Press
Reports
2004
26.11.04
Watford dish out medals
Watford swimming club held their annual trophy presentations on
Monday at Rickmansworth School after what has been a successful year for the
club.
The Club reached the final of the Herts League for the first time in 15 years
where they were placed sixth, and also the final of the Speedo London League
Division Two which will be held next month at Enfield.
The B team were also successful in gaining promotion from Division Three in the
Herts League. The tally of five gold's, 14 silver and 15 bronze at the county
championships was also a credible achievement.
The club also embarked on two training camps. In February a group travelled to
Majorca for a week of intensive training. Crystal Palace was the venue for
the junior development squad swimmers. Three lanes have already been booked for
February next year in the GB Olympic Swimming teams training camp facilities in
Cyprus. The club meets every Wednesday at the central baths, Hempstead Road, and
training is available every day in a variety of local pools. All new
members are welcome, call Olive Roberts 01923 245692 for details.
Boys swimmer of the year: Matt King. Girls swimmer of the year:
Stacy Rafferty. Effort of the year boys: Jack Woodley. Effort
of the year girls: Olivia Scott.
19.11.04
Youngsters recover from slow start to dive into the medals
Watford's Swimming Club competed in the second round of the
Speedo London League at Enfield on Saturday and finished in a respectable third
position after a terrible start. Following a good showing inn the first round
where they amassed enough points to be lying in fourth place in the league, the
team were looking to consolidate their good position. However, the squad got off
to the worst possible start with two disqualifications for false-starts in the
first seven events and from then on it was an uphill battle against the seven
other teams. Watford responded well though as the gala progressed with several
excellent swims, and eventually finished only behind Hemel Hempstead and
Runneymede.
Ben Dollard weighed in with a couple of victories in the open 100m freestroke
(57.78) and 100m flystroke (63.28), both wins coming with a superb last length
sprint. Matt King swam well again, taking second in the under-14 breaststroke
(87.64), and third in the freestroke (65.48), and he teamed up with Adam Raw,
Dean White and Toby Hosker to win the under-14 medley relay. Matt Toothill was
also on form and took second in the under-16 flystroke in a time of 70.48.
For the girls there were no individual wins, but Yaz Allard, Lauren Simmons,
Hannah Lewis and Amy Callanan all took the runners up spot in their races.
A large Watford squad also took part in the Hemel Open, winning seven gold's, 11
silvers and 12 bronzes, to take the Top Club trophy. Most swimmer's gained new
personal bests and Watford's gold's were won by Lewis, Willer, Alland, Toothill,
Astbury and Rafferty.
15.10.04
Capital showing from Watford earns second place
Watford Swimming Club
began this season’s Speedo London League with an excellent result in their First
Round gala at Hitchin on Saturday.
Stacy Rafferty, 14, set the tone for the evening with a gritty performance in
the opening event, the ladies open 200 individual medley, where she had a
tremendous battle with the swimmer from Greenwich in the adjacent lane, and
eventually had to settle for second place with a new personal best of 2.41.22.
A few events later she teamed up with Nicky Dormer, Rachel Williams and Kerry
Cuthbert to gain Watford’s first victory in the Under-16 5x50m freestyle team.
By this stage it was already apparent that of the eight teams competing, the
winners of the gala would come from either Greenwich or Watford, with Chelsea
and Stevenage just behind.
Hazel Pickford continues to improve; she took the Uner-12 girls 50m backstroke
in a impressive time of 39.70, and was runner-up in the 50m freestyle, while
breastroke specialist Lauren Simmons had a busy night, winning the Under-16
100m event in 1.24.04 and gaining second in the ladies open in 1.24.67.
For the boys, Adam Collins gained another personal best when taking the men’s
open 100m backstroke, stopping the clock in 1.05.61, while Matt King,13,
produced two superb swims in the Under-14 100m breaststroke (1.26.53) and 100m
freestyle (1.04.84), which were both good enough for the runners-up spot.
Other swimmers who impressed on the night were Hannah Lewis (Uner-14 100m
backstroke), Yasmin Alland (Under-16 100m butterfly), Carolyn Astbury (Under -14
100m butterfly), Adam Raw (Under-14 100m backstroke), Andrew Sewell (Under-12
50m breaststroke) and Callum Griffin (Under-12 50m butterfly), who all took
second places in their respective individual events.
