Good golly Miss Mollie! It's five golds for record-breaker Allen

Mollie Allen stole the show as City of Peterborough Swimming Club (COPS) members began their British Championship qualifying quest at the weekend.
COPS British Chgampionship qualifiers Rachel Wellings and Mollie Allen.COPS British Chgampionship qualifiers Rachel Wellings and Mollie Allen.
COPS British Chgampionship qualifiers Rachel Wellings and Mollie Allen.

The club were in action at a meeting at the new 50m pool in High Wycombe bidding to gain qualifying times for the season’s finale – the British and Home Nations Summer Championships. 

And Allen (17) led the way with a five-star performance, clinching the gold medal in all five events she entered.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

In the 50m freestyle her time of 26.26 qualified her to compete at the British Championships in Glasgow in April and it was also a new East Region record.

She also set another new East Region record when winning the 50m backstroke in 29.40.

Allen also claimed gold in the 100m freestyle and backstroke events and in the 200m individual medley. 

Joining her at the British Championships next month will be 16 year-old Rachel Wellings, who took the gold medal and also achieved the championship qualification with a time of 1:04.47 in the 100m backstroke.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Three COPS swimmers secured two gold medals each with Jade Goode (12) taking gold in the 100m fly and 200m individual medley plus silver in the 50m fly and bronze in the 200m free, Rebecca Burton (17) grabbing gold in the 50m and 100m breaststroke and a bronze in the 200m breaststroke, and Amelia Monaghan (13) winning the 100m and 200m breaststroke.

Monaghan’s times currently place her in second and first place respectively in the national rankings for those events in her age group. 

COPS other gold medals were won by Jamie Scholes (16), who won gold in the 50m backstroke and silver medals in the 100m and 200m distances; Leah Roughan (16), who won the 200m breaststroke and gained a silver in the 100m breaststroke and bronze medals in the 50m breaststroke and 400m freestyle; and Bethany Saunders (16), who took gold in the 200m backstroke and a bronze medal in the 100m backstroke.

COPS other medal winners were Mia Leech (13) - four silvers, two bronze; Anna Blakeley (13) - one silver, two bronze; Poppy Richardson (14) - one silver, one bronze; and Thomas Wiggins (16) - one bronze.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Also competing for COPS were Joshua Graves (18), Lauren Harrison (15), Michael Lardner (16), Olivia Leigh (11), Daniel Leigh (16), Cameron McRae (16), Harvey Norman (14), Maddison Saunders (14) and Will Steel (14).

Now swimmers are only allowed to clock qualifying times in March, April or May, the meeting was extremely popular and attracted a high standard of competition.

So for COPS to bring home 15 gold medals, 10 silver medals and 11 bronze medals and to set two new East Region records was a testament to their growing stature in British swimming. And it’s also a great effort considering they have limited access to a 50m pool. Their Regional Pool base is only a 25m pool. 

Head coach Ben Negus said: “Our swimmers have limited exposure to long course swimming with only one session a week at the Oundle School pool but they still put in some great performances here.

“We have come a long way in the last six seasons increasing year on year the number of qualifiers for regional and national championships.”