Deepings swimmers win top club award after claiming 110 medals at Tulip Meet

Harry Cardell collected the top boy trophy for 14-year-olds and Jessica O’Herlihy took the 13yrs top girl trophy as the two swimmers dominated their respective age groups with a hatful of trophies, personal bests and county qualifying times.

Over a thrilling two days of competition, Deepings won 27 gold, 47 silver and 36 bronze medals, with victories achieved across all ages and in all strokes. Every one of the 48 swimmers achieved at least one personal best.

Fourteen-year-old Harry had an outstanding weekend, medalling in all 11 of his events and setting seven personal bests. His five golds came in the 50m and 100m backstroke, 100m and 200m freestyle, and 200m butterfly, with second place finishes in the 50m freestyle, 100m butterfly and 200IM.

It marked a dazzling return to form for the Deepings ace, who is now setting his sights on the East Midland Champs later this month. Harry also collected bronze in the 50m butterfly, 100m freestyle and in the 100m breaststroke.

Jessica O’Herlihy was never out of the top two in her 12 events, winning six golds in the 50m butterfly, 200m freestyle, 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke, and 200IM. The 13-year-old also won silver in the 50m and 100m breaststroke, 50m and 100m freestyle, and 100m and 200m butterfly, with 10 county qualifying times and 11 personal bests to cap a near-perfect weekend of competition.

Adding to the golden tally was 10-year-old Jacob Briers, who touched home in first place six times, in the 100m butterfly, 200m backstroke, 200m freestyle, 200IM, and 100m and 200m breaststroke. Like Jessica, Jacob was never out of the top two, also winning silver in the 50m and 100m backstroke, and 50m freestyle. He narrowly missed taking the 10yrs top boy award.

Christian Rollinson completed the gold-medal-winning performances for the boys’ team, doubling up in the 14yrs 50m and 100m butterfly. He also collected three silver medals over the weekend.

Another six girls fended off all-comers to taste victory. Grace Edwards won a brace of backstroke golds in the 10yrs 50m and 100m distances, while breaststroke specialist Lorna McGill enjoyed success in the 100m and 200m 15/O events.

Eleven-year-old Lilly Tappern broke her own 11yrs Deepings club record for the third time this year with a time of 2.41.28, taking gold as part of a haul of five medals, while her sister Amy won 15/O gold in her final swim of the weekend, the 100m backstroke.

Completing the team’s podium-topping swims were Molly Briers with gold in the 13yrs 200m breaststroke, in a 29-second personal best, and Emma Wilde who won the 15/O 50m backstroke. Molly also took home six more medals (silver in the three backstroke events and bronze in the 50m butterfly, 200m freestyle and 200IM), while Emma won silver in the 50m and 200m butterfly, 200IM and 200m breaststroke, plus bronze in the 50m breaststroke and 100m butterfly.

Seven more boys and 10 girls also collected silver or bronze medals: Alex Sadler, Ryan Weise, Harry Newman, Raymond Sheridan, Ed Trofimovas, Owen Sadler and Bailey Jackson-Chilvers; Lucia Karic , Millie Bussey, Emma Dennis, Millie Herrick, Ella Gerrard, Hannah Taylor, Megan Black, Sophie Baskeyfield, Bethany Wilde and Bronte Claridge.

Deepings also entered junior and senior teams into the mixed medley and mixed freestyle relays with the juniors doubling up to win two bronzes and the seniors taking silver in both races.

Lynn Chapman, Deepings head coach, said: “Wow - what an incredible competition! I’m delighted we won the top club trophy, with every swimmer in the team contributing to our success. It was a weekend to make everyone associated with the club very proud.”

MEDALLISTS IN FULL

BOYS

Jacob Briers (11yrs): Gold – 100m butterfly, 200m backstroke, 200m freestyle, 200IM, 100m and 200m breaststroke; Silver – 50m and 100m backstroke, 50m freestyle

Alex Sadler (12yrs): Silver – 50m and 100m butterfly, 100m and 200m freestyle

Ryan Weise (12yrs): Silver – 200m breaststroke; Bronze – 50m freestyle

Harry Newman (13yrs): Silver – 200IM; Bronze – 50m backstroke, 100m and 200m backstroke, 200m freestyle

Raymond Sheridan (13yrs): Silver – 50m and 200m freestyle, 100m breaststroke; Bronze – 50m breaststroke

Ed Trofimovas (13yrs): Silver – 50m and 200m breaststroke, 100m butterfly

Harry Cardell (14yrs): Gold – 50m and 100m backstroke, 100m and 200m freestyle, 200m butterfly; Silver – 50m freestyle, 100m butterfly, 200IM; Bronze – 50m butterfly, 100m freestyle, 100m breaststroke

Owen Sadler (14yrs): Bronze – 200m backstroke,

Christian Rollinson (14yrs): Gold – 50m and 100m butterfly; Silver – 50m and 100m backstroke, 100m freestyle

Bailey Jackson-Chilvers (14yrs): Silver – 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke

GIRLS

Lucia Karic (10yrs): Silver – 50m backstroke; Bronze – 100m backstroke, 200IM

Millie Bussey (10yrs): Bronze – 50m butterfly

Grace Edwards (10yrs): Gold – 50m and 100m backstroke

Emma Dennis (11yrs): Silver – 100m breaststroke; Bronze – 50m freestyle, 200m breaststroke

Lilly Tappern (11yrs): Gold - 200m butterfly; Silver – 100m freestyle, 200m backstroke; Bronze – 50m breaststroke, 50m backstroke

Millie Herrick (11yrs): Silver – 50m freestyle

Ella Gerrard (12yrs): Bronze – 50m freestyle

Jessica O’Herlihy (13yrs): Gold – 50m butterfly, 200m freestyle, 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke, 200IM; Silver – 50m and 100m breaststroke, 50m and 100m freestyle, 100m and 200m butterfly

Molly Briers (13yrs): Gold – 200m breaststroke; Silver – 50m, 100m and 200m backstroke; Bronze – 50m butterfly, 200m freestyle, 200IM

Hannah Taylor (13yrs): Bronze - 200m backstroke

Megan Black (14yrs): Bronze – 50m backstroke

Sophie Baskeyfield (15yrs): Silver – 200m backstroke, Bronze – 100m and 200m freestyle, 100m backstroke, 200m butterfly

Emma Wilde (15/O): Gold – 50m backstroke; Silver – 50m and 200m butterfly, 200m breaststroke, 200IM; Bronze – 50m breaststroke, 100m butterfly

Lorna McGill (15/O): Gold – 100m and 200m breaststroke; Silver – 50m breaststroke

Amy Tappern (15/O): Gold – 100m backstroke; Bronze – 200IM

Bethany Wilde (15/O): Silver - 100m butterfly; Bronze – 50m butterfly, 200m backstroke

Bronte Claridge (15/O): Bronze – 100m and 200m breaststroke

MIXED RELAYS

Junior medley: Bronze

Senior medley: Silver

Junior freestyle: Bronze

Senior freestyle: Silver

Also swimming were: Georgie Hunter, Orla Pike, Sash Johnson, Maddie Taylor, Melissa Peng, Ella Briault, Maya Sangiorgio, Daisy Jungmann, Maddy Partridge, Penny Baxter, Lauren Saunderson, William Burdock, Joshi Harriss, Aaron Sadler, William Ibbotson, Daniel Partridge, Joe Black, Lewis Tarver, Antony Hall, Charlie Chilvers, Richard Hall