Congratulations to Georgia Harris and Henry Choong, who have both been selected to attend the Kent County Development Camp in February ! To have two younger swimmers there is a fantastic achievement. The development Camp runs alongside the Kent Camp for County swimmers and Congratulations also to Matt Brown ,Bryonnie Newing and Oliver Coe for their selection to this Camp. Well done!
Orpington Ojays yet again exceeded expectations in the final round of the National Swimming League held at Maidstone. With a number of swimmers still recovering from illness and some key swimmers unavailable, confidence was still high from previous rounds as we faced the following swimming clubs; Chelmsford, Black Lion, Hasting Seagulls, Woking & Croydon. Emily Coe got us off to a brilliant start with a win in the first race, things continued well and the first points update had us in 3rd position! Further inspiration came from nine 1st places; Emily Coe(2), Henry Choong (2), Emily Davison, Bryonnie Newing, Mike Bond, Matt Perkins, Mens Open FC relay. It also came from 11 individual PB’s from Emily Coe, Holly Baronti(2), Emily Davison, Ellie Miller, James Lawrence, Mike Bond, Matt Brown, Henry Choong, Saffron Salih & Chris Miles . These coupled with good strong swims from all of the team including the exciting win in the final event, ensured that a comfortable 3rd position was secured at the end of the night. 1st Croydon Amphibians – 218 2nd Black Lion - 217 3rd Orpington Ojays- 175 4th Chelmsford - 155 5th= Hastings - 142 5th= Woking - 142 This has left the club in overall 4th position in the Division 1 League 4 places higher than last year! Well done to all swimmers that have competed in the Speedo League this year – you have done the club proud. Thanks also to all those that have supported the club throughout; on poolside, in the organisation and in the gallery – a great team performance!
Unfortunately Platinum junior and senior training has had to be cancelled tonight . There will be no training at Sevenoaks. Training as normal tomorrow (Friday).
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Click here to read about RSS Feeds on the BBCConrgatulatoins to Saffron Salih (Top Squad) who came 2nd in the Schools biathlon last Sunday. She also won her age group at the National Schools cross country the previous weekend. She also has her trophy from her first place when she represented GB in the Pentathlon in Portugal earlier in the year. Well done!
The second round of the National Swimming League saw the B team at the Beckenham Spa again, but missing quite a few swimmers due to several last minute withdrawals, and a panicking coach as so many people turned up late. This unfortunately meant lots of swimmers having to swim up an age group and some having to swim several individual events. Therefore special mention must go to Jessica Page simply for being the only one in her age group and to Holly Andrews for swimming the 100m BS up a group. Sadly we had no one to swim the 100m BF in that age group. In our relays, we had stronger 11/u girls team, but with so many of them swimming double the number of relays, expectations were low. However out of 16 relays, 4 of our teams managed to go faster than last time – Well Done! We also had 13 PB’s – Angelo Mitakos, Michael Jacobs, Holly Andrews, Tom Blundell (2), Ashton Rowntree, Alexis Skitini, Joseph Milward, Jack Herbert, David Johansen, Jessica Page, Shane Lavender and Emma Blundell. Excellent work,well done. We had some fantastic swims, congratulations go the following swimmers on a top 4 finish: Rachel Dickerson (3rd) 100m I.M and (2nd) 100m BC; Ladies Open 200m Medley relay (2nd); Michael Jacobs (3rd) 50m BF; Holly Lumm (1st) 100m BF and (4th) 100m BS, Emma Blundell (3rd) 100m BS, James Briggs (4th) 100m FC and the Ladies Open 6 x 50m FC relay (2nd). The final results were: 356pts - Beckenham ‘B’ 306pts - White Oak 226pts - Black Lions B 218pts - Sevenoaks ‘B’ 188pts - Barracuda 179pts - Croydon Amphibians B 173pts - Eltham Stingrays 126pts - Orpington Ojays B Many thanks to the Parent helpers, particularly Debbie May for stepping in to be timekeeper literally at the last minute.
Click here for the resultsThis event is specifically designed for younger swimmers (10-12yrs) that haven’t competed previously in County Championships but would like to gain experience swimming against others swimmers across the county. Only eight swimmers (Shauna Hancock, Georgia Harris, Jessica Frankland, Holly Baronti, Elizabeth Bennett, Benjamin Coe, Alex Miller & Joseph Gaster) represented the swimming club this year but all competed with a very positive attitude and each achieved at least one personal best time. Three swimmers also gained medals for top 3 placings in their age groups; Georgia Harris 1st 50m Butterfly, Joseph Gaster 2nd 50m Butterfly & Alex Miller 3rd 50m Breaststroke. Well done to all of you !