Results: 1, Greenwich, 291; 2 Watford, 286; 3, Stevenage, 253; 4 Chelsea and
Kensington, 225; 5 Potters Bar, 223; 6 Sutton, 218; 7, Verulam, 177; 8 Brent,
117.
13.08.04
Interview with John Martin-Dye, a double Olympian, looking back 40 years
The founding father of the modern Olympic movement Pierre De
Coubertin had a simple philosophy: "The most important thing in the
Olympic Games is not to win, but to take part, just as the most important thing
is life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to
have conquered, but to have fought well."
De Coubertin's words are not eared towards the top athletes or
coaches, but the sportsmen and sportswomen around the globe who dream of one day
making it to the biggest sporting event in the world, the Olympic Games.
Like everything else in life, the harder you have to work for
something, the more you appreciate it. Sport is no different, "I
always wanted to be at the Olympics, I wanted to be a champion," and, true to
his words, John Martin-Dye was.
Six national championships, a European Silver medal and two
Olympic Games appearances were the highlight of a sparkling swimming career, but
looking back, Martin-Dye, 64, has no doubt as to what drove him to such heights. "Analysing it, I always felt that because perhaps I was a weaker
boy, I tried to find a sport that I was good at, and then thought,, 'right, I'm
going to show everybody'. I wasn't a runner, or great at football, but I
could swim."
"It's an inferiority complex but it's good and that's what makes
sport. You see it all the time. You fight at it and you do it, and
that's the great thing about sport." he added. That mentality certainly paid off. By 1960, he had booked
his place in the Great British Olympic team for the Rome Games. Again
though, it was this inferiority complex which spurred him on.
"At the Commonwealth Games in trials in 1958 I came last and was
really disappointed. But, that defeat was really a victory in disguise
because it spurred me on and there's no doubt that helped me to become a much
better swimmer."
However, Martin-Dye - who started swimming at the age of eight at
a club in Shepherd's Bush - knew that to compete with the best, he had to
totally change the way he looked at the sport. "Back then, it was all about pure ability, but I think I was one
of the first to come along and think that if I trained harder than anyone else,
then I could have more success." This of course, is common practise nowadays but, back the, it was
a radical departure.
I started training with weights and swimming every morning and
really putting the work in . Although it was not technically advised, the
work paid off."
Going into the Rome Olympic trials, Martin-Dye was generally
recognised as one-of-the-top British swimmers, certainly in his specialist
event, the 400m freestyle, but, again, on the big stage, perhaps with memories
of two years ago echoing around his head, he floundered. "As the trials grew nearer, I really started working so hard and
increased my training levels. When it came to competition, I was just
spent thought. That's the one big disappointment in my career; I
felt I should have done well, and could have done well in the Games themselves."
Martin-Dye was selected for the 4x200m relay though, and, with
the pressure off, he got faster and faster and proved a crucial member of a
British team which reached the Final.
The Final itself was one of those great Olympic occasions, and
one of Martin-Dye's most cherished moments. "It was a great day for the tea,. I will always remember,
the pool was this kind of brilliant blue, and the lights danced on the surface.
The stadium was absolutely packed out and the atmosphere was electric." "It's strange, but if you stand at the edge of a 50 metre pool
indoors, it's suddenly this huge daunting object, and I remember just looking
down lengthways, thinking about how daunting it looked. It's one of those
memories that always stays with you."
The British team actually surpassed all expectations to finish
fourth, breaking the European record in the process. His performances
encouraged selectors to pick him for the European Championships individual 400m
after Ian Black dropped out. This proved the catalyst for his most
successful year ever. "The sport is very different now. Harder, but different,"
Martin-Dye reflected.
It took me a little by surprise to discover that in the 1960's,
swimming was one of the most popular sports and, crucially, one of the most
successfully televised sports. "There was the national championships in Blackpool every year and
that was a very big deal," explained Martin-Dye. "There were no qualifying times and restrictions, so there were
hordes of swimmers, and of course it was a holiday destination so it was a great
trip. But the big thing was that the finals were on Friday and Saturday
nights prime-time, on television, live on a Saturday. But they'd talk
about swimming and the sport. "Now they tape a race and see it later. When do you ever
see it on TV or read about it in the newspapers?" he added.
