Four Pioneer 79 swimmers took part in the Regional Championships against the best of the North West.

Charlotte Britland, 16, swam in six events: 50m and 100m breaststroke , 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke, 200m individual medley, returning with excellent times in each event.

Karmen Hammonds, 14, swam under ‘Gallica’ in a total of five events – 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke, 50m fly and 50m freestyle, clocking some great times overall.

Richard Eccles, 19, competed in 50m fly, 50m and 100m freestyle, finishing with some superb sprint times.

Finally Connor Makin, 14, competing for Gallica, swam in four events – 400m individual medley, 50m and 100m breaststroke, but also competed in the 200m breaststroke, where he managed to qualify in sixth position overall, in an excellent time of 2.33.77.

In the final he swam a slightly faster time of 2.33.23, finishing in seventh position.

For swimmers to reach the qualifying times for this event is a huge achievement as they compete with and against only the best swimmers in the North West.

The qualifying times are a ‘set’ time for everyone, therefore swimmers from any age compete against each other so long as they have achieved the relevant time.

Elsewhere, it was round two of the National Arena Swimming League in Blackpool.

The team of swimmers, aged between 10 and 30, were up against the likes of Southport, Leyland and City of Carlisle and, at the halfway point, Warriors of Warrington and City of Liverpool were battling it out for the top spot.

Meanwhile Barrow, Blackburn Centurions and Pioneer 79 were all close with only four points separating the three teams. The swimmers from Pioneer fought bravely and the final results were: first City of Liverpool (298), second Warriors of Warrington (297), third Southport (241), fourth City of Carlisle (145). Pioneer 79 were joint fifth with Blackburn Centurions with 138 points and in sixth position were Barrow (125).

Pioneer 79 Swimming Club are holding their annual Club Championships over the next two weekends where they are expecting club records to be broken.

Some of the club’s swimmers are taking part in the Stockport Metro Swimming Gala where Commonwealth Games swimmers will also be competing in the same events. This will be a valuable experience for Pioneer’s swimmers.

Pioneer 79 Swimming Club is a club consisting of swimmers of all ages and abilities, from beginners through to masters.

Anyone interested is asked to contact Susan on 01254 390793.