Rugby, Halifax and Bramcote double up in Virtual Combo Cup with division two golds

Division two of the Swim England Artistic Swimming Virtual Combo Cup 2021 saw three clubs double up on gold medals.

After success in division one, all three added another gold to their medal tallies with their division two performances.

Bramcote SC earned gold in the 12 and under age group to follow on from their victory in the 13-18 category in division one.

Celina Zakhary, Emily Goodger, Emma Novakova, Evelina Racyte, Scarlet Bolt, Sophia Banadaki, Sophie Clark, Rhiannon Rees-Powell and Sophie Pickard teamed up to score 53.8000.

Their score broke down into 15.9000 for execution, 22.0000 for artistic impression and 15.9000 for difficulty.

Rugby ‘happy’ with win

Rugby added a 13-15 division two win to their victory in division one as their six-strong team cruised to another gold medal.

An overall score of 58.2333 – 16.9000 for execution, 24.1333 for artistic impression and 17.2000 for difficulty – saw them finish 3.6333 ahead of their nearest rival.

Earning the gold medal was Tyra Watson, Sophie Henry, Amy Buckley, Imogen Ravenhall, Chloe Barrett-Leafe and Alexa Holland.

On the win, Chloe said: “We’re very happy to have won the division two 13-15. The theme of our routine was Kung Fu Panda and we’ve been working on it since April.

“Due to Covid-19 restrictions it’s been more difficult to get the entire team into the swimming pool at once.

“We’re very excited to return to in-person competitions [in 2022] and be able to see all the other routines.”

Taking silver was Bramcote SC (54.6000) followed by Trafford ASC (52.8667) in the bronze medal position.

Halifax hard earned golds

Despite a difficult year for Halifax SC, they were able to clinch their second gold of the Combo Cup, this time in the 13-18 age group.

Amelia Watson, Bethany Seal, Felicity Welding, Isabella Lister-Smith, Isabelle Thornton, Lily Williamson-Sharp, Molly Heptinstall, Orla Cassidy and Predine Utting-Simon added to the club’s 15-18 division one win.

Their score of 60.5333 made them just one of only two clubs to break to 60-mark across the two divisions of the competition.

In second place was Gateshead SSC with a score of 59.7333 and Erith & District SC (59.6667) finished in third.

Halifax coach, Charlotte Hughes, described the virtual event as a ‘huge success’. She said: “We are absolutely delighted to have won the division two 13-18 age group of the 2021 Combo Cup.

“This year’s theme was robots. We choreographed this routine and completed it for the 2020 Combo Cup which sadly didn’t happen.

“We have spent an awful lot of time working on Zoom during the pandemic, working on our core and conditioning work and walking through this routine.

“I’d like to thank Swim England and all the officials and judges who have made this virtual competition a huge success and I’d like to congratulate all the other competing clubs – well done!”

Walsall win gold

Walsall ASC were the only other club to surpass the 60-mark as they scored 60.6333 in the division two 15-18 age group.

Their routine, which was themed around Spanish culture, earned 18.6000 for execution, 22.9333 for artistic impression and 19.1000 for difficulty.

Following their win, the team of Catrise Hart, Erin Ward, Harriet Haynes, Isabella Gogerty, Jamelia Walker, Madeline Bayliss-Cox, Maya Mianowana and Philippa Wood said they are hoping for ‘bigger and better things’ in the New Year.

They added: “We’re the proud winners of division two, 15-18, Combo Cup 2021.

“Once restrictions were lifted and we were allowed back in the pool we did various figure and stamina drills to help keep up our fitness.

“During Covid we did multiple Zoom sessions to maintain our fitness and focus and it came as a benefit as we maintained those connections between each swimmers.

“In 2022, we hope to not only better ourselves as individuals but better ourselves as a team. We want to say thank you to our head coach Amy and every other coach who has helped and supported us through this tough time.”

In the silver medal position was Cheltenham S&WPC with a score of 58.3000, followed by Rugby SC with 58.1667.

Full results

Division 2

• 12 & Under – view results
• 13 – 15 Years – view results
• 15 – 18 Years – view results
• 13 – 18 Years – view results