Thirteen local swimmers from Enniskillen Lakelanders travelled to the Aurora Aquatic & Leisure Complex, Bangor to compete in Round Two of Swim Ulster’s ‘Aspiring Champions’ Meet Series on March 18-19. This spectacular 50m pool was the perfect venue for the many challenging events the Fermanagh swimmers were eager to dive into over the weekend.

Senan Burke (15) picked up new PBs in both 100m Breaststroke and 100m Freestyle.

Kiril Chursin (17) gained a new PB in the 50m Breaststroke along with a Qualifying time for the Summer Nationals. He followed up with more PBs in 50m Freestyle, 100m Breaststroke and 50m Butterfly.

Ellie Dunlop (14) demonstrated the fantastic results of dedicated training with top three finishes in all four of her events. She placed second in the 100m Breaststroke, first in the 50m Breaststroke, third in the 200m Individual Medley along with a 3s PB. Ellie hit the wall in second place in the 200m Breaststroke event to finish a great weekend of further Irish National qualification times. Delighted Ellie also had the opportunity to compete along side Olympian and Irish record holder Danielle Hill in her 50m Breaststroke heat.

Hayden James (16) had a very successful meet.

He earned himself a 3.96s PB in the 200m Freestyle, finishing in fifth place. He took a whopping 5s off his 400m Freestyle PB placing second.

On Sunday, Hayden swam the 100m Freestyle finishing in ninth place. He went on to make a fantastic first attempt at the gruelling 1500m Freestyle where he placed fifth.

Hayden was very satisfied with his progress which resulted in qualifying times for both Ulster Long Course Championships in April and Irish Summer Nationals in July.

Vita Lavrenova (16) picked up new PBs in the 100m Freestyle and the 50m Butterfly events.

Hannah Lynch (14) competed in six events achieving four new PBs and five new qualifying times for Irish Nationals. Hannah placed first in both the 200m Backstroke and 400m Freestyle and third in the 200m Freestyle.

Anna Mc Dade (16), competing in the over 17 age group, swam four long course PBs, to place first and second in 100m and 200m Breaststroke respectively. A top five place in 200m Individual Medley and top 10 finish in 100m Freestyle secured qualifying times for Ulster long course and summer nationals.

Younger sister Kate Mc Dade (14), was in superb form, demonstrating versatility across a range of strokes she smashed PBs in seven events, achieving top 10 finishes in the highly competitive 15-16 year old category. Most notable were in the Breaststroke securing second place finishes across three events.

PBs in 200m Individual Medley, 100m and 200m Freestyle, have added to the tally of qualifying times for Ulster long course and summer nationals. An impressive weekend’s swimming for the McDade sisters.

James Mongan (16) reaped the rewards of his hard work in training, competing in six events over the two day meet. He shaved 3s off his 200m Freestyle PB, maintained his time in the 100m Backstroke, took a massive 17s off his 200m Breaststroke PB, maintained his 100m Breaststroke and 100m Freestyle times and finished his weekend on a high with a 19s PB in the 200m Backstroke event, adding to his growing collection of Qualifying times for Ulster Long Course Championships and ‘consideration’ times for the Summer National competitions.

Ava Neal (13) enjoyed her first long course meet, achieving a PB of 1.79s in the 100m Breaststroke, and another PB in the 100m Freestyle.

Niamh O’Donnell (15) competed in six events across the weekend. She took 3s off her 50m Butterfly PB, 3s off her 100m Backstroke PB, 6s off her 200m Individual Medley time and gained another PB in the 50m Freestyle. Niamh was also pleased to gain qualifying times for the Ulster LC Championships and ‘consideration’ times for Irish Nationals in two events over the meet.

Erin Salcedo (13) competed in four events and picked up new PBs in 200m Freestyle, 200m Individual Medley and 100m Backstroke.

Conal Walker (15) was delighted with his performance, he achieved PBs in both 100m Breaststroke and 100m Freestyle and maintained his time in the 50m Backstroke.

The swimmers’ families expressed their gratitude and praise for the coaching team led by Head Coach Ben Wiffen and the club volunteers who helped out over the two days. They hailed the 13 swimmers who demonstrated the fruits of committed training in the weeks and months leading up to this Meet. Another successful weekend for the Lakelanders, representing the South-West region in Bangor. Many of these swimmers will travel to Dublin to compete in the Irish Minor Schools’ Championship next weekend and we wish them well as they represent their schools at this National competition.

 

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