COOPER JOINS ELITE JUNIORS AS THEY TARGET EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Harriet Cooper will join Britain’s elite junior swimmers as they head to Antwerp in July to test their talents at the European Junior Championships. The British Gas GBR Swimming team will be racing between the 4th and 8th of July and the thirty strong contingent features some of the country’s best juniors who have their sights set on the Rio 2016 Olympics.
The European Junior Championships is the priority event on the British Swimming development calendar and Mark Perry, British Swimming Development Coach said: “It is highly regarded within the international swimming community and we are judged by performances at this event. “The team is brimming with quality and potential. It includes Olympic qualifier Craig Benson, Molly Renshaw and Jessica Fullalove who medalled last year, together with some new faces. “We have a strong tradition at the event and we’ll be prepared as best we can. We can’t control how other nations will perform so we will focus on our own form.
WEST IS UK SCHOOL GAMES BUTTERFLY CHAMPION
Competing at her first UK School games Harriet West maintained the COLSC tradition of producing an individual champion at every games since its introduction in 2006. Competing in the 100m Butterfly Harriet produced a new personal best to narrowly take the gold. Harriet also returns with two Silver medals from the 4x100m Medley and 4x200m Freestyle teams.
GOLDEN SWIMS AT MIDLAND YOUTH CHAMPS
COLSC swimmers return from the recent Midland Youth Championships with eight gold medals and three new senior county records. Stars of the weekend Jamie Thorpe and Sophie Smith showcased their world class potential as they continue their preparations to the second Olympic trials in June. Jamie setting a new personal best to win the 100m Freestyle added the 50m Freestyle, 50m and 100m Butterfly titles. Sophie Smith in blistering form claimed three new personal best and lowered her senior county record marks in the 200m Backstroke and 100m Butterfly. Claiming his first Youth title against one of his main national rivals was Jack Warren-Ballard in the 200m Backstroke. Also achieving the podium where Matt Hincks, Jake Spicer and Elliot Tointon.
BRITISH SWIMMING FUNDED ATHLETES
After successful performances at the British Olympic Trials Sophie Smith has been confirmed as a World Class Development athlete for the third consecutive season. Jamie Thorpe will also remain a British Swimming funded athlete for the second year.
RECORDS TUMBLE AT SHORT COURSE MEETS
COLSC attended the Nuneaton and Bedworth meet and hosted our own annual meet in April. At these meets the swimmers were in incredible form. Jamie Thorpe set a new Senior county record in the 50m Freestyle posting a fantastic time of 22.5. Elliot Tointon lowered his Junior 400m Ind.Medley county record to dip under the 4.40 mark for the first time. Sophie Smith set new Senior county records in the 50m Freestyle, 100m Freestyle, Butterfly and the 200m Ind.Medley. Sophie also smashed her own 200m Ind.Medley Regional Senior record and set a new mark in the 100m Butterfly held by former olympian Ross Brett.
SMITH RECIEVES SENIOR GB CALL UP FOR US OPEN
After outstanding performances at the recent British Gas Swimming Championships Sophie Smith has been selected to represent Great Britain at the US Open in Indianapolis, USA. After narrowly missing qualification to the London Olympic Games Sophie will compete in August as part of a 10 man team made up of the next generation of Team GB performers looking to make the Rio Olympic Games 2016.
COLSC GIRLS SELECTED TO REPRESENT ENGLAND AT INTERNATIONAL CHILDRENS GAMES
Four girls from COLSC have been selected by England to represent Leicester City in South Korea this summer. After an outstanding 2010/11 season Megan Morrison, Candice Hall, Harriet West and Harriet Cooper will compete against a selection of the most talented swimmers from major cities around the world.
COOPER NAMED IN TEAM GB FOR EUROPEAN JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
Strong performances at the recent British Gas Swimming Championships at the London Olympic Aquatic Centre have earned Harriet Cooper a call up to her second Great Britain team. After competing in her first senior championship semi-finals Harriet achieved two qualification times in her favored events the 100m Backstroke and Freestyle events. Harriet's selection is made more outstanding as she has the opportunity to do this international next season as well.
CITY OF Leicester's Sophie Smith said her heroic week at the British Gas Swimming Championships had exceeded her expectations.But she was disappointed to miss out on Olympic qualification. The 17-year-old finished the week at London's Aquatics Centre with another personal best in the 50m freestyle after clocking a time of 25.74 seconds and finishing fifth overall in an event she described as a bit of fun. She was delighted to round off the week in a positive manner and with possibly a new event to focus on. Smith said: "It was a really nice way to round off a week that has gone really well. It has gone a lot better than I expected. "Training was going really well coming up to it so I had a sneaky feeling I might swim quite well but you never know. "I am just really happy with how the week had gone. "I enjoy sprinting and I think I will continue doing it because I really like it. "Even though it is just fun, I've done pretty well so I can't complain." Smith now looks likely to appear at the European Junior Championships in Antwerp in July. But she said that she would have preferred to swim a bit closer to home this summer. She set an Olympic qualifying time of 2min 12.31sec in the final of the 200m individual medley only to finish third and miss out behind Hannah Miley and Sophie Allen who took the two places for the London Games. Smith said: "I have to look back at the week as a success. "But I keep thinking if I had come second in that 200 individual medley I would be going to the Olympics and the week would have been a bit better then. "But I can't get too ahead of myself there. "I have done as much as I can and I don't think I could have given anything more this week."
