Liam Tancock and double Commonwealth Games gold medallist and Olympic finalist Caitlin McClatchey to name but a few of the competing GB team.

Undaunted by the level of competition or the Sky Sports cameras present, the Boston swimmers produced a series of excellent races to achieve five short course and 39 long course personal best times in Corby’s international 50m swimming pool.

Race of the weekend came from Charlize Arundell (11) who, although only having the one race, ensured the trip was worthwhile by achieving a Midland qualifying time and short course PB in the 100m breaststroke.

James Hurley (12) was the only other swimmer to gain a Midland qualifying time when recording a long course PB in the 200m backstroke. James also achieved a county record when finishing third in the 200m butterfly and long course PBs in the 200m individual medley, 200/400m freestyle and 100m backstroke.

Amber Nuttman (13) achieved two county records in the same race by breaking both the 50m and 100m breast records when finishing in third place. She also went one better in the 200m breaststroke to take second place and achieved the most long course PBs by adding the 200/400m individual medley, 100/200m freestyle, 100/200m backstroke and 200m breaststroke.

Boston’s third swimmer to break a county record was Susannah Yielding (16) in the 400m freestyle. Susannah was competing in the most difficult age group as this including all of the female GBs swimmers but she achieved a very good long course PB and third place in the 200m butterfly. She also achieved long course PBs in the 100m backstroke, 100m butterfly, 200m breaststroke, 100/200/400m freestyle and 200m individual medley.

Boston’s favourite race for achieving short course PBs was the 50m freestyle as Susannah Yielding, Hannah Macleod (14) and Jordan Ward (14) all enjoyed the one-length straight sprint. Hannah also achieved long course PBs when just missing out on a medal by finishing in fourth place in the 200m butterfly, the 100m backstroke/butterfly and freestyle. Meanwhile Jordan recorded PBs in his specialist events the 100m and 200m butterfly.

The last short course PB came from Connor Spinks (14) in the 100m freestyle when he just missed out on going below the one minute mark. Connor also achieved long course PBs in the 200m individual medley, 100/ 200m backstroke and 200m freestyle.

Jessica Pettitt (12) was the only Boston swimmer to compete in the 800m freestyle. With her sights set on a national qualifying time Jessica did achieve a long course PB and will have a further three attempts to achieve her goal. Jessica also achieved best times in the 200m butterfly when finishing in second place, 400m freestyle and 200/400m individual medley.

Boston’s most successful swimmer in terms of medals was Sam Macleod (11). Although far from being at his best Sam achieved Boston’s only gold medal in a long course PB in the 100m breaststroke and finished second in the 100/200m butterfly and 200m breaststroke.

First places: Sam Macleod.

Second places: Sam Macleod, Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt.

Third places: James Hurley, Amber Nuttman, Susannah Yielding.

Personal best times:

Short course: Charlize Arundell, Hannah Macleod, Connor Spinks, Jordan Ward, Susannah Yielding.

Long course: James Hurley (6), Hannah Macleod (4), Sam Macleod (3), Amber Nuttman (8), Jessica Pettitt (5), Connor Spinks (4), Jordan Ward (2), Susannah Yielding (7).

Report for December 26

Boston A-team retain gala trophy

The training pool at the Geoff Moulder Leisure Centre held it’s first gala since re-opening earlier in the season.

Fittingly this was to host the Geoff Moulder Memorial Trophy. The holders for the past 10 years Boston A, were strong favourites to retain the prize. All events were over 200m with swimmers allowed to race in two individual events.

Boston A made their intentions clear right from the off as they won four of the first five races through Charlize Arundell (11/u breaststroke), Lewis Bontoft (9/u freestyle), Sam Macleod (11/u breaststroke) and Amber Nuttman (13/u breaststroke) to put the team in a dominant position. Boston B also started well with William Pettitt (9/u freestyle) and Chloe Baldry (11/u breaststroke) both achieving second place finishes.

Further race wins for Boston A came from Lewis McGarry (9/u breaststroke) and Charlize Arundell (11/u backstroke), both swimmers beating their B team counterparts Isaac Reed and Chloe Baldry respectively into second place to give the team a healthy six-point lead after 10 events.

The team stretched this lead to 16 points over the next 10 events as further race wins by Bethany Holderness (13/u butterfly), Lewis Bontoft (9/u backstroke), Jessica Pettitt (11/u butterfly), Sam Macleod (11/u butterfly) and Lewis McGarry (9/u individual medley) showed the team’s dominance. Unfortunately during the same 10 events, the B team (although producing more personal best times than the A team) struggled with a string of low placed finishes even though William Pettitt and Isaac Reed both achieved second place finishes on the night in the 9/u backstroke and individual medley respectively.