Lifted by the excellent result in round 1 we travelled to Bexleyheath for the next round with a positive frame of mind. We were due to compete against the following clubs; Croydon Amphibians, East Grinstead, Braintree And Bocking, 1066 and Bromley. Emily Coe set the ball rolling with a win in the first event in a personal best time and from then on the rest of the team never looked back! A further 14 first place positions were achieved (Emily Coe(2), Henry Choong(2), Emily Davison, Oliver Coe (2), Matthew Brown(2), James Lawrence, Bryonnie Newing, Boys 15U FC and Med relays, Ladies Open Med relay, Mens Open Med relay). There were also 17 personal best times (Emily Coe (2), Henry Choong(2), James May, Katie Davis, Oliver Coe(2), Jessica Frankland, Joseph Gaster, Sam Harvey, Mike Bond, Saffron Salih(2), Matthew Brown, James Lawrence, Holly Baronti). Twelve relays also swam faster than the previous round! All these fantastic swims resulted on a very impressive result on the night ensuring a top six position for the final round. Final Points; 1st Croydon 245 2nd Orpington Ojays 212 3rd East Grinstead 170 4th Braintree & Bocking 144.5 5th Bromley 140 6th 1066 138.5 Well done to all that swam – a fantastic achievement overall
Congratulations to all OOJSC swimmers who took part in the Bromley Swimming Championships on Sunday 26th October at Beckenham Spa. At a particularly strong gala including swimmers from Beckenham and Bromley some great results were achieved, notably- Girls 10 years Georgia Harris - one 1st place and two 3rds Girls 11/12 years Sophie Livett - one 2nd and one 3rd Holly Barontii - one 2nd place Boys 11/12 years Henry Choong - three 2nd places Joseph Gaster - one 2nd and one 3rd place Boys 13/14 years Shane Lavender - one 1st and three 2nd places Boys 15 and over Jack Quinn one 1st, one 2nd and one 3rd Well done guys and thanks to all the parents who helped on the day.
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Well done to Alison Nye who took part in the Medway ASA Masters’ at Black Lion Leisure Centre on Sunday 19th October 2008. Alison Nye came 1st in the 50m Freestyle time 31.00, 1st in the 50m Breastroke time 38.5, 1st in the 50m Butterfly time 34.1, 1st in the 4 x 1 Medley time 1.20.00 and 2nd in the 100m Breastroke time 1.29.00. Also good luck to Alison who will also be taking part in the ASA National Masters & Senior Age Groups Championships in Sheffield this weekend. Nick Masters Coach
Just in the nick of time ,with barely any time to spare we arrived at Elmbridge Excel Leisure centre. Due to accidents on the M25 and long diversions, we only managed a short warm-up, as we arrived so late. We had a tough draw for this first round, we were competing against Black Lion A , Croydon A, Elmbridge, Dover Lifeguards and Epsom district. We had to bring in some replacement swimmers at the last minute, due to sickness. As the night progressed we began to put all these things behind us and we managed to surpass last years result in the first round. We managed to gain 12 personal best times for the following swimmers, Emily Coe, Emily Davison (2), Katie Davis, Oliver Coe (2), Joseph Gaster, Mike Bond, Saffron Salih (2), Henry Choong and James May. There were also 7 first places for the following, Henry Choong (2), Katie Davis, Matt Perkins, Mike Bond, James Lawrence and Oliver Coe. We were unlucky to be placed 2nd in another 11 events but there is a good chance we can convert these to more first places in the next round. Overall the team performed beyond expectation and we are continuing to show signs of steady improvement. Big thanks to David Johansen for stepping in at the last minute (literally!). Final placings and points were 1st Black Lion A 224 2nd Croydon A 207.5 3rd Orpington Ojays A 179.5 4th Elmbridge 148 5th Dover 147 6th Epsom 143 Well Done Everyone ! Next round November 8th Crook Log , Bexleyheath, warm –up 6.45pm
For the first time in a few years, we entered a ‘B’ team for the Speedo League, and not without incident. Not only was the coach late to the Spa (tut tut), but the parents helping out had a bit of shock when they were told the team should have been at Trinity pool! In the first of 3 rounds we were drawn at the Beckenham Spa against 7 other teams, 5 of them were A teams. The competition was tough for our swimmers, but they all battled extremely well throughout the evening. Straight away Beckenham got off to a flying start and won nearly all the races. From the start we were in 7th place, ahead of Edenbridge Piranha’s ‘A’ team where we stayed all the way through. The team spirit was fantastic with everyone cheering everyone else on. We had some fantastic swims, congratulations go the following swimmers on a top 4 finish: Rachel Dickerson (4th) 100m I.M + 100m BC; Ladies Open 200m Medley relay (4th); Georgia Harris (3rd) 50m BC; Alexis Skitini (4th) 100m BC; Holly Lumm (2nd) 100m BF; Sophie Blundell (4th) 50m BS; Nicole Cheetham (4th) 100m BS; Sarah May (3rd) 100m FC and Ladies Open 200m freestyle relay (4th) Congratulations to the following swimmers for their PB’s (some of them were huge!) - Rachel Dickerson, James Briggs, Georgia Harris, Shauna Hancock, Tom Blundell, Ellen Cheetham (2), Jessica Page, Lewis Groombridge, Emma Blundell, Nick Blackler, Sophie Blundell, Lara Ashley, Shane Lavender, Chloe Ashley, Michael Jacobs, Ben Garwood, Jack Herbert. The final results were: 348pts - Beckenham ‘B’ 288pts - Hythe Aqua 251pts - Maidstone 250pts - Sevenoaks ‘B’ 204pts - Larkfield 189pts - Barracuda 133pts - Orpington Ojays ‘B’ 123pts - Edenbridge Piranha’s Many thanks to the parents for helping out, finding missing swimmers, organising the warm-up and generally doing a bit more than they bargained for. Bring on round 2 (the coach will be on time this time....). Well Done
