St Margaret’s Prep was thrilled to hear that their Year 5 and 6 girls had qualified as the fastest 8 x 25m Small Schools Freestyle Relay Team in the IAPS National Swimming Finals.
The girls from the Calne school gained qualification having hosted the Regional Finals, with seven other schools in attendance. They headed to the Aquatics Centre in London to compete in what proved to be a fantastic day of racing. More than 1,500 pupils took part in the finals over 53 heats, with thousands of supporters cheering them on.
Since learning of their qualification, the team trained hard during curriculum swim time and squad sessions, under the watchful eye of Mrs Sophie White, Head of Girls’ Games, and Mrs Nikki Harris, Senior Swim Coach. They focused on improving their technique when diving, underwater phases, finishes and changeovers.
The girls competed in the very first event of the day, and the atmosphere was electric. They produced a gold-winning performance, where all their hard work and dedication came together in an exciting race.
Mrs White saif, “It was wonderful to see how proud they were to represent their school and the sense of pride shown on receipt of their team trophy and individual medals. The girls now sport their IAPS hooded jumpers, hats and t-shirt’s as lasting mementos.”
Since the Finals, Mrs Harris has also impressively set the new British Record for the 50m Freestyle, in her age group, at the British Master’s Championships – what better role model for St Margaret’s swimmers!