Another three race wins followed in the final seven events for Boston A by Jessica Pettitt (11/u freestyle), Amber Nuttman (13/u backstroke) and the 9/u mixed relay team to complete a comprehensive win on the evening by 17 points. Although the B team continued to pick up PBs, their low placed race finishes meant they finished the evening in fifth place. With several swimmers competing for the very first time this event gave them valuable experience for the open meets they will be competing in over the coming months ahead.

As always, the swimming club were grateful for the support of Geoff Moulder’s family with his daughter Tess the guest for the evening. She presented the trophies to the teams at the end of the evening.

Race winners: Boston A - Charlize Arundell (2), Lewis Bontoft (2), Bethany Holderness, Sam Macleod (2), Lewis McGarry (2), Amber Nuttman (2), Jessica Pettitt (2), 9/u freestyle relay team.

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell (2), Chloe Baldry (2), Bethany Chambers (2), Libby Dean-Allen, Samuel Humberstone, Gwion Joyce, Xristina Keeler (2), Harley Maddison (2), William Pettitt, Isaac Reed (2), Joe Reed, Grace Roberts (2).

Report for December 19

Feast of ‘firsts’ for Boston contingent

Boston Swimming Club took 13 youngsters to the Meres Leisure Centre, Grantham for the joint Lincoln Vulcans-Grantham open meet.

This was assistant coach Brendan Clark’s first open meet in charge of the swimmers and they responded well to his instructions as they came away with 19 first place finishes.

Isaac Reed (9) produced his best series of swims in an open meet by winning seven races 50m breaststroke/butterfly/freestyle, 100m individual medley, 200m backstroke/freestyle/individual medley. Isaac also came second in the 50m backstroke and third in the 200m breaststroke.

Although not quite matching his younger brother’s achievements, Joe Reed (11) also took home medals when finishing second in the 50m and 200m breaststroke and third 200m backstroke as well as recording four personal best times.

Jason Barnes (13) produced six PBs and won medals in all eight of his races. Jason took home a winner’s medal in the 50m backstroke, six-second place finishes in the 50m/100m freestyle, 100m backstroke, 100m individual medley, 200m backstroke and freestyle and a third in the 200m individual medley.

Boston boys’club captain Ose Ikhena (16) showed the younger swimmers how to swim sprint races by winning all four of the 50m events. Ose also came first^t in the 100m breaststroke and second in the 100m freestyle.

Oliver Street (15) was the other Boston boy to take home a winners medal by coming first in both the 50m and 100m butterfly. Five more medals came Oliver’s way with two seconds 50m backstroke and freestyle and three thirds 100m/200m freestyle and 100m individual medley.

Other boys to take home medals were William Pettitt (9) with three second place finishes in the 50m butterfly, 200m freestyle and individual medley; Myles Beagles (10) with second in the 100m individual medley, 200m backstroke and freestyle and third in the 50m backstroke and freestyle; and Gwion Joyce (11) with a third place in the 200m breaststroke.

Although the medals did not come so easily for the girls, one person stood out as 12-year-old Becky Pimlott won the 50m backstroke and freestyle, 100m individual medley and 200m backstroke. Becky also finished second in the 100m breaststroke and 200m individual medley.

Support for Becky came from the Hutching sisters of Holly (13) and Beth (14). Both sisters matched each other’s results by finishing second in their respective age categories in the 50m backstroke and third in the 200m individual medley.

Kieva Clegg’s (10) improvement continues as she was the only swimmer to record PBs in all seven of her races, which enabled her to finish third in the 50m breaststroke.

First places: Jason Barnes, Ose Ikhena (5), Becky Pimlott (4), Isaac Reed (7), Oliver Street (2).

Second places: Jason Barnes (6), Myles Beagles (3), Beth Hutchings, Holly Hutchings, Ose Ikhena, William Pettitt (3), Becky Pimlott (2), Isaac Reed, Joe Reed (2), Oliver Street (2).

Report for December 18

Haul of best times in open meet

Fifteen swimmers from Boston Swimming Club travelled to Braunstone for the City of Leicester Distance Open Meet. This gala gave the youngsters their first opportunity to gain Midland qualifying times for next summer’s competition.

On the first evening, seven girls took part in the 800m freestyle and three boys contested the 1500m freestyle. All seven girls achieved personal best times with the younger swimmers all attaining new feats by wide margins. Nesta Baxter took a minute off her old time, Chloe Baldry improved by 26 seconds and Libby Dean-Allen (10) achieved second place in the 9/10 age group by taking 23 seconds off.

Things were slightly harder for the older girls, but some more good efforts were recorded. Bethany Holderness achieved a three-second PB and throughout the weekend achieved a further five PBs. Lauren Hurley continued her recent improvement going seven seconds faster and Amber Nuttman pushed hard but was just unable to break the 10-minute mark with a three-second PB.

