Swimming: Review for 2003/04

The introduction of an after-school swimming club has really improved our results in competitions this year. Our first outing was to Dulwich to compete in the ISA London South Regional Gala. The support from parents was amazing and a real team spirit developed as the night wore on. Our U9 and U10 teams both achieved first places, and Derwent Lodge won the girls' school trophy by a huge margin.

Six girls went on to compete at National level, representing London South in Coventry. Here, Olivia Rendall gained a Silver medal for U10 50m Backstroke, Katie Hoskin won a Bronze medal for the second successive year in the U10 50m Breaststroke, Nicola Wilkinson won a Bronze n the U9 50m Breaststroke. Sophie Capewell came fifth in her race, as did the Derwent Lodge Freestyle Relay team. The girls swam in a 50m pool with electronic timing, and Annabel Croft (former British No1 tennis player and BBC Superstar Bronze medalist) sat with our parents to watch her daughters swim – a small compensation for our dads for missing the England Rugby victory n Australia!

In the Lent Term, with Derwent Lodge changing affiliation to IAPS, we were given another opportunity to compete at top level. 108 schools nationwide competed in 20 preliminary rounds from which finalists were selected, including four from Derwent Lodge. The national finals were held in May when Olivia Rendall achieved sixth place for Backstroke and Kate Hoskin achieved ninth place in Breaststroke. They were joined by Nicola Wilkinson and Sophie Capewell for the Medley Relay where they achieved seventh place overall. Considering the number of entrants for these events, the girls did extremely well. Derwent Lodge was invited to St Michael's for a swimming match in the Michaelmas Term and just beat them by 68 points to 65. In the second match Hawthorns joined us, and Derwent Lodge finished in second place. The U9 team remains unbeaten in both galas and look strong for next year.

The Schools at Somerhill are members of the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools and are listed in The Good Schools Guide.

The Schools at Somerhill are under the care and control of The Somerhill Charitable Trust Ltd.
Registered in England No. 2331296. Registered Office: Somerhill, Tonbridge, Kent TN11 0NJ.
Registered Charity No. 1002212.

Assertis, specialists in school websites