Orpington Ojays sealed an overall League win with a emphatic win in the final round of the White Horse League which the club hosted at Crook Log. The team achieved 40 first or second places out of 49 events! This resulted in a 74 point lead at the end of the evening. Nine swimmers gained 11 individual p.b`s; they were Holly Baronti, James May (2) , Oliver Coe (2), Jessica Frankland, Joseph Gaster, Saffron Salih, Clare Folkes, Joe Heaney and Emily Coe. There were 18 first places for the following swimmers ; Holly Baronti, Henry Choong (2), Oliver Coe (2), Matt Perkins, Saffron Salih (2), Katherine Nye, Emily Morgan, Alex Miller, Emily Coe and James May. Everyone swam well throughout each round. On the announcement of us picking up the League Trophy the whole team celebrated by jumping into the pool ,with the Trophy ! Congratulations to everyone who took part in the galas – You all deserved the win ! Well Done I am very proud of you all . Simon
After gaining 4th place in the first round of this competition hopes were high for a repeat performance. However, with 2 swimmers not turning up concerns quickly crept in. Swimming got underway and after the first set of results were read out we were in 4th place. Considering we had to withdraw from 2 events due to lack of swimmers things looked very encouraging. 12 events later we were up to 3rd place through some very strong swims and big PB’s by many swimmers. Against all odds 3rd was where we stayed for the remainder of the gala which was a fantastic achievement. As a club we improved 33 of our times out of 49 events. Special thanks must go to Joseph Gaster and Henry Choong who between them swam in 9 events each. Also thank you to Holly Andrews and Tom Blundell who stepped in last minute. Next round is hosted by us on 15th November please make sure everyone is available, team sheet will follow shortly.
Over eighty swimmers across the club attended this year's Captain's Gala. One team was alloted to each of the (5) club captains and vice-captains. They were; Lightning Legget's, Team Briggs, Oli's Olympians, Emily & Co. and Sarah's Superstars. Swimmers swam across 3 age groups 10& under, 14& under and Open. Throughout the afternoon the each team competed valiantly with the lead changing hands on a number of times between most of the teams. 65 personal best times were achieved in an exciting afternoon and all enjoyed the Captain's challenging the parents and coaches to a relay race in which they were victorious. At the end of the day Emily & Co. won by a narrow points margin. Well done to all those that competed; swimmers, coaches and parents as well as all those who helped to make an exciting and fun afternoon!
The first gala of the season began with the penultimate round of the White Horse League held at Crook Log pool Bexleyheath. We still needed a strong performance to maintain our overall lead in the league. There had to be some last minute team alterations (due to swimmers unavailability) however yet again everyone delivered a very fine performance on the night against strong opposition especially from a rejuvenated Beckenham team. We achieved 12 first places; Henry Choong (2), Katie Davis, Oliver Coe (2), Joseph Gaster, Mike Bond , James Lawrence, Emily Coe, Mens Open Medley & Free relay and Ladies Open Medley Relay. 8 Personal best times were gained by James May (2), Joseph Gaster, Sam Harvey (2), Holly Baronti, Henry Choong and Charlotte Smith. Throughout the evening Orpington and Beckenham were out in front, tussling to gain the lead resulting in the final positions. 1st Beckenham - 263.5 2nd Orpington Ojays - 251 3rd Greenwich Borough Mariners - 208 4th Erith - 200.5 5th Bromley - 187 6th White Oak - 167 7th Eltham – 84 Gravesend & Northfleet DNS Well done to everyone and thank you to Jessica Frankland and Holly Andrews for stepping in at the last minute!
Oliver Coe qualified for his first National championships in two events (100m & 200m Backstroke). These events would take place over two days. Expectations were to gain personal best times and invaluable experience competing at this level. Being ranked 12th and 14th in his age group would mean qualifying for the finals would be difficult. On the Friday morning Oliver surprised everyone by swimming the 100m heat in a really impressive time of 1.05.88 (a two second PB!) and qualified sixth fastest for the final during which he came a creditable 8th place. The following day the he swam in the heats for the 200m Backstroke again achieving a personal best time of 2.24.44. This however didn’t prove fast enough to make the final but an excellent swim nonetheless. Overall the weekend proved a big success with fantastic results. Well done Oliver your commitment and hard work over the past few months have really paid off!
We entered a ‘B’ Team for this gala hosted by Dartford Swimming Club. This gala gave swimmers who don’t normally swim in `A` team galas a chance to compete, and it also gave the `A` team selected swimmers chances to compete in alternative events. Unfortunately due to the time of year, the original team had to be re-selected several times as some swimmers were unavailable. However the final team did brilliantly. In all we won 15 events, and achieved 29 personal best times. As the final points were read out we were surprised to hear that we were only in 3rd position. First place positions were achieved by Sam Harvey, Katie Davis (2), Georgia Harris (2), Jack Dickerson, James Lawrence, James May (2), Joe Heaney (2), Holly Andrews, Rachel Dickerson, Oliver Coe and the 16/u Mixed Medley Relay. Personal best times were achieved by Sam Harvey, Katie Davis (2), Michael Jacobs (2), Georgia Harris (2), Jack Dickerson (2), Ashton Rowntree (2), Ellie Miller (2), Joseph Gaster , Jessica Frankland (2), Joe Heaney (2), James May, Henry Matthews, Holly Andrews (2), Lewis Groombridge, Shauna Hancock, Oliver Coe, Rachel Dickerson, Sophie Blundell, Jack Herbert and Lara Ashley. The final points were 1st Dartford Blue 230 2nd White Oak 219 3rd Orpington Ojays 215 4th Edenbridge Piranhas 126 5th Dartford White 118 Well Done to everyone who competed!