Swim of the night came from Jessica Pettitt (11) who gained Boston’s first Midland qualifying time when she achieved a PB of 17 seconds to record a time of 10.05.00. In the boys’ competition Harry Dean-Allen swam a controlled race to achieve a 13 second PB and Jordan Ward amazingly swam 60 lengths to achieve a PB by 1/10 of a second.

Buoyed by their achievements on the Friday night, the rest of the weekend continued to be a success in particular for Midland qualifying times. Jessica Pettitt produced a tremendous series of swims to record a further six PBs from her remaining seven races. This included a further three Midland times in the 200m and 400m freestyle and 400m individual medley. Also achieving Midland qualifying times in these three events for the boys was James Hurley (12) who also achieved four PBs.

Club captain Susannah Yielding (16) led by example when recording four personal bests. Susannah reached the finals and achieved faster times than her heats when finishing fourth in the 200m individual medley and 200m freestyle. Susannah won silver in the 200m butterfly and bronze medals in the 200m breaststroke and 400m freestyle in which she set a new club record. Midland times were achieved in the 200m breaststroke and 400m freestyle.

Also reaching a final was Lewis McGarry (9). Lewis also went faster in the final then his heat of the 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley finishing in seventh place in both races. Although not quite at his best in the 200m butterfly, Lewis did achieve a silver medal. Libby Dean-Allen achieved her second second place finish of the weekend also in the 200m butterfly.

Achieving one Midland time each was Amber Nuttman (13) in the 200m breaststroke and Connor Spinks (14) in the 200m backstroke. Both swimmers were unlucky to narrowly miss out on several other qualifying times but are fully expected to achieve many more in the coming months. Another swimmer to narrowly miss out was Hannah Macleod (14) although Hannah did set a new club record when achieving a five-second PB in the 200m butterfly.

Second places: Libby Dean-Allen (2), Lewis McGarry, Susannah Yielding.

Third places: Susannah Yielding (2).

Midland times: James Hurley (3), Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt (4) Connor Spinks, Susannah Yielding (2).

Club records: Hannah Macleod, Susannah Yielding.

Personal best times: Chloe Baldry, Nesta Baxter, Harry Dean-Allen (2), Libby Dean-Allen (2), Bethany Holderness (6), James Hurley (4), Lauren Hurley (4), Hannah Macleod (2), Sam Macleod (3), Lewis McGarry (2), Amber Nuttman (2), Jessica Pettitt (7), Connor Spinks (3), Jordan Ward (3), Susannah Yielding (4).

Report for December 4

Relegation battle is on the cards

Boston Swimming Club played host for round two of the National Arena East Midlands League competition.

After a difficult first round, the team knew things would not be any easier for this gala as they came up against two of the league’s top teams. Any Boston swimmer gaining a top three finish knew they had swum well.

A lack of overall strength in depth always hampers the team, especially in compiling squads for the 16 relay races. This culminates in the team getting off to a slow start after the first round of eight relay races, although the boys 9-11-year-old freestyle relay team of Lewis Bontoft, Sam Macleod, Lewis McGarry and Joe Reed did achieve a hugely impressive second place finish.

Sam Macleod continued his good individual form from round one when he again finished second in the 11/u 50m backstroke in a new personal best time. This was quickly followed by the team’s first win of the night when Amber Nuttman took maximum points when comfortably winning the girls 13/u 100m breaststroke.

Boston did not have to wait long for their second win as Sam Macleod appeared again in the 11/u 50m butterfly to keep up his winning run in this event and when Reuben Reed claimed third in the boys’ 15/u 100m butterfly the team moved ahead of Dereham Otters into fifth place at the half way stage.

A close battle ensued between the two teams for the rest of the evening and when Charlize Arundell kept up her 100 percent winning run in the girls’ 11/u 50m breaststroke hopes were high that they could achieve fifth place.

Unfortunately for the team, that was their last victory for the evening. Although the squad fought hard and achieved 14 new personal best times with Connor Spinks, the only swimmer to achieve personal best times in both of his individual races, a string of low placed finishes hampered their ambitions of finishing fifth.

Susannah Yielding gained a good third place in the ladies open 100m breaststroke and Amber Nuttman stepped up an age group to finish third in the 15/u 100m breaststroke.

Again the final eight relay races proved crucial. Things started off well as the girls’ 9-11 medley relay team of Libby Dean-Allen, Charlize Arundell, Chloe Baldry and Nesta Baxter finished third.

The same four boys from the freestyle relay competed in the 9-to-11 years medley relay team and went one better to achieve second place. But that was as good as things got as Dereham Otters outswam Boston in the final six relays to take fifth place on the evening.

This result leaves Boston third from bottom, level on points with the bottom two teams of St Ives and Melton Mowbray. And they meet in the third and final round.

Race winners: Charlize Arundell, Sam Macleod, Amber Nuttman.

