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A talented cohort of 100 swimmers and para-swimmers have been selected for Phase 2 of the Swim England National Event Camps.

The group of 15-16-year-old athletes were selected based on their performances from the Festival of Swimming and the 2021 Swim England National Winter Championships.

The selections have been described as a ‘significant step towards creating an inclusive and fully integrated talent pathway’.

The athletes will now experience a mixture of training sessions, educational workshops and physical screening, as well as an event-specific camp to be held in Birmingham later this year.

There will also be an exciting opportunity to race at the Commonwealth Games Test Event at the Sandwell Aquatics Centre which is planned for May 2022.

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The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has released the 2022 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods.

The list states which substances and methods are prohibited in-competition, out-of-competition and by specific sport.

WADA has published three documents in total, the 2022 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods (List); the 2022 Summary of Major Modifications and Explanatory Notes; and the 2022 Monitoring Program.

All of these came into force on Saturday 1 January 2022 after the list was approved by WADA’s Executive Committee during its meeting on 14 September 2021.

Level playing field for all

WADA Director General, Olivier Niggli, said: “Every year, WADA leads an extensive consultation process concerning the Prohibited List, which involves some of the most qualified experts in the fields of science and medicine from around the world.

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Maidenhead’s Tom Dean has joined a host of other leading swimmers in being recognised in the New Year’s Honours list announced today.

A total of 17 athletes who topped the podium in Tokyo are to receive awards from the Queen for their contribution to swimming and diving.

Diver Tom Daley and world record-breaking swimmer Adam Peaty, who finished second and third respectively in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year, plus para-swimmers Hannah Russell and Bethany Firth, are to be appointed Officers of the Order of the British Empire (OBE).

Daley won Olympic gold in the Men’s Synchronised 10m Platformalongside Matty Lee, who himself is named an MBE, and is to receive the honour for his services to diving, to LGBTQ+ rights and his charity work.

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Two coaches from the Regional’s have been selected for a prestigious UK Coaching programme which offers support to female coaches.

Guildford City SC’s Claudia Clements and Southampton Diving Academy’s Mollie James are among the 20 woman representing 13 sports on the Women’s Coaching Programme which runs from December 2021 through to March 2022.

The programme offers support to those aspiring to progress within their sport performance pathway and focuses on:

• Increased self-awareness
• Broader understanding of talent development environments
• Enhanced coach-athlete interactions
• Developing reflective practice
• Developing personal coaching behaviours.

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British Swimming has confirmed that Sheffield is to play host to the British Swimming Championships in April 2022.

The iconic Ponds Forge International Sports Centre will welcome athletes between 5-10 April, many of whom will be vying for qualification for the World Championships and Commonwealth Games.

The event is also well placed to help team selections for the remaining junior international meets in the competition calendar which will include the European and World Junior Championships.

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A group of 47 swimmers have been selected for the 2021-22 Swim England Junior Squad which will see the athletes preparing for future international competitions.

Areas such as learning arena skills, performance behaviours and racing philosophy are among the topics to be delivered on the programme.

On Wednesday 22 December, the team gathered virtually as they are inducted onto their first online engagement day. Olympian Max Litchfield joined as a guest to share his knowledge and attitude to obstacles with the athletes.

See the list of selected swimmers.

On 14th December Swim England updated their guidance for all disciplines and competition with encouragement to wear face-coverings where appropriate indoors at training and competitions, unless exempt.

Find all documents.

Olympic champions Adam Peaty and Tom Daley have been shortlisted for the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

They are among six contenders in the running for the accolade with the winner due to be announced on Sunday 19 December.

Peaty became the first British swimmer to retain an Olympic title when he triumphed in the Men’s 100m Breaststroke at the rearranged Tokyo 2020 Games.

Five years after his success in Rio, Peaty clocked his fifth fastest time ever to win in 57.37 seconds – 0.63 ahead of his nearest rival.

The 26-year-old returned from Japan with a total of three medals after also winning a gold and a silver in two relays.

He was part of the record-breaking mixed medley team alongside Kathleen Dawson, James Guy and Anna Hopkin who picked up Team GB’s fourth swimming gold of the Games in a new world best time of 3:37.58.

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Swim England is strongly encouraging athletes, coaches, teachers, volunteers and spectators to wear face coverings where possible following the announcement of additional Covid restrictions by the Government.

The Government’s ‘Plan B’ announcement was made around face coverings, working from home and Covid passports for large events in a bid to slow down the spread of the Omicron strain of coronavirus.

Sporting events can continue and the Swim England Water Polo National Age Group Championships at Ponds Forge on Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 December is still scheduled to go ahead as planned.

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A group of 27 ‘promising and talented’ athletes, including 3 from our region, have been selected for the Swim England Performance Squad for the 2021-22 season.

The swimmers from the South East selected for the squad are:

• Imogen Clark (Winchester Penguins)
• Lewis Burrus (Winchester Penguins)
• Alicia Wilson (Guildford Swimming Club)

Despite the challenges of the last 18 months, these 10 men and 17 women have been selected as a result of their performances in both national and international competitions over the last year.

They have also shown considerable potential ahead of what is bound to be an exciting three-year cycle to the next Olympic Games in Paris, which includes the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham next year.

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Swim England has released guidance on the practice of weighing athletes within aquatic sports.

The recommendation from the national governing body is that individuals under the age of 18 should not be weighed unless they are on a nationally supported pathway.

This guidance is applicable to athletes within all aquatic disciplines including swimming, para-swimming, water polo, artistic swimming and diving.

It is designed to prevent potential areas of concern, such as psychological distress, which may occur as a result of athletes being tested and monitored in this way.

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Hampshire scored 1163.5 while Yorkshire scored 1208 lints and winners Warwickshire topped then table with 1236 points.

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