A big Thank you to Sarah and Nick Davis for organising the barbecue and to Nick Harvey and Steve (the Chefs of the club) for cooking such tasty burgers, and so many of them as well! A brilliant afternoon was had by all who attended. One popular activity was the throw and catch the eggs relay! (eggs donated by Club Captain Oli Bates), followed by a much more sedate skipping relay and rounders.
With swimmers withdrawing at the last minute, and others on holiday , I was unsure of the possible outcome of this 4th round of the White Horse League. However with the participation of a couple of dedicated swimmers who can always be relied upon to swim with 24 hrs notice when others drop out, we managed to achieve one of our best performances and wins in this League. It was phenomenal! There were 14 first places, Mens Open Medley and Freestyle relay. Girls 11u Medley relay, boys 15u Medley relay, Katie Davis (2), Oli Coe (2), Henry Choong, Emily Morgan, Emily Coe, Holly Baronti, and Joseph Gaster, There were 14 pbs for the following swimmers Katie Davis (3), Holly Baronti (2), Jack Dickerson (2), Alise Cotton, Emily Morgan, Joe Heaney, Emily Coe, Joseph Gaster, Saffron Salih and Oli Coe. Final position 1st Orpington Ojays 310 points 2nd Beckenham B 282 3rd Bromley 261 4th Erith 251 5th Greenwich Borough Mariners 6th White Oak 206 7th Eltham Stingrays 181 Gravesend and Northfleet DNS This result enables us to extend our lead in the league. Special thanks to Georgia Harris and Ashton Rowntree for stepping in at very short notice. If you hadn`t swum we definitely wouldn`t have had such a comfortable win . Thank you and well done to everybody for great individual and team performances (including the hoarse parents/supporters in the gallery).
Click here for full results.Saturday 14th June saw us return to Crook Log for the 3rd round of the White Horse League. With a few absentees we had hoped to gain a minimum of third place to put us in good stead for the final points where we were currently placed 1st. We had a solid start to the gala with team spirit playing a large part along with some great performances from swimmers who don't usually get to compete in individual events. It took 25 events to secure a first place with Louise Davison and only three others followed with Joe Heaney in the 15/u 100m Freestyle and a PB, Emily Coe in the ladies open 100m Breaststroke and the girls 11/u medley relay team. As the points were read out we were placed in 2nd position which really shows how much depth we now have in the club and how well everyone is working and pulling together. There were many pb's achieved these include- Katie Coad (2), Louise Davison (2), Joe Heaney (2), Holly Baronti (2), Sophie Livett, Sam Harvey (2), Joseph Gaster, Lara Ashley.
The London Regional Championships are held each year from early May to early June. These Regional Championships are a step up from the Kent County Championships. Qualification times are tough and swimmers entering the London Regional Champs are aiming to achieve National entry times, in order to compete in the Nationals in Sheffield in July. The competition this year was held in Gurnell pool , Ealing and is always divided into 2 age groups; Youths (Girls 14yrs +, Boys 15yrs +) and BAGCATs (Girls 9-13yrs, Boys 9-14yrs). Considering the location of the pool and the fact that each day started with an 8am warm-up, meaning a 6.30am departure, it was good to see so many dedicated swimmers attending. This year 18 swimmers competed in 64 events. These 18 swimmers achieved 19 finalist placings, there were a number of exceptional swims. The finalists were Emily Coe ( 16yrs+ 50m breast, 100m breast, 200m breast), Rebecca Harvey,(14/15yrs 200m fly) Holly Lumm(16yrs+200m fly), Henry Choong (11yrs 200 back, 400 free, 100 back, 200 free), James Lawrence (14 yrs 200 IM, 800m free) , Oliver Coe (13 yrs 200 back,200 IM, 100 fly, 200 breast,100 breast, 100 back, 200 free) and Katie Davis (100 back). Medals were presented to swimmers who came 1st, 2nd or 3rd in their age groups. Oliver Coe exceeded all expectations by achieving a finalist place for every event he entered. He received 4 medals for the following, 1st place for 200 IM, 1st for 100m backstroke, 2nd for 200 back and 100 breast. (100m and 200m back were National qualifying times). We also entered relay teams in the 14 – 17 ladies age group in which the 4 x 200m freestyle relay team of Gemma Leggett, Rebecca Harvey, Katherine Nye and Emily Coe came 4th. At the end of the Championships (Bagcats), awards are made to swimmers who accumulate the highest number of points over the whole championship. Points are allocated to each swimmer for each swim. There are four categories (Sprint which is 100m swims, Form is 200m swims, IM is for medley swims and free is 200 free and above). A swimmer is automatically allocated points for each swim and their best results in each of the four categories are used towards their points total. This year three swimmers received awards, James Lawrence in the 14yrs came 8th. Henry Choong came 5th in the 11years age group. Oliver Coe came second in the 13yrs age group (narrowly missing first position). Well done to everyone who braved the early mornings and long days!