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell, Chloe Baldry, Lewis Bontoft, Nesta Baxter, James Hurley, Hannah Macleod, Sam Macleod, Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt, Becky Pimlott, Connor Spinks (2), Jordan Ward, Susannah Yielding.

Report for November 27

Records tumble at winter championships

The Geoff Moulder swimming pool played host to Boston’s annual winter championships.

This gave many swimmers their best opportunity to gain qualifying times for next spring’s County Championships and, for the club’s top swimmers, an early indication of where they stand for Midland qualifying times. In total an impressive 32 championship records were broken and 10 club records.

In the boys 10/u age group it was the nine-year-olds that dominated.

A fierce battle ensued between Lewis Bontoft and Lewis McGarry. The 100/200/400m freestyle and 100/200m backstroke events were all won by Lewis Bontoft in championship record times with club records being set in 100m freestyle, 100 and 200m backstroke. The 100m freestyle was particularly impressive as Lewis smashed the club record by over six seconds.

Not to be outdone by his rival, Lewis McGarry won the 100/200m breaststroke, 100/200m butterfly, 100/200/400m individual medley. Again championship bests tumbled as Lewis set six records only missing out on the 200m individual medley. This also included three club records in the 100/200m breaststroke and a massive 33 seconds being taken off the 400m individual medley.

Although the 10/u girls could not match the boys, many of the swimmers set personal best times. Libby Dean-Allen (10) was the most successful girl when winning the 100/200 backstroke, 100/200 butterfly, 100/200/400 freestyle, 100/200/400m individual medley with nine-year-old Kieva Clegg winning the 100 and 200m breaststroke.

It was a different story in the 11 to 13 age category as this time it was the girls breaking the records. In particular Amber Nuttman (13), when winning the 100/200 backstroke, 100/200 breaststroke, 100/200/400 freestyle, 100/200/400individual medley. Amber set five championship records, in the 200m backstroke breaking Melanie Marshall’s time set in 1994, 100 and 200 breaststroke (which dated back to 1988), 100 and 400 Individual medley with 16 seconds being knocked off the 400m individual medley time to gain a club record along with the 200m breaststroke.

Jessica Pettitt (11) continued her good early season form by winning the remaining 2 championship titles in the 100 and 200m butterfly and setting a new championship record in the 400m individual medley. The final record to be broken in this age category came from Bethany Holderness (12) who broke the 200m butterfly when finishing second to Jessica.

In arguably the closest age group, four boys won championship titles. Thirteen-year-olds Harry Dean-Allen took the 200m backstroke, 100m breaststroke, 100/200m individual medley and Michael Keal 100/200m butterfly and 400m individual medley.

James Hurley (12) won the 100 backstroke, 100/200/400m freestyle setting championship records in the 400m individual medley and 200m butterfly. Eleven year old Sam Macleod took the 200m breaststroke title but it was in the 200m butterfly that Sam set a new club record and broke the oldest standing boys championship record dating back to 1992.

The boys’ 14-and-over age category also proved to be a closely contested group. The old stager Lewis Moses showed the youngsters how breaststroke should be swum by taking the 100 and 200m Breaststroke titles. Lewis also pushed them close in several other races picking up several second place finishes.

Reuben Reed (15) was the most successful swimmer and dominated his races when winning the 100/200m butterfly, 100/200m freestyle and 200m individual medley but was edged out by Ose Ikhena (15) in the 100m individual medley.

Connor Spinks (14) again showed his dominance in his specialist events, the 100 and 200m backstroke and demonstrated his growing reputation as a free stylist by winning the 400m freestyle. Jordan Ward (14) was rewarded for his efforts in the very first event to win the 400m individual medley.

In the girls’ age group two swimmers dominated as records tumbled as both Susannah Yielding (16) and Hannah Macleod (14) broke six championship records apiece. Susannah won the 100m backstroke, 100/200m breaststroke, 100/200m butterfly, 100/200/400m freestyle, 100/200/400m individual medley titles. Susannah broke championship records in the 200m freestyle, 100/200m backstroke, 100m and most impressively the 400m individual medley which has stood since 1988 as well as setting a club and championship record in the 200m butterfly. Although pushing Susannah close in several races Hannah’s only victory came in the 200m backstroke. She did however manage to achieve championship records in the 100/200/400m freestyle, 200m backstroke, 100/200m butterfly.

Included in these championships were 25m races for the council-led seals and sharks groups where they were awarded certificates for competing. Many swimmers were competing in races for the very first time and it is hoped that these swimmers will progress into the club where their times can be used by selectors for inclusion in the Fenland League team.

Championship records: Lewis Bontoft (5), Bethany Holderness, James Hurley, Hannah Macleod (6), Sam Macleod, Lewis Mcgarry (6), Amber Nuttman (5), Jessica Pettitt, Susannah Yielding (6).