City of Leicester's Sophie Smith could not quite repeat her heroics of earlier in the week as she narrowly failed to make the 100m freestyle final at the British Championships in London. The 17-year-old clocked 2min 12.31sec in the 200m medley final on Tuesday, recording an Olympic qualifying time. That gave her third place in the final, but the two Olympic places available went to Hannah Miley and Sophie Allen, who finished ahead of her. Smith's return to the pool saw her record 56.22 in the 100m freestyle, ranking her ninth and one place away from a final berth. Even so, she was delighted with her medley effort. "I'm still a bit in shock to be honest," said Smith. "It was a lot better than I expected to do so I am just really pleased that I did it here. It was the right time to do it so I am proud of it."
Smith has not been the only City of Leicester swimmer in form, with Harriet Cooper also enjoying a hugely impressive meet.She had already achieved the European Junior championship qualifying standard in the 100m backstroke and emulated that in the 100m freestyle heats after recording a personal best of 56.90. Cooper could not quite build on that in the semi-final as she clocked 57.49 and, while she is not yet certain of her place at the European juniors, she is confident she has done everything she can to make it. "I felt really strong. I have been training harder this year, aiming for this event. It is all paying off now," said Cooper. "It has taken a couple of days to get used to the size of the surroundings but it is definitely starting to sink in now. Hopefully I can qualify for the European juniors in July because I have hit the qualifying time now."
CITY OF LEICESTER'S Sophie Smith set a new British Age Group record, swam inside the senior English record, achieved the Olympic qualifying time and a world top 16 time at the British Championships last night but it was not quite enough to book an Olympic spot. Smith produced a stunning swim from lane two in the 200m medley final but could not quite haul in Sophie Allen, who claimed the English record and the coveted second Olympic spot behind 14-time British champion Hannah Miley. Smith's time of 2 minutes 12.31 seconds was more than half a second inside the qualifying criteria set by British Swimming for the Games but, with only two spaces up for grabs, she just missed out. However, it was still a sensational swim because she knocked more than two seconds off her personal best to claim bronze.
Her City of Leicester team-mate Tsubasa Nakagawa admitted he still had a lot to learn at this level after completing his first swim at the Olympic pool. He posted a time of 51.72 seconds in the 100m freestyle heats and missed out on a semi-final spot but insisted the experience was invaluable.
"I only came down last night so I've barely had a dip in the pool and then I've started racing. It is good to see everyone swim well and it is such a nice pool so I am happy to be here," said Nakagawa. "It is slightly daunting to be here, there are so many people from abroad posting pretty fast times so it is quite intimidating but good to be mixing with the big guys."
Sophie Smith insists she is brimming with confidence after narrowly missing out on the medals at the British Swimming Championships in London.
Smith made a solid start to her week with a fourth place in the 400m medley final, which was won in a world-leading time by European and Commonwealth champion Hannah Miley and while her 4:44.41 time was well outside the Olympic qualifying standard, it was a new personal best and she insists all bodes well for her principle target - the 200m medley.
"I felt really comfortable and relaxed," said the former double European junior champion. "It’s a really competitive event so it's great to get a confidence boost of any kind and a PB is always good."If you do well in the 400 then the 200 will be good as well. There are a lot of different tactics for the girls but I’ll just have to play to my strengths to see how I get on."I would say the 200 is my stronger event, and it’s certainly my favourite event so I really want to do well in it. But having got a great 400 behind me I feel good about it." Smith, 17, came through the early qualifying in her favourite event yesterday (MONDAY), progressing through the heats as the fourth fastest in 2:14.61.
Elsewhere, City of Leicester starlet Harriet Cooper put herself right in contention for a place at the European Junior Championships in Antwerp after dipping under the 100m backstroke qualifying time.The 14-year-old would still be a year young for the event in Belgium but came home in 1:03.62, two tenths inside the stipulated standard. That was also enough to send Cooper through to the semi-finals where she improved on her time touching home in 1:03.49, to finish 13th overall.
“The backstroke was really good, it’s faster than what I’ve been swimming this year so I’m really pleased with it,” said Cooper, who will also race over 50m and 100m freestyle. “The Olympic pool is absolutely amazing, it’s quite surreal that we are actually here competing. "I’m just taking every race I swim as an experience. I’m just excited to be here, it’s really a once in a lifetime opportunity for me. “I want to qualify for the European Juniors in July. I’m still a year young but hopefully I can make it."
Meanwhile City of Leicester teammate Megan Morrison revealed she had to overcome a major case of nerves after making her debut appearance at the championships in the 100m breaststroke.
The 13-year-old just missed out on a personal best as she finished in 1:15.34 but insisted she was just thrilled to get a taste of the Olympic atmosphere. She added: “I’m really excited to have competed in the Olympic pool. It’s really nerve-wracking especially in the wait up to it. “I’ve got the 200 breaststroke to come which I’ll be looking for a personal best in. I just missed out on a personal best in the 100 but I’m more of 200 swimmer so that was a nice warm-up”
In her only event the 100m Butterfly Harriet West competed against her main rivals for the podium at the National Age Group Championships this Summer. Finishing just outside her personal best after a nervous start she recovered well to finish 4th in her age and 8th in the European Junior age band. Plenty of experienced gained in preparation for the rest of the season.
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