It was at the |National Championships in 1961 that Martin-Dye
really made a name for himself. After winning the 400m on the Tuesday, and
the 200m in a televised final on the Friday, Martin-Dye completed a remarkable
treble by taking the 400m 24 hours later - a an achievement which remains
unmatched to this day. "It had never been done before so there was a fantastic build-up.
On the day though I felt relaxed and controlled, even though it was on the
television." He added a silver in the 4x200 relay at the European
Championships in Leipzig the following year but this though, proved to be the
high point of his career.
Later that year, at the Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia,
despite high hopes, it "just didn't happen." One of the reasons, was perhaps the remarkable training
conditions top British sportsmen had to endure. "I think we were backward when it came to training in doing it
nationally. The likes of Holland have always done it properly. Where
we've fallen down is facilities. The government just haven't ever done
enough to build the facilities. "Training was a nightmare. One of the problems I found was
that you had to train in public baths. Most of the competitions were in
the summer when the baths were busy as well and you didn't have goggles to swim
under water.
"You had to weave in and out the other swimmers and couldn't time
yourself. It was a nonsense, but, if you say to yourself 'there's too many
in, I'm not going to do it' you get nowhere. But today, it's far more
organised."
"So, when you go abroad to the likes of Perth and see this big
beautiful pool it's an incentive to train and we just pushed ourselves too hard
and it takes the edge off." Nevertheless, Martin-Dye was still good enough
to secure selection for the 1964 Games in Tokyo. "I didn't do well but I wasn't really expected to."
"The Olympic Village in Tokyo was an old army barracks.
Everything was laid on and you were really treated well though, very much in the
same way as today."
However, on his way back from the far East, the team were treated
to a surprise visit: "The Tokyo team did especially well, so when we got
back we were whisked off to a hotel at Heathrow before going to meet the Queen,
which was very exciting."
Forty years on from his first Olympic appearance, Martin-Dye is
the perfect judge on swimming then, compared to swimming now, not least because
his youngest son Graham - now a water polo player in Australia - came very close
to making the swimming team for Sydney. "There's no doubt about it, the sport is much harder now.
They are just so focused.
Dedication is always a good thing though, but that was just
becoming to come into play when I started competing. There's so much more
control today. For example, your diet is strictly controlled, but, back
the I'd come home and have a slap-up meal." he added.
"There are still difficulties though, like youngsters in Watford
having to travel to Hatfield to train. Despite being born in West London, Martin-Dye moved to Watford 38
years ago and now coaches the successful Watford water polo team. In fact,
he is the only man to have represented Great Britain at both swimming and water
polo.
So what does he make of Britain's swimming chances at Athens? "To be honest, I'm Sceptical. Not because of what I've
seen, because I don't follow it that closely, but because of past history, and
that tells us we'll struggle."
Struggle though, is what the Olympic Games is all about.
Without the struggle, those rare moments of triumph would not be nearly so
sweet.
18.06.04
Watford's junior team were in action on Saturday, competing in
the Second Round of the Herts Peanuts League.
Having won the First Round gala, the squad was looking to build
on this and consolidate their position at the top of the table, but they had to
settle for second place, going down by 30 points to a strong Stables team. Despite this disappointment, there were plenty of positive signs
on the night, and the final on July 3 looks like being a very close affair.
The club's top swimmer on the night was Carolyn Astbury in the
Under-13 age group. She won her individual events in fine style (50m
freestyle, 34.25; 50m backstroke, 39.07), and teamed up with Jessica Sullivan,
Lizzie Barry and Rebecca Andrews to win to Uner-13 freestyle relay.
Andrew Sewell, in the boys Under-12 age group, also had two wins
in his individual races; he claimed the 25m breastroke and freestyle by a
convincing margin and is improving all the time. Sewell's breastroke looks
to be his speciality, and he used this to good effect in the relay events where
the tem of Ben Godercharle, Callum Griffin and Paul Longman won both the medley
and freestyle events.