Club records: Lewis Bontoft (3), Sam Macleod, Lewis Mcgarry (3), Amber Nuttman (2), Susannah Yielding.

Race winners:

10/u:

Boys: Lewis Bontoft (100/200 back, 100/200/400 free), Lewis McGarry (100/200 breast, 100/200 fly, 100/200/400im),

Girls: Kieva Clegg (100/200 breast), Libby Dean-Allen (/200 back, 100/200 fly, 100/200/400 free, 100/200/400m individual medley).

11 to 13:

Boys: Harry Dean-Allen (200 back, 100 breast, 100/200im), James Hurley (100 back, 100/200/400 free), Michael Keal (100/200 fly, 400im), Sam Macleod (200 breast).

Girls: Amber Nuttman (100/200 back, 100/200 breast, 100/200/400 free, 100/200/400im,), Jessica Pettitt (100/200 fly).

14/over:

Boys: Ose Ikhena (100im), Lewis Moses (100/200 breast), Reuben Reed (100/200 fly, 100/200 free, 200im), Connor Spinks (100/200 back, 400 free), Jordan Ward (400 im).

Girls: Hannah Macleod (200 back), Susannah Yielding (100 back, 100/200 fly, 100/200 breast, 100/200/400 free, 100/200/400 im.

Report for November 13

Personal bests galore for club youngsters

Boston Swimming Club took 15 of their more junior competitors to the Deepings Open meet to compete in a 200m gala.

This gave the swimmers an early opportunity to gain county qualifying times in the 200m backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle and individual medley disciplines.

Although trophies were hard to come by for a top three finish, the Boston swimmers achieved an impressive 91 personal best times with most of the swimmers not only gaining PBs at the 200m stage but also setting PBs at 100m.

Swimmers achieving this feat in all of their races were Myles Beagles, Amber Blower, Lewis Bontoft, Kieva Clegg, William Craven, Harley Maddison, Lewis Mcgarry, William Pettitt and Holly Sauntson.

Five swimmers produce podium finishes, with the majority coming in the nine-year-old age category. Kieva Clegg was the only swimmer from Boston who achieved a first place finish when winning the girls’ 200m butterfly. She also managed to gain a second place finish in the 200m breaststroke.

As always, Lewis Bontoft and Lewis McGarry spent the day producing an exciting series of races as they pushed each other to a series of PBs. On this occasion both were unable to achieve a coveted first place finish with Lewis McGarry just having the edge when picking up three second place finishes in the 200m breaststroke, butterfly and individual medley and two third place finishes in the 200m backstroke and freestyle. In return, Lewis Bontoft gained two second places in the 200m backstroke and freestyle and two third place finishes in the 200m breaststroke and individual medley.

William Pettitt (9) added a third place finish when producing an excellent swim in the 200m butterfly and 10-year-old Amber Blower completed the trophy haul with third place in the 200m individual medley.

First place: Kieva Clegg.

Second places: Kieva Clegg, Lewis Mcgarry (3), Lewis Bontoft (2).

Third places: Amber Blower (200m 10yo), Lewis Bontoft (2), Lewis Mcgarry (2), William Pettitt.

Personal best times: Rosanna Abbott (4), Myles Beagles (4), Amber Blower (7), Lewis Bontoft (7), Kieva Clegg (9), William Craven (8), Samuel Humberstone (6), Beth Hutchings (3), Holly Hutchings, Harley Maddison (6), Chloe Mallett (6), Lewis Mcgarry (9), William Pettitt (9), Edward Proctor (3), Holly Sauntson (9).

Report for November 6

Tough going for Boston in testing final

Boston Swimming Club travelled to Peterborough for the Fenland League final.

The team started the evening second in the league, two points behind leaders Cambridge and just in front of both Peterborough A and B teams.

Knowing only a win would give the team any chance of clinching the league title, the early results did not go in their favour. It took until event seven before the team achieved their first race win when Lewis McGarry comfortably won the boys’ 10/u 50m breaststroke.

This was quickly followed by Chloe Baldry winning the girls’ 11/u butterfly to leave the team in third place after 10 races.

However, the next 10 races followed a similar pattern as a host of low place finishes were punctuated by a second race win for Lewis McGarry in the boys’ 11/u 50m freestyle while Charlize Arundell produced a fast time in an outstanding win in the girls’ 13/u 50m breaststroke to keep the team in third place.

Although the team continued to fight hard and recorded 19 personal best times on the evening, they could only manage one further race win as Charlize Arundell continued her good form by winning the girls 13/u 50m butterfly.

A run of low placed finishes in the last 10 races enabled Peterborough A to overtake take Boston on the finalrace and thus pushed the team into fourth place on the evening and fourth place in the final league standings.

