Fourteen Aberystwyth and District Swimming Club swimmers took part in the West Wales Regionals event held at the Wales National Pool in Swansea on the first weekend of the half-term holidays.
The three-day event boasted the best swimmers in west Wales, all vying for personal bests and qualifying times to compete in the Swim Wales National Championships, which will also be held in Swansea on 22 March.
The swimmers representing ADASC at the regionals were ready to perform especially after benefitting from the long-course training at the National Pool earlier in the year thanks to an Aberystwyth War Memorial Grant.
Supporting the swimmers at the gala were a host of parents in various volunteer and supporting roles, ensuring that the event was a successful one. Many parents braved the searing heat at the National Pool to carry out timekeeping and judging roles, as well as coaching and assisting the swimmers as they navigated their events throughout the weekend.
During the weekend of racing all 14 swimmers performed at their best and were proud to represent ADASC.
On Friday night, Oli Lerigo, from Penglais, kick-started the weekend for ADASC in the 50m butterfly with a great PB and a top 10 place.
Out of seven events he competed in over the weekend, Oli managed six top 10 finishes and PB in each event.
Iyla Berner from Comins Coch competed in her first regionals competition due to her young age and continued on her fine form.
The Swim Wales Young Aquatic Athlete of the Year dominated her age category in all 14 events.
She earned 11 gold, two silver and one bronze medals, and achieved 10 more PBs.
Unfortunately, as she is still only 10 years of age, she is too young to compete in the Nationals next months, but her time will come!
Gwennan Filmer, from Penweddig, also had a very successful weekend. She had qualified for 11 events at the regionals and earned three gold, two silver and one bronze medal.
Out of the 11 events she competed in, she earned a top 10 finish in 10 events and managed a PB in every event. Her high attendance and commitment to training is really paying off.
Captain Elen Morgan, from Penweddig, not only supported the younger swimmers at the meet but put in some fantastic performances against a strong field.
She earned a top 10 finish in all her events and a well-deserved silver medal in the 50m freestyle, earning a new PB in the process.
Vice captain Lily May Welsby, also from Penweddig, was a strong and steady presence for the younger swimmers.
She competed in four events and had two top 10 performances in her specialist events – breaststroke. She narrowly missed out on a bronze medal in both the 50m and 100m breaststroke.
Kaya Szmigiero, from St Padarn’s, also had a fabulous meet.
In her 10 events, she gained PBs in each one and earned a top 10 finish in eight events and earned gold and silver in the 800m freestyle relay and 400m freestyle relay respectively.
In both relays, the girls performed really well as a team, with Gwennan leading them off, Edith Heron from Talybont in second, Kaya swimming the third leg and then Iyla bringing them home on the last leg.
It was a great event to finish off the sessions and the support from the crowd was deafening.
The ADASC army was in full voice, shaking orange pom poms to see the girls earn their gold and silver medals.
There were also strong performances throughout the weekend from Vicky Szmigiero, Alys Wilcockson, Kiana Berner and Wilf Thomas, all from Penglais, and Annabelle Williams, Peni Macy and Lili Macy from Penweddig.
As a result of some fantastic racing, Elen, Lily May and Gwennan qualified with consideration times for next month’s National Championship and 10 ADASC records were broken by Iyla.
The club would like to thank all the swimmers for their commitment to the club and to the army of supporters who devoted their weekend to supporting all the swimmers from the stands.
Last but not least, they would like to thank the coaches and assistants who helped organise the swimmers during their events and volunteered as timekeepers and judges to ensure the event ran smoothly and efficiently.
If you have a passion for swimming and want to join the team, email [email protected]