Other individual Watford wins came from Ben Davies in the Under13
50m breastroke and Hazel Pickford in the Under-12 25m freestyle. A really encouraging sight for the squad were the victories for
the youngest swimmers, the boys Under-10 team of Kit Burdon, Mark Insley, Lewis
Bingley and William Hardcastle-Foster. The quartet teamed up to win both
their relays in great fashion, and already look like having a good swimming
career ahead of them.
14.05.04
Watford Juniors got their Hertfordshire Peanuts
Division Two campaign off to the best possible start after victory in the
opening gala of the season at Stevenage.
Bend Davies chalked up Watford's first victory of
the night in the Under-13 breaststroke, coming home in 45.83. Hazel Pickford and Andrew Sewell made it a double
victory in the Under-12 25m breaststroke, Sewell also teamed up with Ben
Goldercharle, Callum Griffin and Paul Longman to take the Under-12 medley.
Melissa Park impressed in the Under-12 25m
butterfly, before Lizzie Varry took the Under-13 50m flystroke in a time of
39.70. The other individual win came from Miles McLeod in the Under-13 50m
freestyle, who won with a time of 34.25.
In the Under-10 section, the girls team of
Rebecca Foley, Hollie Cains, Emily Kliewer and Krystyna Waterhouse took third
and fourth in the free and medley events while Kit Burden, Oliver Quint, Lewis
Bingley and William Hardcastle-Foster won the freestyle relay, before finishing
runners-up in the medley.
Watford took the victory by a five-point margin,
just ahead of Hemel.
30.04.04
WATFORD'S swimmers finished this year's
Herts League competition on a positive note, with both teams performing well in
their final galas.
The A team, swimming at Potters Bar, had done
exceptionally well to reach the final of the top division for the first time in
18 years, and were facing the leading teams in the county. The squad
performed well in what was always going to be a tough event, and eventually
claimed sixth position in the League.
The Under-14 boys quartet of Adam Raw, Matt King,
Dean White and Toby Hosker were the top Watford performers on the night; the
boys claimed second and third in their respective relays, and all took third
places in their individual events. Ben Dollard took the runners-up spot in
the men's open 100m butterfly (1.02.32), and followed this up with a third in
the open 100m freestyle (55.89).
For the girls young Hazel Pickford stood out.
She continues to improve and was placed third in both her individual events, the
Under-12 50m backstroke (40.90) and 50m breastroke (47.73), as well as swimming
two excellent relay legs. Other performers of note were Stacy Rafferty
(1.15.85) and Hannah Lewis (1.23.78), who both recorded new personal best times
in their 100m backstroke events to come third.
Meanwhile, the B team were involved in an
exciting gala at Haileybury, which was to determine the winners of Division
Three.
The squad had done superbly in winning both the
previous round, and were top seeded going into the final. Unfortunately,
they could not manage to win this time, eventually finishing runners-up to
Stevenage, but still had the big consolation of promotion to Division Two.
The squad managed to win 12 out of the 49 events,
and were runners-up in a further 13; enough to give Watford 128 points, only 22
behind Stevenage, with the other teams well beaten. Individual winners for the squad were Rachel
Williams (Under-16 50m butterfly), Katrina Clark (Under-14 50m freestyle), Emily
Ginty (Under-14 50m backstroke), Matt Ginty (open 100m freestyle and 100m
backstroke), Chris Longman (Under-14 50m breastroke) and Luke Rogers (open 50m
butterfly).
02.04.04
THE final sessions of this year's County
Championships were held at Borehamwood at the weekend, and Watford's swimmers
added another 11 medals to their impressive haul.
Hazel Pickford, ten, got the meet off to a great
start with an excellent silver medal in the 200m backstroke and bronze in the
400m freestyle. Breastroke specialist Lauren Simmons, 14,
returned to form, taking a medal in both the 100m and 200m events. Her
time of 1.22.95 was a new Under-15 club record in the 100m, and won her the
silver, and she took bronze in the 200m with a time of 3.04.05.