Race winners: Charlize Arundell (2), Chloe Baldry, Lewis Mcgarry (2).

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell (2), Chloe Baldry, Nesta Baxter, Amber Blower (3), Kieva Clegg (2), William Craven (2), Libby Dean-Allen, Thomas Liddy, Chloe Mallett (2), Lewis Mcgarry (3), Joe Reed.

Report for October 30

Relegation battle looms for Boston swimmers

Boston Swimming Club travelled to Cambridge for round one of the East Region, National Arena League.

This is the biggest team competition of the season. And over the past few years, the club has exceeded expectations by retaining a their place in the top league.

Having been drawn against two of the finalists from last year’s competition, the Boston squad knew they would be in for a difficult night and would have to fight for every point if they were to achieve their aim of claiming fifth place on the night.

Any swimmer who achieved a top three finish in their event was virtually guaranteed to have achieved a new personal best time.

As expected the team got off to a difficult start. After the first round of relays the highest place finish came from the girls’ 13/u medley relay team of Bethany Holderness, Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt and Becky Pimlott when they finished in third place. This left the team in sixth spot, just three points behind Kettering.

Boston started the individual races strongly as Sam Macleod won the boys’ 11/u 50m butterfly and was just pipped into second place in the 50m backstroke. Amber Nuttman recorded an impressive personal best when she finished second in the girls’ 13/u 100m breaststroke. This was closely followed by Charlize Arundell who achieved the same result in the girls’ 11/u 50m butterfly to move Boston up to fifth at the halfway stage.

Charlize then went one better by claiming first place in the girls’ 11/u 50m breaststroke, but unfortunately for Boston this was as good as it got. Although several PBs were swum and the team battled hard, only Susannah Yielding’s third in the girls’ open 100m breaststroke was able to break into a top three finish. This meant the team had slipped back into sixth place.

Although the team pulled points back in the final round of relays to close the gap to just two points on Kettering, it was only the boys 11/u medley relay team of Jordan Clare, Sam Macleod, Lewis McGarry and Joe Reed who managed to score any significant points when finishing in third place.

The result of finishing sixth on the night placed the team in 17th place in the league meaning only a finish of fifth place or above in the next round would enable the team to avoid relegation.

Race winners: Charlize Arundell, Sam Macleod.

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell (2), Chloe Baldry, Nesta Baxter, Archie Bulman, Harry Dean-Allen (2), Sam Macleod, Amber Nuttman, Becky Pimlott, Joe Reed, Reuben Reed, Connor Spinks (2), Oliver Street.

Report for October 23

Personal bests galore as novices battle hard

Boston Swimming Club sent a contingent of youngsters to Wellingborough for the Autumn Trophy Novice Gala.

This event gave members of the more junior squads a chance to gain racing experience. And for many of the swimmers, it represented a first opportunity to gain competitive times, which will enable them to enter open meets and be considered for other league competitions.

Picking a team proved difficult for the selectors as they had to take into consideration trying to win the meet against a rather perverse competition rule of any swimmer beating the cut-off time would not win any points for their team.

On the night, the team only fell foul of this rule on two occasions as Thomas Liddy produced two fantastic swims in the boys’ 9-year-old 25m backstroke and freestyle, achieving personal best times in both races. A total of 23 personal best times were set from 33 individual races with Rosanna Abbott and Lily Ross also achieving two PBs from their respective races.

On the night, the team battled hard and were leading after 20 events as Bethany Chambers (9yo 25m backstroke), Pasquale Fiore (9yo 25m freestyle) and Myles Beagles (11/u 25m butterfly) all gained maximum points for the team.

Unfortunately although the team continued to pick up PBs they could not pick up any further race wins and eventually finished the evening in fourth place.

Personal best times: Rosanna Abbott (2), Bethany Chambers, Megan Coleman, Pasquale Fiore, Samuel Humberstone, Nitin Joachin, Thomas Liddy (2), Harley Maddison, Rochelle Miles, Kirilis Mustermans, Michael Nowaczek, Pmod Piyatissa, Pubuda Piyatissa, Edward Proctor, George Proctor, Grace Roberts, Lily Ross (2), Holly Sauntson, Jessica Sauntson, Nathan Sealey.

Report for October 16

Squad successfully rises to open meet challenge

Boston Swimming Club took 28 swimmers to Braunstone for the Leicester Penguins open meet.

This was the first open meet of the new season and provided coach Ian Wells with an early indicator of the up and coming swimmers for the season ahead. Trophies were awarded for the first five swimmers in each age category.

As expected the older swimmers were just off their best form and found personal bests hard to come by as they are still a couple weeks away from full fitness. Honours were also hard to come by as the 14 and 15 years olds were merged into one age group.