James, Angelo and Katie were at Gurnell pool in Ealing representing Bromley in the London Youth Games yesterday (21st June). There were strong swims from both the boys and girls but the girls went on to win the championship! Well done!
Swimmers who attended the Regional Champs at Gurnell Pool Ealing
Congratulations to Martha and Robert on the arrival of Albert John Dean. He arrived this morning (17th June) 8lb 1oz. Congratulations from everyone at Orpington Ojays x
Katherine Nye on her Masters debut came 1st in her age group in 5 events, and won outright the 50m and 100m. backstroke, and swum a PB in the 50m. breaststroke. 1st 50m. breaststroke,50m. butterfly,50m backstroke,100m. backstroke, 100m.IM. Gina Charlton won a bronze in the 100m. freestyle and swum a PB in the 100m Breaststroke. Alison Nye swam in 4 events and won 3 golds and a silver. Well Done Ladies!
Well done to all those that competed at Race Night. A record turnout of over fifty swimmers attended an enjoyable afternoon at Eltham College. There were excellent swims across all age groups and strokes. Thank you to everyone that organised the afternoon and those that volunteered on the day. Results will be posted on the notice board and website soon. (Don’t forget to compare your times with the ASA badge scheme to see if you are eligible for a new badge!)
Well done Alexis for winning the Jack Petchey award for April for your 5km Butterfly swim for Charity and also for your performance in recent Open events.
Congratulations Oliver who secured his 100m Backstroke national qualification time of 1.06.21 at the black lion open ! Well Done!!!!
Sevenoaks was the venue for the Edenbridge Trophy Gala. I wasn`t sure what to expect in terms of results for this gala as we had a team which comprised of largely inexperienced younger swimmers and we lacked some of our older experienced swimmers. However I was pleasantly surprised to see the number of pbs and first places we managed. There were 17 personal best times and these were achieved by the following swimmers, Sophie Livett (2), Joseph Gaster, Georgia Harris (3), Benjamin Coe (2), Ben Garwood (2), Lydia Goundry, Michael Jacobs (2), Katie Coad, Oliver Coe and Katie Davis. There were 19 first places achieved by Katherine Nye, Emily Davison, Oli Coe (2), Holy Lumm, Mike Bond, Emily Coe, Katie Davis (2), Gemma Leggett, Matt Steere, Georgia Harris and Michael Jacobs. The following relay teams came first, Breaststroke squadron, Open girls medley, Open boys Medley, Open boys freestyle, 14u boys freestyle and the12u girls freestyle. Normally these performances would have guaranteed us an overall win, but we were pipped at the post by Redhill and Reigate who beat us by 7 points. The final points score was as follows: 1st Redhill and Reigate 230 2nd Orpington Ojays 223 3rd Dartford 200 4th Edenbridge `A` 162 5th Sevenoaks 159 6th Edenbridge `B` 58 A special Thankyou and Congratulations to the following swimmers who swam for the first time in an away team gala – Kate Ridley, Lydia Goundry, Georgia Harris, Charlotte Gregory (whose birthday it was on the night!), Harry Harbard, David Johansen, Benjamin Coe, Michael Jacobs and James Adams. Well done everybody!
We are introducing Competitive Swimming Performance Awards for Gold, Silver and Bronze squads. These awards have been developed by the Amateur Swimming Association and are to encourage swimmers to strive and improve their swimming times.
Click here for more information (Adobe pdf format)Top squad had a fantastic time paintballing! Thanks to Oli B for organising it!
Eve Powis, 70, has been awarded the Jack Petchey leader award for outstanding work with young people. Eve has been actively involved in swimming in Orpington since 1982. She started coaching with what was then Orpington Swimming Club taking a width's squad. Two years later with just 19 swimmers she started a new club called Ojays, which stood for Orpington Juniors. She built this into a highly successful swimming club. One of her swimmers, Joanne Mullins, took the Gold medals in the Nationals in the 100m and 200m breaststroke at the age of 12. Under Eve's coaching she went on to compete at the Olympic Games and the 2002 Commonwealth Games. Eve's qualifications for teaching and coaching include ASA Preliminary Teacher, Teacher, Advanced Teacher, Assistant Club Coach and Coach and in 1997 Eve was awarded by Bromley Council the Coach of the Year award. With two big clubs in the Orpington area, Orpington Swimming Club and Ojays Swimming club decided to merge to form Orpington Ojays Swimming Club. Eve took the position of head coach of the new club and continued to enjoy great success. At the age of 65 she was going to retire from coaching but instead agreed to coach Gold squad instead who train four times a week. Congratulations Eve on all you have achieved and a big thank you from all the youngsters who have benefitted from your continual hard work and unswerving dedication.
