The forty-first Junior Championships for sensory impaired and physically disabled swimmers organised by Scottish Disability Sport were held at Grangemouth on Wednesday 7th November. For over two decades successive generations of Grangemouth staff have supported the event. The Junior Swimming Championships are one of the longest running events in the national calendar organised by SDS.
The Junior Championships have witnessed memorable contests over the years between emerging and established Scottish swimmers. SDS and its partner governing body Scottish Swimming have developed a comprehensive pathway in the sport so there is a competitive outlet for swimmers with a disability at every stage. This event has witnessed most of the finest para-swimmers Scotland has produced. Many of the entrants on Wednesday will aspire to follow in the considerable footsteps of Paul Noble MBE, Sean Fraser, Stephen Clegg, Abby Kane and Lara Ferguson to mention only a few who have graced this event through the years. Thanks to the bespoke time-banding classification system used, swimmers new to competition can swim at the same meet as Paralympians and Commonwealth Games representatives. This means that these athletes are accessible and inspiring to all participants there. SDS were delighted to welcome one of these athletes back for her final year at this competition. Beth Johnston has been a mainstay at this event for years and won yet another Best Female trophy thanks to her 5 gold medals. Beth headed up a buoyant Borders team who secured further medals through Connor Livingstone, Amy MacKay, Jenna Brus and Kirsty Gibb. Another swimmer competing in their final junior championships is Fife’s Cara Smyth who chased Beth all the way. It was fantastic to see her back in the pool. They will both be missed from this event, however we look forward to seeing them again at the senior events.
Grampian’s Rhys Gill engaged in some thrilling battles with the West of Scotland pair Kyle Hughes and Lewis Beagrie on the male side. Rhys and Kyle – – both medalists at the 2018 CPISRA World Games in Sant Cugat, Spain – were on this occasion outstripped by Lewis who claimed all 5 titles – along with the inevitable Best Male Performer (his first time winning the award) – and was under a second away from some of the Championship Records – four of which were claimed by Fife’s Ollie Carter in 2017. The one record that eluded Ollie was the 50m Backstroke which still belongs to Lothian’s Robert Dalgleish as he swam 31.96 in 2011. It was fantastic to see Robert back at the event to help Jim “The Swim” Anderson OBE dish out the medals to the deserving youngsters. It also gave Robert a chance to have a reunion with his old adversary in the pool, but firm friend outside it, Stefan Hoggan who did yet another sterling job as the announcer. Mentored by the maestro Paul Noble MBE in previous events, Stefan is a man at ease on the microphone and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the role.
There were many other performances of note amongst the other teams. Lothian’s brothers Aaron and Corey McDowell turning in some excellent performances with Aaron winning the sibling rivalry on this occasion. Fife’s Katie Pake returned to the Kingdom with no less than 4 golds. Many other swimmers from those areas and Tayside, Highland, Forth Valley, Grampian and a strong West of Scotland team also put in some brilliant times. A big thank you to all the committed coaches, volunteers and parents for creating such a lively atmosphere at the event. Many had taken time off work to support the event and it is very much appreciated by all at SDS.
It was heartening to see another rise by 10% in entries following a similar rise in 2017. This shows that more and more swimmers are being engaged in schools, clubs and branches in swimming and are being identified in learn to swim programmes or at engagement opportunities such as parasport days. Swimmers should continue to be identified in order to ensure this event remains for a further 40 years and beyond. The SDS/ Scottish Swimming partnership is one of the longest running in Scottish sport and both organisations continue to work closely to drive forward the development of disability swimming in Scotland.
Congratulations to all the swimmers and especially Beth and Lewis on their respective titles and we look forward to the second Junior Swimming Championships now at Tollcross on the 21st November for our athletes with a learning disability.
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