Congratulations to three of our swimmers selected for the Swim England National Development Programme.
Anna Finlay, Daniel Barrett and Rebecca Allan have all been chosen to take part in the third step on the Swim England Extended Talent Pathway – the first on the national framework.
Read more about how Anna, Daniel and Rebecca achieved their spaces.
We are very pleased to inform you that our new chairman is Steven Speight. Having been at the club for seven years with his son Patrick, Steven knows the club inside out and is a very welcome addition to the team.
He brings a vast wealth of knowledge and expertise with him from his daytime job as a project leader of an engineering company providing services to a global internet provider and has a strong background in leadership and risk assessment.
Steven is looking forward to helping the club during this challenging time and getting to know parents and swimmers from all squads.
All members of the club have been sent relevant training schedules for the coming weeks. Schedules for the Christmas period will be sent as soon as they are confirmed.
Should you wish to view them, all of the following documents can be found on Club Organiser.
If you have any problems accessing Club Organiser please let your squad rep know. Please also speak to your squad rep if you are unsure of which sessions to attend or have any general queries.
Joan Edwards has decided to retire as coach for the Competitive Development squad. She had planned to resign at the end of this year anyway, as she is now 63 and wants to focus more on her own swimming, which is hugely important to her. She also needs to spend more time looking after her mam, as well as having more time for holidays when the restrictions end!
Joan decided to bring this decision forward due to the lengthy pool closure period. This meant that when swimming returns, there would at most only be a few months left before she was planning to retire, which would have been difficult for any new swimmers who might join that squad. Joan will really miss the young swimmers in her group and wishes them all well for the future.
We would like to say a huge thank you to Joan for all of the great work she has done with the Competitive Development squad and we are pleased to say that she will continue to provide cover coaching to support the other coaches. We know that her swimmers will miss her very much.
Club Charman Emrys Pritchard has resigned from the club with immediate effect.
We thank Emrys for his leadership and all the good work he has carried out since he took up the role last December, particularly the lead role he has played in our preparations to manage the Covid risk when we return to swimming.
If anyone is interested in taking up the role of Club Chairman please email clubsecretary@gawswim.org.uk expressing an interest before Friday 21 August.
Half-term fundraising challenge raises whopping £6,318 for new state-of-the-art starting blocks
From 23rd May to 28th May GAW swimmers and coaches accepted the challenge to collectively walk, run or cycle the distance from Gateshead Leisure Centre to Budapest, a total of 1,167 miles.
Our athletes surpassed themselves and smashed that original total forcing the challenge to include miles back again too, and they didn’t stop there with the final total being the equivalent distance of:
A huge total of 3,316 miles!
Our top traveller with an astounding 181.8 miles travelled was Max Murray from Performance Group 1.
Top traveller in each squad:
Academy 1: Alexander Watson
Academy 2: Winnie Renwick and Charlie Shaw
Competitive Development: Isla Murray
Potential Group 1: Matthew Stovold
Potential Group 2: Lewis Richardson
Performance Group 1: Max Murray
Performance Group 2: Hannah Brown
Masters: Martin Connelly
Coaches: Ross Bradley
There were some outstanding totals but the joint fundraising champions, raising over £400 each were Winnie Renwick from Academy 2 and Conan and Millie Swinney from Performance Group 1 and Academy 2.
We have been overwhelmed by everyone who got involved in the challenge and by how much has been raised. Thank you very much!
Thanks also for sending great photos and videos of swimmers enjoying the challenge – watch the final video here.
The club would also like to extend its huge appreciation to Nicola McPherson who may think twice about sharing the fact she ‘has an idea’ in the future! She has done an amazing job, keeping everyone motivated and interested – thank you Nicola!
“Big” Jim Davison 
It is with great sadness and regret that I inform you of the passing of Jim Davison, a much loved figure for generations of GAW swimmers and parents.
In his two spells coaching at Gateshead and Whickham, Jim transcended that role with his larger than life personality and passion for the sport. The word “loved” is possibly overused when it comes to coaches, but this really does accurately describe Jimmy for the hundreds of children he coached for over three decades.
Ushering in the new era of the Professional Coach, Jimmy was often paid in Mars Bars and bacon sandwiches! One Mars bar per PB and a bacon sandwich wrapped up on the morning of a gala! Jim’s selflessness meant that he was content to play an important role in countless swimmers reaching their goals, before they moved on to other squads.