This story is also available on the News Shopper wAnother successful night for the team at the second round of the White Horse league (Crook Log – Bexleyheath).It was very difficult to pick out individual swimmers as everybody swam so well. 18 individual personal best times were achieved; Henry Choong (2), James May (2), Oli Coe (2), Rebecca Harvey, Mike Bond, Holly Baronti (2),, Sam Harvey (2), Alise Cotton, James Lawrence, Emily Morgan, Alex Miller, Katie Coad and Joseph Gaster. We achieved 16 first places which helped us on our way to a staggering 320 point victory (56 points ahead of the team in 2nd place). The following swimmers managed first places Henry Choong (2),Emily Davison, Oli Coe (2), Mike Bond (2), James Lawrence, Emily Morgan and Alex Miller. Well done to Joseph Millward on swimming his first gala for Orpington Ojays , and Henry Choong for swimming up two age groups in the boys u15 medley relay ,which achieved a first place.
On Saturday 19th of April, Alexis Skitini and Jack Quinn both swam 5k of butterfly. That is a whopping 152 lengths of The Walnuts pool. The swim was part of the annual swimathon in aid of Marie Cure Cancer Care and between them they raised £700. Congratulations to you both; on the determination to swim it all butterfly and for raising a magnificent amount for charity.
http://www.swimathon.orgCongratulations to Jessica Page from Gold squad who received the Jack Petchey award for the Month of March, she was awarded this for her performance in recentOpen events, including the Orpington Open and Race night. Well done Jessica!
A fantastic weekend was had by Simon, Sarah, Emily,Oli, Benji and James at the World Championships. Highlights included watching the british team and others break so many records ( especially Liam Tancock), and also seeing Ellen Gandy swim in the final of the womens 100m fly.
As you can see the spring training camp is in full swing and everyone is working hard and enjoying themselves!
Orpington Ojays Swimming Club continued to perform at a high level last Sunday when they held their annual Open Meet at the Black Lion Leisure Centre in Gillingham. There was a fantastic atmosphere and more than 30 clubs attended with a total of more individual entries than last year. Orpington Ojays won the Trophy for Top performing club. Points for the Top five clubs were as follows; Orpington 191 points, Hastings 168.5 Croydon Amphibians 153.5 Canterbury 149 Herne Bay 74.5 This was a fantastic achievement as OOSC were competing against many of the larger swimming clubs in Kent. James Briggs and Emily Coe (Vice-Captains) received the Top Club Trophy from Kent County ASA President (Jennifer Verherevoort). There were a record number of personal best times and too many finalists too mention. However the following swimmers performed outstandingly well and picked up first medals in their age groups. Henry Choong (3), Oliver Coe (2) Matt Steere, James Lawrence, Mike Bond and Katie Coad. There were a huge amount of medals won by swimmers who achieved 2nd to 6th places. It was good to see a large number of younger swimmers, many of whom were attending an Open event for the first time. Well done to everyone!
This Months Award was presented to Lara Ashley by Club Captain Oli Bates.
Well done to all swimmers that attended Race Night at Eltham College yesterday. Swimmers from Tadpoles, Bronze, Silver & Gold competed well and gained valuable experience in an exciting afternoon. It was great to see so many younger swimmers doing so well. Thanks to coaches Alison and Matt, senior swimmers Oli, Katherine, Emily, James, Katie, Oliver, Gemma, Ellie, Angelo & Clare for their marshalling help. Thanks also to volunteers who helped with the timekeeping, officiating and organizing the afternoon. Eveyone who attended seemed to have an exciting afternoon. Times from this event will be posted on the noticeboard soon and ribbons will be handed out for the top 6 competitors in each age group on a club night. Simon
The final weekend of the Kent County Championships at Black Lion started with a victory for Katherine Nye, She came first in her age group in the 400 IM . Alise Cotton came 9th in the 200 metres freestyle in a pb time; Katie Davis came 8th in the same event in a pb time.Nicole Cheetham came 8th in the 50m breaststroke. Emily Coe came 3rd in the 50m breaststroke in a pb time; Clare Folkes came 12th and Rachel Dickerson 13th. Orpington Ojays had three entrants in the 200m backstroke they were Henry Choong, James Lawrence and Oliver Coe. James Lawrence came 5th with a Pb. Two more wins followed for Henry and Oliver, both with pb times. The afternoon session started with swimmers in the 100m breaststroke, James Lawrence, James May and Oliver Coe swam pb times and Oliver once again came first, James Lawrence (5th) and James May (4th). Four girls swam in the 100m breaststroke, Emily Coe achieved 3rd position, Nicole Cheetham came 8th, Clare came 8th and Rachel Dickerson came 12th. Henry Choong, Oli Coe and James Lawrence swam in 400m freestyle all achieving pbs, gaining 3rd, 5th, and 6th position respectively. The final morning on Sunday commenced with James Lawrence (3rd) in the 400 IM with a pb. In the 50m backstroke Oliver Bates swam a pb and came 6th, Joe Heaney came 8th in his