Hayley Duncan also won tow medals in the 17-year
freestyle events, taking gold in the 100m (1.05.27), and silver in the 50m
(30.52). Ben Dollard claimed silver in the 16-year 100m
backstroke with a time of 1.05.13; team-mate Adam Collins took bronze in the
same event (1.07.78), and he also won a silver in the 200m back (2.27.74). The final medals won were both bronzes, and went
to Lance Owide in the 13-year 200m backstroke (2.47.10), and Mark Cuthbert in
the 16-year 200m individual medley (2.33.19).
26.03.04
WATFORD SWIMMING CLUB took their total of medals won at
this year's County Championships to 23, with another good set of results at the
two sessions held last weekend.
Twelve-year-old Matthew King claimed an excellent silver at the Friday evening
session held at Hemel Hempstead in the 50m breastroke. He swam a fast
40.02 to win his first county medal, in his very first year at the club.
In the longest event in swimming, the 1,500m freestyle, Watford only had three
competitors entered in what is a speciality event, but all performed well.
Adam Raw took fifth place in the 12-year race, Lance Owide claimed fourth in the
13 years and Mark Cuthbert won a silver medal in the 16 years. Cuthbert also won
another silver in the other distance freestyle event on the Saturday, stopping
the clock at 4.36.98 in the 400m race.
The final medals won on Saturday were both bronzes. Yasmin Alland, 13 took
hers with a gritty swim in the gruelling 200m butterfly (2.51.71), and
14-year-old Kerry Cuthbert continued her fine set of results, winning her fourth
medal at this year's Championships in the 200m freestyle (2.22.89) for a new
Under-15 club record.
The standard at this year's Championships has been exceptional and this was
highlighted in the boys 13-year 100m freestyle, where Watford's Matt Toothill
swam a three-second personal best of 1.03.97, but could only manage a sixth
place.
19.03.04
WATFORD'S swimmers continued their good showing at this
year's County Championships with a further six medals - two gold's and four
bronzes - at the latest session, held at Borehamwood on Saturday.
Ben Dollard was involved in a tremendous race in the Boys 16-year 200m
freestyle, powering down the last 50m to take joint first place with an
excellent time of 1.59.99, a new club record. Team-mate Mark Cuthbert took
bronze in the same event, recording 2.08.76.
Hayley Duncan added another gold in the 17-year 100m butterfly in a time of
1.13.47. Matt Toothill, 13, also swam the same event, and he recorded a
three-second personal best of 1.11.06 to take a fine bronze. Kerry Cuthbert
added another medal to her collection, a bronze, in the 14-year Girls 400m
freestyle, and the final medal won on the night went to 11-year-old Carolyn
Astbury, claiming her first ever County medal, a bronze in the 200m freestyle
(2.40.36). Astbury also swam in the 100m backstroke where she finished
fifth.
Andrew Sewell has been swimming really well at the Championships in his first
year at the club, and he was agonisingly just outside the medals in the ten-year
boys 200m breastroke. His time of 3.24.06 was just six-hundredths behind
the bronze medal.
12.03.04
WATFORD'S swimmers have been picking up the medals
at the Herts Age Group Championships at the University of Herts in Hatfield.
Adam Raw got Watford Swimming Club off to a flying start
with a controlled swim in the Boys Under-12's 400m free, touching home in 5.2106
to take bronze. Mark Cuthbert added another bronze in the Boys Under-16's
200m breastroke with a time of 2.50.57 before Hayley Duncan won Watford's first
gold of the competition in the Girls Under-17's 200m flystroke (2.45.47).
Team-mate Kerry Cuthbert took silver in the same event with a time of 2.48.95.
Ben Dollard also took gold in the Boys Under-16's 100m
Free with a fast 54.93 while newcomer Elizabeth Barry swam a personal best of
74.96 to take bronze in the Girls Under-11's 100m free. Luren Owide earned her first ever county medal in the
Girls Under-11's 800m free, clocking 12.09.94 to take silver, while 14-year-old
Kerry Cuthbert also won silver, in the Girl's Under-14's 800m with a time of
10.20.76. Dollard added another medal to his collection in the Boys
Under-16's 50m free after his time of 26.03 while Adam Raw also grabbed silver
following his performance in the Boys Under-12's flystroke after clocking
3.08.30. Watford's final medal came in the Girls Under-14's
individual medley where Stacey Rafferty's time of 2.44.27 was good enough for
third. Spare a thought for Lauren Simmons in the same event though; she
swam 2.44.84 in her heat but only finished sixth.
