It may be a long, long way from Clare to here, but that didn’t deter the group of 7 Fermoy swimmers who took on the Ennis Invitational over the weekend.
FRIDAY SWIMMERS
Mary O’Donnell was a woman on a mission, having just missed her 100m backstroke div2 time on her last attempt, by a mere 8 hundredths of a second. On this occasion she swam impressive pb times in both the heat and final, and went 2.5 seconds under her target, taking gold and achieving the division time with ease. Super stuff. Mary also swam the 200m backstroke, gold in a pb time of over 5 seconds, and the 400m freestyle in 5.11, a massive 13.79sec pb, and a bronze medal to complete her haul.
Zoe and Zach Daniels-Howard both swam the 200 backstroke on Friday night in Ennis. Zach was swimming to confirm the division time he had previously hit in November, as all division times must be achieved from Jan 1st in the current year. On the night he went 8 seconds under the target, a 5.15 sec pb, and took the silver medal. Zach also swam the 200IM and had a nice pb in that also, but knows that the bad turn on the freestyle length probably cost him another vital second. In the bank for next time Zach!
Zoe swam the 200m backstroke and won the silver medal in her age group in a huge pb time of 2.41.86. A very happy swimmer indeed.
Eabha Burke swam a fantastic 200IM on Friday night. Eabha has been gradually getting closer to that elusive div2 time, and on Friday night she took a huge leap forward with a massive pb of 11.24 seconds. All the hard training and early mornings are certainly paying off for Eabha who also swam the 100 breaststroke and 50 free on Saturday, and knocked 2 seconds off the free, not easy over 50 metres!
SATURDAY SWIMMERS
Saturday morning saw some new Fermoy arrivals to Ennis. Ali O’Donnell swam the 200m breaststroke – a gruelling and technically difficult event – in a super time of 3.23.19, achieving her division 2 time. Ali also swam the 100m breaststroke. She swam a 3.27sec pb in the heats to achieve a place in the finals, and went faster again in the finals by 0.6 to come 5th place overall, in what is a very competitive age group. Ali also achieved her division 2 time in this event. Fantastic swimming Ali, a trip to UL in July for you!
Luca Salvatori was also swimming his favoured breaststroke events on Saturday. His first swim in the 100m saw him take 2seconds off his previous time, and secure a finals spot. With a very impressive swim in the final Luca took off a further 1.87 seconds, to finish 4th overall. In the 200m breaststroke Luca won bronze in 3.14.46. And for a bit of variation at the end of the day he also swam the 50free. Fantastic swimming from Luca, one of our newest torpedo swimmers. Keep up the hard work.
Our final swimmer – and a triple finalist on the day – was Amy Hawe. In her first event, the 100m freestyle, she swam a pb of 3.6sec in the heats, and in the finals finished in 5th place overall. Amy then swam the 100m back, again a strong pb of 7.3 saw her secure her lane in the final. She went faster again in her second attempt, by 0.34, wonderful swimming. And to round off the day she also swam the 50free, made the finals and finished 5th overall. Three events, 6 swims, what more can a swimmer do!
Well done to everyone who travelled to Ennis. Our next meet is the Munster LC Qualifying Meet in UL, on April 6th and 7th. We will have 22 swimmers competing, it’s sure to be a busy weekend. Parents will be notified of gala duty by email.
IRISH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
We would like to wish the very best of luck to our 3 competitors in the Irish Open Championships next week, in the National Aquatic Centre, Dublin. The championships will run from 27th to the 31st March, and are the pinnacle of the Irish swimming calendar. Fermoy SC will be represented this year by Jodie Baker, Fiona Miao and Zoe Daniels-Howard. Good luck girls.
NEW TO OUR WEBSITE
Gala information sheets for the Limerick Cadet Gala on April 27th, and the Limerick Distance Gala on April 28th are now on our website. Please read the information carefully, as these galas have cut-off times rather than qualifying times. The cadet gala is aimed at younger swimmers. If you are unsure about the qualifying criteria please speak to your coach. The entry dates are fast approaching, so be sure not to miss out.