age group. Two swimmers competed in the girls 200m freestyle, Emily Coe and Gemma Leggett. (Emily in a pb time) The afternoon started with boys 200m IM, with Henry Choong, Oliver Coe and James Lawrence taking part. They all achieved pbs and all came 4th in their age groups. The Mens 100m freestyle meant Oli Bates and Angelo Mitakos got pbs as did Emily Coe and Rachel Dickerson in the Ladies 50m freestyle Also swimming in that event were Gemma Leggett, Sarah May and Clare Folkes. We had. Henry Choong, James Lawrence and Oli Coe finishing their Championships with swims in the 50m butterfly. James and Henry came 6th and Oli came 7th. James and Oliver managed pb times. The last swimmer of the Championships for 2008 was Katie Davis in the 200m back stroke and she came 6th in a pb time. Henrys performance throughout these championships earned him the highest bagcat points in his age group and he was presented with a trophy by Jennifer Verhorevoort (ASA President) Orpington Ojays have achieved fabulous results over the past month. We have seen the dedication and training and commitment of all our swimmers pay off with so many pbs, finals, and first places. Outstanding performances of the Championships include 6 first places for Oliver Coe and 3 first places for Henry Choong. Katherine Nye won 3 events. Emily Coe and Mike Bond also managed to come away as county champions, meaning we have 14 County Championship titles in total. A fantastic achievement! James Lawrence and Emily Coe came away with 14 and 13 finalist medals respectively. It is noticeable, looking back through the programme that we have an increased number of swimmers in all events. We also had swimmers who hadn’t qualified in previous years, winning medals. (Katie Davis & Emily Morgan). Team support throughout the Championships was phenomenal, this obviously contributed to our success as a club. At midway through Sunday’s session, the Top Teams list was updated and Orpington Ojays girl’s team were in 9th position, the boy’s team were in 8th position. I am fairly confident that is going to be an indication of the final result. Well done to everyone and thanks to Gina and Matt for their poolside support throughout. Simon
Saturday 1st March Today we were at Black Lion for the relay events (normally held at Crystal Palace) :- We had relay teams entered for all events which is in itself a great achievement. All teams performed to their best ability and team spirit again was brilliant. We had six teams who made the finals and unluckily another 8 were either 1st or 2nd reserves ! The results are as follows:_ Women’s Open 400m freestyle team 9th 16u Boys 4 x50 Medley 6th 13/14 Girls 200m Freestyle 15th 13/14 Boys 200m freestyle team 10th 15/16 Girls 200m freestyle team 7th 12u Boys 200m freestyle team 8th 15/16 Boys 4 x 50m Medley 7th 12u Girls 4 x 50m Medley 17th Girls junior 200m freestyle team 8th Boys 16u 4 x 50 free 7th Mens Open 400m Medley team 4th Ladies Open 400m Medley team 7th Girls 13/14 200m freestyle 16th Boys 13/14 200m Medley team 6th Girls 15/16 200m Medley team 6th Girls 12u 200m freestyle team 19th Boys 12u 200m Medley team 7th Mens Open 400m freestyle team 3rd Boys 15/16 freestyle 6th Girls 16u 4 x 50medley 5th It was fantastic to have so many Orpington Ojays swimmers taking part in the relays. Well done to everyone! Particularly to the Mens Open team ,Mike Bond gave us a nail biting finish to Saturdays last race! Sunday 2nd March Again Black Lion hosted the next two sessions, and our success continued . Henry Choong and Oliver Coe both achieved first places in the 50m backstroke. James Lawrence achieved a 4th place in the 200m fly. Oliver Coe also achieved a 5th place in the 200 fly. Emily Coe came 6th in the 200 IM. Katherine Nye was placed 3rd in the 100 back. Mike Bond came first in both the 50m breast and 50m fly. Katie Davis came 2nd in 50m free and 3rd in 100m free. 15 personal bests were achieved by the following swimmers – Henry Choong, James Lawrence (3), Oliver Coe (3), Emily Coe, Mike Bond, Katie Davis (2), Alise Cotton ,Emily Davison, James May and Angelo Mitakos. There are so many achievements covering the whole weekend, they are difficult to list here, but everybody deserves a big pat on the back! Well done to everyone who took part!
About 20 swimmers from Bronze, Silver & Gold squads took part in this special clinic to improve their starts and turns. Everyone worked hard all afternoon and great improvements were noted by coaches and parents. Thanks to Matt, Sarah & Sarah for organising and delivering the clinic and to Alise, Rebecca, Oli, Katie & Emily from top squad that helped with demonstrations. Great work. Simon
Orpington Ojays had two swimmers in this event which was held at Crook Log pool, Bexleyheath. Both James Lawrence and Emily Coe had never competed in this distance previously but they exceeded everyones expectations by both attaining pbs and medal positions. James came 3rd in his age group and also picked up a 5th medal in the junior age group and a 6th medal in the Open age group. His time was 17.37.27 (a pb of over 60 secs). Emily came second in her age groupwith a 15 sec pb in a time of 18.56.93. A huge achievement for both James and Emily in such a tough event. Thank you to all the supporters.
