Masters swimmers brave windy conditions at National Championships

Masters swimmers from across the country showed their determination at the Swim England National Masters Open Water Championships 2026, with a full day of racing taking place at Rother Valley Country Park despite challenging windy conditions.

Competitors battled for national titles across the 5km, 1km and 3km races before the championships concluded with the 4x500m mixed relays, while many athletes took on multiple events throughout the day.

The action got underway with the 5km races, where swimmers from a wide range of age groups tackled the longest distance on the programme.

Among the standout performances was that of Hannah Dodwell (RAF Swim), who recorded the fastest overall time of the day over 5km as she claimed the Female 30-34 years title in 1:10:53.

The quickest male swimmer over the distance was Michael Peacock (Preston), whose time of 1:12:08 saw him secure gold in the Open/Male 35-39 years category.

There were two starters in the Female 70-74 years age category in which Catherine Sharp (Bo Kirklees) came out on top, touching home in 1:51:44 ahead of Valerie Thorp (Derby Excel), who finished second in 1:53:39.

One of the stars of the championships once again was Hayley Davis (Otter), who successfully defended all three of the national titles she won in 2025.

Davis retained her Female 40-44 years 5km crown in a time of 1:14:54 before returning later in the day to claim the 1km title in 12:58 and the 3km gold (00:40:21) completing an impressive triple gold-medal haul.

The programme then moved on to the 1km races, where swimmers were back in action just moments after completing the longer-distance events.

Local swimmer George Russell (Rotherham Metro) produced the fastest 1km swim of the day with a winning time of 12:18.

Several swimmers added to their medal collections during the shorter-distance races. Kate Arnold (GB Police) secured a second gold medal of the day in her age category, while Fiona Carroll (Co Southampton) also completed a championship double by claiming her second title following success earlier in the 5km event.

The championships continued with the 3km races, where further national titles were decided in the final individual event of the day.

Rotherham’s Russell picked up a second medal of the championships as he took home silver with a time of 00:37:17, while Myles Turner of West Suffolk took the top step in an impressive 00:36:11, making him the fastest swimmer across all age groups.

In the Female 3km, Carroll added a third medal to her tally, claiming silver in 00:41:30 behind West Suffolk’s Mary Ferrier (00:39:16).

City of Lincoln, Nottingham Leander, Crawley and Kidlington win relay golds

Rounding off the day was the 4x500m relays which took place once again after being introduced to the championships in 2024.

After winning two relay age categories in 2025, Nottingham Leander returned to the top of the podium once again, winning the 160-199 years title in a time of 00:26:48.

For all the results from the Swim England Open Water National Masters Championships 2026, click here.