Weston swimmers have enjoyed a great start to the new season.

WESTON Swimming Club members have enjoyed a blistering start to the new season.

At the Somerset County Championships held at Millfield, a record number of swimmers all performed fantastically, with many achieving personal best.

At the top of the tree in the overall standings, based on the best swims in four categories for younger swimmers (and five for older ones) were: Lucy Davies (1st in the 14 years age group), Millie Dadds (14, 6th), Evan King (14, 8th), Jas Moroney (13, 6th), Immy Moroney (12, 3rd), Rachel Anderson (11, 2nd), Freya King (10, 8th), Madeleine Soper (9, 5th) and Caitlin Ashurst (9, 7th).

At the club’s recent Easter Open Meet, sponsored by Powells with Chawner Grey, over 400 swimmers from 30 clubs slugged it out against one another and the clock.

Weston members collected 44 gold medals at the meet (Rachel Anderson 10, Becca Lucas 6, Evan King 5, Ollie Elliott 3, Reece Trapani 3, Hannah Anderson 2, Madeleine Soper 2, Caitlin Ashurst 2, Marcus Gardiner 2, Chloe Knight 2, George Langman 2, Millie Dadds, Evan Brunsdon, James Bramwell, Toby Daniel and Ellie Redman).

Add in 27 silvers, 34 bronze and five top boy/girl awards in their respective age-groups (Madeleine Soper, Rachel Anderson, Hannah Anderson, George Langman and Will Daniel) and the word success just trips off the tongue.

Success was very much the buzz word at Horfield as Weston’s junior squad travelled to start their Southern Junior League campaign, a thrilling, action-packed 90+ minutes of 49 quick-fire events (a mix of individual and relay races).

Pitched against tough opposition, Weston destroyed the field achieving 279 points, winning the round by 46 points from Bristol Penguins (233), Swindon SX3 (219), Severnside Tritons (194), and Keynsham (191), with Southwold (147) and Bristol North (91) lagging well behind.

Round two is on May 11, with the club hopeful of making the national semi-finals, repeating their success of 2011.

The club has recently announced its latest winners of its most improved swimmer awards for the various squads. They were: Amy Mathews, Immy Moroney, Ollie Elliott, Lauren Hodgkin, Holly Hudghton, Lottie Dadds, Charlie Deakin, Rhianna Gardner, Marcus Gardiner and Tommy Kendall.

The club’s polo section is also thriving. Teenagers Emily Watkins and Reece Trapani both recently represented the South West Region at the inter-regional competition at Walsall.

Emily has also just started training with the Great Britain talent water polo squad, having come through rigorous trials. Five former Weston polo players were an integral part of Bristol Central’s recent 11-8 triumph over Lancaster at the Manchester Aquatics Centre to win the British Gas Water Polo National Championship.

More locally, Weston’s senior polo team are just back from a successful tour to Ireland.

To find out more about North Somerset’s leading swimming club, please visit www.weston-super-mare-swimming-club.co.uk or for enquiries about the club’s Learn to Swim programme, which currently has vacancies for swimmers 4-9 years, email Zara Gardner (ltswsmsc@hotmail.co.uk)