News for this month

Skill Level - Gravesend, Kent - 11th July 2010

Just a note to say that the next skill level will be on the 11th July 2010 at Gravesend in Kent.

Congratulations - Hampshire Age Group Competition

Well done to all that competed at the recent Hampshire Age Group Competition.

Schedule News

Please note that the July schedule for 2010 is now available on the website.

Swimmer of the Month - May 2010

The Swimmer of the month for May was Hayley Kearn, for her peformance at the recent Novice competition.

Development Forms for 2010

Development forms for 2010 are now to be handed out to athletes and time will be given so that they can completed and returned to the club. Athletes need to identify goals that they feel are achieable, realistic and can be measured. Examples would be to gain 2 cm's on their splits or to knock off 5 seconds from their 400m speed swimming time. Once goals have been made these will then go back to the club and worked through to ensure that they are realistic and can be met.

Figure Groups and Technical Elements now available

The new figures and technical elements have now been added to the club website. To view these please click here.

Skill Level Booklets now available

Please note that the new skill level booklets are now available. Click here to go to the right page.

Skill Level Assessments for 2010

The levels that an assessors can assess is due to change. Basic Assessors will in future only be able to assess skill levels 1 and 2; an Advanced Assessor will still be able to assess all skills if they have passed the relevant exam.

It should be noted that for skill levels 4 and 5 athletes will be required to show that they are continually working on their flexibility as follows;

1. Athletes taking skill level 4 will be asked to perform flat splits on dry land before proceeding with the rest of the assessment. If they do not pass this they will not be allowed to continue with the assessment.

2. Athletes taking skill level 5 will be asked to perform flats splits on dry land and the Ariana element from skill level 4 before proceeding with the rest of the assessment. Again if they do not pass both they will not be allowed to continue with the rest of the assessment.

Therefore it is imperative that athletes keep up their flexibility sessions and that they attend the gym/flex sessions when scheduled. The club will not put forward anyone for their skill level 4 or 5 if items 1 or 2 can't be met.

From January 2010 the head coach or head of figures of a club will have to confirm in writing to the organisers that those being put forward for their skill level are capable of passing the skill level.

Please take note that coaches have been asked to continually assess their athletes to see if they are ready to be put forward for forthcoming skill levels. It is therefore imperative that swimmers turn up for the figure sessions so that a continous assessment can be undertaken. If swimmers do not turn up then the coaches are unable to assess and therefore it could end in the athlete not being put forward for their relevant skill. This is also true for gym sessions on Sunday when scheduled to attend.

Garrison News

Dates for the Garrison 2010 can be found under the Club Notices section. Please place them in your diaries now.

Coaching News

There are a number of courses coming up for prospective coaches. Please see the British Swimming Website under the Teachers and Coaches section for more details.

Stamina Training

The club has been offered by Rushmoor Royals for some swimmers to join their Masters training sessions on a Tuesday night after club training. This runs from 9.00 - 10.00pm. They do have some pre-requisites for anyone wishing to take part and they are that you attend on a regular basis (so that they know numbers and who is turning up), are at a standard that can swim with there fastest Masters and that there will be a fee of £4 per session payable on the night. If anyone is interested then please let Simon know.