Entries open for Swim England National Winter Championships 2019

Entries are now open for the Swim England National Winter Championships 2019 – the pinnacle of the English swimming calendar over the winter months.

The meet will remain a short course event this year, taking place at Ponds Forge International Sports Centre in Sheffield from 5-8 December.

The programme will feature the full range of Olympic events, as well as 50m competitions for breaststroke, backstroke and butterfly, and 100m Individual Medley events.

Olympic, World Championships and Commonwealth medallists James Wilby, James Guy and Siobhan Marie O’Connor were amongst the stars of the 2018 edition, with a number of British records set throughout the week.

Grant Robins, Swim England’s Head of Talent for swimming, said: “The National Winter Championships will be a great opportunity for swimmers to gauge the progress of their winter training.

“As a short course meet, they will be able to determine whether they have improved their starts, turns and the underwater phase.

“Britain’s Olympic hopefuls can also assess what they need to work on ahead of the long course build-up to Tokyo 2020.

“The pool is traditionally set up to race fast, so swimmers, coaches and supporters can expect an exciting meet ahead of the festive period.”

Dash for cash in Challenge150

Mount Kelly were crowned the inaugural winners of Swim England’s Challenge68 last year. 

To celebrate Swim England’s 150th anniversary, the unique event will be known as Challenge150 in 2019.

Counties can select a team of six swimmers – three male and three female – to swim in a 6x25m relay.

The strokes for the six legs in each race will be determined by a draw, with no limit to the amount of times a particular stroke can be swum.

10 teams will progress to the final, with cash prizes on offer for the winners of each preliminary race and the top three teams in the final.

The overall winner will receive £600, while the second team will pick up £360 and the third-placed team will earn £210.

The full conditions for Challenge150 are available on the Competitor Information page.

Click here to view the qualifying times and submit your entry.