The most successful swimmer in this age group was club captain Susannah Yielding (15) who achieved two third places (50m breaststroke and 100m individual medley), a quartet of fourths (50m butterfly, 100, backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle) and two fifths (50m freestyle and 100m butterfly). In the same age group Hannah Macleod (14) achieved one fourth place finish (50m backstroke) and one fifth (100m backstroke).

In the same age group for the boys Reuben Reed (15) finished third in the 100m butterfly and Jordan Ward (14) fifth in the same event. Although unable to pick up any trophies both Oliver Street (15) and Connor Spinks (14) showed good form throughout the weekend when recording five and four personal best times respectively.

In the 13 year age group, Amber Nuttman was the most successful swimmer with a third (50m breaststroke) and 3 fifths (100 breaststroke, butterfly and individual medley). For the boys Harry Dean-Allen produced six personal best times, which resulted in one fourth and fifth place finish (100m and 50m backstroke respectively).

Becky Pimlott was the only girl to win a trophy in the 12 year age group with second (50m backstroke) and third (100m backstroke). Likewise James Hurley produced a consistent series of swims to gain a first place (50m backstroke), three seconds (50 freestyle, 100m butterfly and individual medley), three thirds (50m butterfly, 100m backstroke and freestyle) as well as a fourth (100m breaststroke).

In the junior age groups a close battle ensued throughout the weekend between nine year olds Lewis McGarry and Lewis Bontoft.

On this occasion it was Lewis McGarry who came out on top with first place (50m backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly and 100m individual medley) and second (50m freestyle), while Lewis Bontoft gained revenge in the 50m freestyle by taking first place and finishing second in the other four events.

Isaac Reed gained PBs in all three of his races and gained trophies with two fifth places (50m backstroke and 100m individual medley). For the girls Amber Blower achieved a second (50m backstroke), third (50 freestyle) and a fourth (100m individual medley).

Although both ten year olds Jordan Clare and Libby Dean-Allen were just off their best times both still achieved a big haul of trophies as Jordan achieved four second place finishes (50m breaststroke, butterfly, 200m breaststroke and freestyle), three thirds (50m backstroke, 200m backstroke and individual medley) and a fourth (50m freestyle). Meanwhile Libby took a first place (200m butterfly), two thirds (50m and 200m backstroke) and two fifth place finishes (50m and 200m breaststroke).

It was in the 11 year age group that Boston really dominated as Sam Macleod and Jessica Pettitt both achieved trophies in all nine of their races. In the boys events Sam achieved six first place finishes (50m breaststroke, butterfly, 200m backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly and individual medley) as well as a second (50 back) third (200 free) and a fourth (50m freestyle).

For the girls, Jessica achieved four firsts (200m breaststroke, butterfly, freestyle and individual medley) a second (50m butterfly), third (200m backstroke) and three fourths (50m backstroke, breaststroke and freestyle).

They were ably supported in the same age group by Bethany Holderness who managed a second (200m butterfly), third (200m freestyle), fourth (50m butterfly) and two fifths (200m backstroke and individual medley). Charlize Arundell gained one first place (50m breaststroke) and two fourths (200m breaststroke and butterfly).

Overall the swimmers produced some very encouraging swims throughout the weekend with 67 personal best times being set and hopefully many more to follow throughout the coming months.

First places: Charlize Arundell, Lewis Bontoft, Libby Dean-Allen, James Hurley, Sam Macleod (6), Lewis Mcgarry (4), Jessica Pettitt (4).

Second places: Amber Blower, Lewis Bontoft (4), Jordan Clare (4), Bethany Holderness, James Hurley (3), Sam Macleod, Lewis McGarry, Jessica Pettitt, Becky Pimlott.

Third places: Amber Blower, Jordan Clare (3), Libby Dean-Allen (2), Bethany Holderness, James Hurley (3), Sam Macleod, Amber Nuttman, Jessica Pettitt, Becky Pimlott, Reuben Reed , Susannah Yielding (2).

Fourth places: Charlize Arundell (2), Amber Blower, Jordan Clare, Harry Dean-Allen, Bethany Holderness (2), James Hurley, Jessica Pettitt (3), Hannah Macleod, Sam Macleod, Susannah Yielding (4).

Fifth places: Harry Dean-Allen, Libby Dean-Allen (2), Bethany Holderness (2), Hannah Macleod, Amber Nuttman (3), Isaac Reed (2), Jordan Ward, Susannah Yielding (2).

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell (6), Chloe Baldry (5), Jason Barnes (2), Nesta Baxter (2), Amber Blower (2), Lewis Bontoft (4), Harry Dean-Allen (6), Bethany Holderness, James Hurley (3), Michael Keal (2), Hannah Macleod, Sam Macleod, Lewis Mcgarry (3), Amber Nuttman (2), Jessica Pettitt (5), William Pettitt (2), Becky Pimlott (2), Isaac Reed (3), Joe Reed (2), Connor Spinks (4), Oliver Street (5), Jordan Ward (2), Susannah Yielding (2).

