Squads

CSWPC is proud of its competitive swim section. Swimmers  are able to join the club at 7 years old, swimmers start external competition from age 9 onwards.

Current CSWPC swimmers from age 9-19 are achieving county and regional representation year upon year.

33 swimmers achieved county qualification in 2021 despite the lack of competition due to Covid. 45 club members are already qualified for counties in 2022, and an uplift of 33% in county times has been achieved across the team – with two meets still to come.

Congratulations to all involved.

In addition, 1 new all time club record was achieved (Oli Spencer, 800m), and 5 new age group records established, some taking down records that have stood for decades (Freddie Walker, Yali Zamora and Edward Nevin achieving one club record each and Taylor Perrett going fastest ever as a 10 year old in both 50m and 100m backstroke)

CSWPC came 4th in the local PGL development gala, narrowly beaten by much bigger and more established teams from Evesham, Worcester and Bromsgrove. A creditable 5th place in the B final of the Cotswold League cemented the overall performance across the year.

We have the full range of regional and county to recreational swimmers training with us, and a distinctly international flavour to our top squad, thanks to visiting students with overseas national titles to their names.

Whatever the standard, we have a squad to fit.

The swimmers are streamed into the following squads based on attendance, commitment and ability:

• Academy – bridge between swim school and competitive swimming. A single weekly session in the Leisure@ training pool, Cheltenham. Sessions at a time that is suitable for younger swimmers. A second academy will be opened in 2023.
• Purple squad – 2  sessions a week, building stamina and technique. Training times are suitable for primary school children and those transitioning into secondary school. Multi sport athletes are welcomed! Purple squad swimmers are encouraged to enter galas and local competitions and will enjoy racing courtesy of the annual PGL gala.
• Pink / Blue squads: Junior development – squads are smaller to ensure a focus on skills and technique, as well as stamina. Promising young talent migrates to pink squad; aged between 8 and 11, there are 3 sessions a week and the standard is high. Blue swimmers tend to be slightly older (from 10-13) but also get 3 sessions a week. Still keen swimmers, they might be less driven by competition, or have come to swimming later. All pink and blue squad swimmers are encouraged to enter open meets, PGL and for those over 10, the Cotswold League. Training sessions are allocated to ensure minimum travel time and to avoid early morning training. In the summer months we make the most of our extensive access to Cheltenham’s 50m pool at the Lido.
• Green/ Yellow: County dev & county squads– Currently full, green and yellow squads train in parallel to ensure equal opportunity for all with the aptitude and ambition. Swimmers are offered up to 7 hours a week, building stamina and technique but also with an eye to long term understanding of training, competition, and the demands of school and sport. Early mornings are optional.
• Red (Senior) squad – Swimmers are of county standard and can swim as often as they wish to access the multi discipline programme; early mornings are included and athletes are encouraged to take responsibility for their own goals and commitment. All are county qualified across a range of strokes and some have competed at regional or national level.
• Squad X – for ex swimmers, extra training, and for those coming back to the sport. Selection of off peak training at reasonable cost. Competition is optional but encouraged, especially in local events.

Head coach Tom Howells oversees a termly programme of evaluation and training. He is assisted by coaches from other clubs, trained coaching support, and volunteers. The whole team works to ensure a range of input to each and every swimmer’s development.

As members of a multi discipline club, swimmers can choose to either dedicate themselves to competition, or make the most of water polo and/or artistic swimming training and competition, at minimum extra cost. Our timetables and fees are published termly.

Currently there is space in our academy for those interested in starting their swim journey in 2023 contact swim@cswpc.co.uk to arrange a taster session (Tuesday evening, 1815, Leisure@, Cheltenham)