20.02.04
WATFORD'S swimmers were in action in the Second
Round of the Herts League on Saturday and both teams enjoyed a successful
evening.
The A team, swimming at Biggleswade, were involved in a very exciting gala.
The lead changed hands several times between Watford, Potters Bar and Cheshunt
A, and going into the final event, the squadron relay, only four points
separated the three teams. However, an unfortunate disqualification for a
faulty start by the Watford team meant that Cheshunt won the gala, with Watford
and Potters Bar sharing second place, only six points behind.
Adam Raw, for the boys, and Hayley Duncan, for the girls, led the way for the
team with two individual wins apiece. Raw took both the Under-14 100m
butterfly and breastroke, with Duncan taking both the open 100m butterfly and
backstroke. Raw also teamed up with Dean White, Nick Hardman and Toby
Hosker to win both Under-14 relay events in tremendous style. Other Watford
winners were Matt Toothill in the Under-16 100m butterfly, Ben Dollard in the
open 100m butterfly, and the open 200m medley team of Dollard, Mark Cuthbert,
Adam Collins and Adam Bowden. This quartet also posted a new club record
in the open 200m freestyle team, with a time of 1.47.58.
Over at Haileybury, the B team had another superb result, winning their gala by
more than 40 points to consolidate their position at the top of Division Three.
The squad won an impressive 22 out of the 49 events, there were several new
personal bests, and things look good for promotion in the final gala in April.
Rachel Williams and Luke Rogers both stood out, winning two individuals each.
Rogers smashed the minute barrier in the open 100m freestyle, and also took the
50m butterfly, while Williams won both Under-16 50m butterfly and freestyle.
The other individual winners were Kim Cox (open 100m freestyle), Louise Collins
(open 100m backstroke), Elizabeth Berry (Under-14 50m butterfly), Charlotte
Webber-Rosewall (Under-16 50m backstroke), Ben Davies (Under-14 50m backstroke),
Matt Ginty (open 100m backstroke, Chris Longman (Under-14 50m breastroke) and
Eiry Elvie (Under-16 50m butterfly)
16.01.04
WATFORD'S swimmers were in action at the weekend,
competing in the First Round of this year's Herts League.
The A team, swimming at Biggleswade, were in a tough gala in Division One, and
eventually finished in in fifth place. There were several encouraging
performances on the night, although coming straight after the Christmas break,
the majority of the squad did not achieve personal best times.
Ben Dollard, 16, led the way for the team, winning both his individual events -
the open 100m butterfly and freestyle - in convincing fashion. There were
also victories for Dean White and Adam Raw in the Under-14 100m breastroke and
backstroke respectively, and these two teamed up with Toby Hosker and Nick
Hardman to take the Under-14 medley relay team event. Watford's only other
winner on the night was Jessica Sullivan who was swimming in her first A team
gala. She showed good technique to take the Under -12 50m breastroke in
a fast 48.38, and her team-mate Hazel Pickford also swam well, gaining second
and third in her two individual events, the Under-12 50m freestyle and
backstroke.
Meanwhile at Hitchin, the B team had an excellent result in their Division Three
gals, winning an astonishing 18 races, and finishing runners-up in a further 16
out of the 49 events. It was difficult to choose a best swimmer on the night, as
the whole squad performed so well, with many swimming up in age groups.
The following achieved and individual win: Kim Cox (open 100m breastroke), Julia
Petchey (open 100m backstroke), Michaela White (Under-12 breastroke), Amy
Callanan (Under-14 50m butterfly), Katrina Clark (Under-14 50m freestyle),
Rachel Williams (Under-16 50m breastroke), Luke Rogers (open 100m freestyle),
Billy O'Neill (Uner-14 50m freestyle) and Ben Davies (Under-14 50m backstroke).
After winning this gala, the B team now sit in top position in Division Three,
and, at this early stage, are looking promising for promotion.