Often coaching athletes between the ages of 10 and 13, Jim had that 
ideal mix of technical knowledge and overriding enthusiasm required to both keep those swimmers in the sport and also to progress them towards fulfilling their potential. He would happily list the number of regional and national champions in whose swimming development he’d played a vital role. Jim took enormous and well-earned pride in this, but also in the successes and achievements of countless other swimmers that he had coached. Jimmy will be missed not just by those involved with GAW, but also across the region. There isn’t a gala I attend to this day without being asked by other coaches or officials as to Jim’s well-being.
Jimmy lived the role of a coach but was also much loved in the wider community, continuing his love of swimming with his daily visits to 
Blaydon Pool. Well into his 70s and battling illness, Jim would lament that he’d “only” got in 100 lengths that day! He continued his coaching in public sessions at Blaydon, and would happily encourage (or bark at!) any and all of the swimmers he shared the pool with. His larger than life, enthusiastic persona meant that he was respected and loved in equal measure by all that were lucky enough to have known him, and he leaves behind many, many friends.
Martin Connelly also remembers how fundamental Jim was in helping to save the club during his first period as club chairman. Martin managed to persuade Jim to come back to coach again after he had retired, and feels strongly that “pulling him out of the pool at Blaydon, to get him to coach for his second stint, was one of the best things I did.”
In a
ll honesty, Jim would hate all the fanfare, and 
hard as it is to believe for those that witnessed him poolside, Jimmy was actually quite a shy and unassuming character. He had to have his arm twisted to attend his own retirement party and didn’t want to have any fuss when N&D recognised his achievements at his last County Championships. Though he would happily remind you, at least on a fortnightly basis, that he was the N&D champion, 60 years ago, when swimming in a river!
That said, I believe it is important that we all recognise Jimmy for his 
contributions both to Gateshead and Whickham ASC, swimming in the region, and also to the wider community. He enriched so many lives, was very much loved and respected, and will be sorely missed by all that knew him. Our heartfelt sympathies go to his family at this time.
Paul Armstrong and the GAW family
Rosie Jackson is cutting her hair by at least 12 inches in aid of charity.
The 13-year-old is going for the chop to raise money for the Little Princess Trust.
You can help her reach her £200 target by donating here.
Did you know that Gateshead Council offers free gym passes and grants to eligible athletes?
Swimmers are eligible for a gym pass if they have competed in a final of a northern / regional competition. Those aged 12 and over can now use the gym.
Individual sporting grants are also awarded if a swimmer finishes in the top four of a northern /regional final.
Read more and find the updated full application form here.
HNY!!!!!
First competition of the new year and also the last chance for attaining Northumberland and Durham County qualifying times.
On our return to the Louisa Centre after a year away, the swimmers were upbeat and the first few events showed that they had been working hard. With many gaining personal best (PB) times it was in the girls 50 breaststroke when Jess Milburn swam her way to her first County qualifying time. Continuing throughout the morning the PB’s just kept on coming. Moving into the afternoon session there were mixed results and in the 200 Breaststroke Jess again gained another qualifying time, making her my girl swimmer of the day. Tom Goulden was my boy swimmer of the day, due to swimming 6 events and gaining 6 PB’s.
Sunday saw the majority of the swimmers gaining PB’s. With a notable swim by Hannah Paget swimming a great technical 100 Fly. The girls 100 breaststroke brought big PB‘s improvements from Bea Wright, Holly Lawson-Ebbason and Maia Stovold. Henry Stephenson was our only boy under 30 seconds in the 50 freestyle, others are hot on his heels. Henry carried on with his success by gaining his county qualifying time in the 200 fly event at the start of the afternoon session. The session continued with the girls 50 backstroke and Rebbecca Allan managed to get exactly the same time as her PB!
Ethan Storey competed in the 100 backstroke and swam a amazing swim, which resulted in him making the County qualifying time. The rest of the afternoon saw good swims from the boys Devrim Celikay (200BR), Elliott Bond, Lewis Richardson, Cole Reid (100FC). The Girls in the 50 (Fly) – Robyn Clarke, Faye Brown, Kate Binningsley, Carman Gaish and with her last swim with our squad Elissa Smith.So back to the pool and getting ready for the Counties. Congratulations to all swimmers.
Coach Sue Thorpe.
Huge good luck to our diddy league team today at Tynemouth. Enjoy it! A photo from the archives… #TeamGAW pic.twitter.com/ojkvRowHyy
