ANOTHER round of club championships was held when Kendal Swimming Club staged its latest gala at the local G.L.L. Centre.

The programme opened with the 200m freestyle and the heats of the ladies event drew some fine performances from the 41 entries, leading to the final where Megan Jones, Rosemary Swallow and Sophie Gibson set a devastating pace and mixing it with Lucie Bulman, Bethan Rowley and Megan Bascombe.

Stroke for stroke the leaders used all their power and skill to challenge for the lead. Gradually, however, Jones began to pull clear and into the last length held her lead to take the win ahead of Swallow and Gibson.

The men’s event saw Elliot Woodburn in dominant mood, leading from start to finish, leaving the Klijn brothers, Jacob and Thomas, to battle it out for the minor places along with James Escolme, Adam Stansfield and Alex Tallon. Woodburn got a great start and out of transition showed great technique coupled with superb talent, which enabled him to forge ahead and take the title.

The Klijns worked hard, matching each other shoulder to shoulder but it was Jacob who snatched silver with Thomas taking bronze and only a split second separating them

There followed individual medleys, testing the swimmers' all-round abilities using four strokes. They got under way with the girls U/12 years producing some great swims from the club’s future stars.

Annie Bottomley, Anna Roberts and Kate Collin took them out and made some spirited challenges throughout their race. Bottomley managed to get a slight lead and kept a pace that set her on the road to victory with Roberts and Collin settling for silver and bronze.

The boys U/12 years proved a runaway event for Austin Woodburn, who took an early lead and went on to forge ahead and never looked likely to lose.

Joshua Holmes and Benjamin Rowley both worked hard, but with Woodburn in such great form they had to be content with the minor places.

The U/14s provided supporters with some outstanding performances with Sophie Roberts and James Escolme in dazzling form. Roberts dominated her event using her best stroke to give her an advantage while Escolme’s performance was remarkable, getting better as the race developed.

Both hit the finish with comfortable leads over runners up, Keira Nelson and Mathew Gibson, leaving Ellie Bottomley and Mathew Foster as bronze medallists.

The seniors saw Jones and Elliot Woodburn lift their second trophy of the evening. Again Swallow and Gibson were in on the action, but had to accept silver and bronze, while Escolme and Thomas Klijn pushed Woodburn right to the finish but were unable to match his talent.

A change of stroke gave the backstroke sprinters a chance to shine and for the Girls U/11-years it was Anna Roberts who got a great start and set the pace with her elegant stroke pattern. An immaculate turn gave her a commanding lead with Elissa Kinley and Liane Rairata putting on lots of pressure.

Roberts then held on through the pressure zone to give her a well-deserved victory.

The Boys U/11 years produced the surprise of the meet with three new names arriving on the scene. Samuel Parry got a powerful start and pulled away from Finley Wood and Elliot Dart to build up a considerable lead, enabling him to win with a fair degree of ease, with Wood taking silver and Dart the bronze.

Further wins for Jones and Elliot Woodburn in the senior backstroke sprints brought them a hat trick of trophies.

Jones clashed again with Swallow and Gibson and it was only a split second that separated all three in a storming finish.

Woodburn, however, pulled off a brilliant win with a minus 30 second swim whiet dealing with spirited challenges from Adam Stansfield and Thomas Klijn, who took silver and bronze.