The second session of the Championships was a great success for the club with excellent swims all round, resulting in 25 personal best times. Saturday16th Feb Saturday morning got off to a winning start for Orpington Ojays with Oliver Coe gaining a first place in the 200m breast stroke. Third positions were gained by Mike Bond (50m breast) and Henry Choong (200m breast), a 4th position (100m backstroke) for Katie Davis and 5th for James May and James Lawrence (200m breaststroke). In the afternoon another first place was gained by Emily Coe (200m breaststroke), 4th for Henry Choong (50m freestyle), 6th for Oliver Bates (100m back), 6th for James Lawrence (100m butterfly). There were in total 14 personal best times during Saturday. Sunday 17th Feb Sunday morning proved as successful as Saturday with first places for Katherine Nye (50m backstroke) and Oliver Coe (50m breaststroke). Other finalists included James Lawrence (2nd in 50m breastroke), Emily Davison (3rd in 50m breaststroke),Henry Choong (3rd in 200m freestyle), Emily Coe (5th in 400m freestyle) and Emily Morgan (5th in 50m breaststroke). Sunday afternoon again saw Katherine Nye first in 200m backstroke . Oliver Coe first in 100m backstroke, and first for Henry Choong in 100m IM. Other finalists included Oliver Coe (3rd in 100 IM), Rebecca Harvey (5th in 50m butterfly), Gemma Leggett (6th in 50m butterfly), Mike Bond (6th 50m freestyle) and Emily Coe (6th 200m backstroke). In total on Sunday swimmers managed 12 personal best times. In all, a thoroughly successful weekend which was well deserved by everyone. A full list of results will follow on the noticeboard and website soon.
Congratulations Rachel Dickerson on winning this Months award for her hard work in training and recent personal best performance times.
Orpington Ojays swimmers
Well done to all those swimmers who competed in the gala yesterday. It was great to see so many younger Orpington Ojays swimmers swimming really well and winning medals. This shows the club developing new and exciting talent. Fantastic!!! Thanks to all those who helped throughout the day.
The first day of the 2008 Championships began with the 800m event. Three Orpington Ojays swimmers competed in this event, they were Alise Cotton, Oliver Coe and James Lawrence. Although very nervous beforehand ,all three swimmers delivered performances to be proud of and all three returned with personal best times and medals. Alise came 5th in her age group with a time of 10.01.32, Oliver was 3rd in a time of 9.37.51 and James came 2nd with a time of 9.09.05. ( this would be a national qualifying time if it had been swum in a 50m pool!) What a great start to this years championships, lets hope this is the start of further success.
Well done to Oli Bates who represented Judd School. Their Medley relay team came 4th!
Over 280 people, celebrated swimmers successes from 2007, they and their families had an excellent evening at the Alexandra suite in Swanley. Club Championship trophies were presented by special guest and former coach Martha Feeley, followed by special trophies and the announcement of the 2008 Captains and Vice-Captains by Chairman Trevor Oliver. This was followed by the disco. Thank you to Sarah Davis for organising the evening and to Linda Baverstock for organising all the awards.More photos to follow.
This year the White Horse League included two new competitors, so we travelled to Crook Log pool looking forward to competing against all the league clubs including the two new ones. This year’s teams are, Beckenham B, Bromley, Eltham Stingrays, Erith, Gravesend and Northfleet, Greenwich Borough Mariners, Orpington Ojays and White Oak. Our performance on the night was the most exciting and strongest I have seen as Orpington Ojays Head Coach. As team performers we were outstanding. This was helped by 19 personal best performances from ; Emily Morgan (2), Henry Choong, Emily Davison (2), James May (2), Katie Davis, Oliver Coe, Holly Baronti, Sam Harvey (2), Mike Bond, Katie Coad (2), James Lawrence, Emily Coe, Joseph Gastor and Clare Folkes. These and other great swims ensured 16 1st places including; Henry Choong, Emily Davison, Oliver Coe (2), Matt Perkins, Mike Bond, Emily Morgan, James Lawrence, Emily Coe ,Matt Steere Boys 15U FS relay, Boys 15U Medley relay, Mens Open FS relay, Mens Open Medley relay, Girls 11U Medley and Mixed Squadron Relays. The final points provided us with a convincing victory:- 1st - Orpington Ojays 304 2nd - Bromley 267 3rd - Erith 248 4th - White Oak 247 5th - Beckenham B 205 6th – GBM 191 7th – Gravesend and Northfleet 167 8th - Eltham Stingrays 115 BRILLIANT!
Eleven Top Squad swimmers competed in 41 races at this years Grade 1 Licensed Open Meet held at the Kingsmead Leisure Centre, Canterbury. This popular and highly competitive meet, spread over 3 days, gives swimmers the chance to get an early taste of what they can and would like to achieve in 2008. Due to its close proximity to Christmas break personal best times are often quite difficult achieve, however throughout the weekend Orpington Ojays swimmers performed strongly with 15 personal best times were gained for James Lawrence, Rachel Dickerson (3), Nicole Cheetham, Emily Coe (2), Sam Harvey (2) and Oliver Coe (an outstanding 6!). As well as numerous PB’s a number of finalist trophies were awarded to the following; Emily Coe (1st 100m Breatstroke, 2nd 200m Breaststroke, 6th 200m Ind. Medley & 100m Freestyle), Gemma Leggett (6th 100m Butterfly & 200m Freestyle), Katherine Nye (3rd 200m Backstroke) and Oliver Coe (1st 100m Backstroke & 100m Breaststroke, 2nd 200m Backstroke & Breaststroke, 3rd 50m Freestyle & 5th 100m Freestyle). Everyone that competed did the club proud and I look forward to seeing more swimmers (especially some a bit younger) competing in this event next year.