Report for October 2

Boston see title hopes disappear

Boston’s Geoff Moulder Swimming Pool played host to the Anglian League final. Holders for the past five years, Boston A found themselves in the unusual position of starting the evening in third place.

The squad knew that only a convincing win would give them any chance of retaining the title, as although only one league point separated the top three teams, league leaders Wisbech and St Ives had considerably better overall gala points standings.

Boston A started the evening in blistering form as they won three of the first four races. Susannah Yielding (girls open 100m individual medley), Jordan Ward and Hannah Macleod (15/u boys and girls 100m butterfly respectively) all took maximum points raising hopes that they could still retain their title.

Unfortunately this was as good as it got as it took a further 18 races before Hannah Macleod became the only Boston swimmer on the night to record a second race win — in the 200m individual medley.

By this time Wisbech had taken a comfortable lead which they never relinquished to ultimately claim the title. A close battle ensued between Boston A and St Ives for second place and when Jason Barnes won the boys 13/u 100m butterfly, Boston A held a one point advantage with eight races to go.

Boston A finally claimed second place on the evening as race wins by Harry Dean-Allen and Becky Pimlott 13/u boys and girls 100m breaststroke respectively in the final individual races proved decisive. Unfortunately this result did not alter the final league position with Boston A finishing in third place.

Boston B also competed in the same gala where they were fighting West Norfolk and St Neots for fifth place in the league. Although the team could not muster a race win on the evening, there were several fine individual performances with 13 new personal best times being set.

Oliver Street (15/u boys 100m butterfly and 200m individual medley), and Ben Warren (15/u 100m freestyle) produced the team’s highest finishes when coming second in their respective events with Oliver setting new personal best times in all three of his events.

There were also several swimmers, Chloe Mallett (13/u girls 100m freestyle), Georgia Hodgkiss and Ben Warren (15/u girls and boys 100m freestyle respectively) and Oliver Street (15/u 200m individual medley) who gained bragging rights by beating their A team counterparts.

On the evening the team finished in sixth place, a result that also gave them a final league position of sixth.

Race winners: Boston A, Jason Barnes, Harry Dean-Allen, Hannah Macleod (2), Becky Pimlott, Jordan Ward, Susannah Yielding.

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell (2), Jason Barnes (2), Matthew Coleman, Samuel Humberstone, James Hurley, Chloe Mallett, Amber Nuttman, Becky Pimlott, Joe Reed, Reuben Reed (3), Lily Ross (2), Connor Spinks, Oliver Street (3), Jordan Ward (2), Ben Warren (2), Susannah Yielding.

Report for September 18

Boston cruise to easy league win

Round five of the Fenland Swimming League saw Boston make the long journey to Bedford.

This is traditionally a notoriously difficult round for Boston whose club members are only a few days into their renewed training schedule following a five-week summer break.

Boston started the evening in third place in the league just two points behind leaders Cambridge.

The squad began strongly with four wins from the first seven races as Jason Barnes (13/u 50m backstroke), William Pettitt and Kieva Clegg (9 year 50m freestyle) and Lewis McGarry (10/u 50m breaststroke) all gained maximum points.

By the half-way stage Boston had opened up a healthy 13-point lead as five more wins were achieved by Chloe Mallett (12/u 50m freestyle), Michael Keal and Charlize Arundell (13/u 50m breaststroke), Amber Blower and Bethany Holderness (10 and 12/u 50m backstroke respectively) in addition to a host of second place finishes to put the team in total control.

This was a lead that they never looked like losing as further race wins by Lewis Bontoft and Kieva Clegg (9 year 50m breaststroke), Isaac Reed (10/u 50m freestyle), Lewis Bontoft and Libby Dean-Allen (11/u 50m backstroke) stretched the lead by a further six points going into the last 10 races.

The team maintained their impressive form over the closing races as Isaac Reed and Kieva Clegg (9 year 50m backstroke), Lewis Bontoft with his 3rd win of the evening (10/u 25m butterfly) and Chloe Mallett (13/u 100m individual medley) all took first place giving the team a comfortable 23 points winning margin. This result moves Boston up into second place in the league, still two points behind leaders Cambridge with one round of action remaining.

Race winners: Charlize Arundell, Jason Barnes, Amber Blower, Lewis Bontoft (3), Kieva Clegg (2), Libby Dean-Allen, Michael Keal, Chloe Mallett (2), Lewis McGarry, William Pettitt, Isaac Reed (2).

Personal best times: Charlize Arundell, Jason Barnes, Amber Blower (2), Lewis Bontoft, Kieva Clegg, Libby Dean-Allen, Bethany Holderness, Chloe Mallett, William Pettitt, Isaac Reed, Joe Reed.