Olympic Eligibility

Earlier this week I filled out my eligibility form for selection for the Olympics. Apparently I've made British Swimming's shortlist, which they've passed on to the British Olympic Association. Obviously it means nothing unless I actually qualify next month, but it's quite exciting all the same. I'll have another update for you in a day or so; I'm competing in Aldershot this weekend for Bracknell and Wokingham Swim Club's annual open meet. I'm only swimming in my main events, the 50m and 100m Free, and I'll let you know how I get on.

Hatfield UK Challenge

Hatfield Swimming Club held its annual UK Challenge meet this weekend, and it always promises to attract some of the fastest swimmers in the region. For a kick-off I swam the 100m Freestyle and touched with a new personal-best time of 50.22. I would have liked to dip under the 50 second barrier for the first time, but I had a terrible dive and given my training schedule at the moment I can't be displeased. Later on Sunday I focussed on my main event, the 50m Free. As in the 100m, I was racing against Adam Brown, an old nemesis of mine, and someone who holds the British Records in both the 50m and 100m Free, and has already qualified for the London Olympic Team. I put in a decent performance and finished with another new best time of 22.81, but frustratingly placed second behind Adam. You can count with one hand the number of people in history who have ever been faster than he has over 50yards Freestyle, so I'll settle for silver (for now). He also tells me that he'll be competing at the June trials to qualify for the 50m Free at the Olympics, just like me. Game on. You can watch the video of the final below. It's a bit blurry and shakey, but that's me in lane 5 with the white cap, Adam is in lane 4, and Windsor teammate Oliver Leonard goes in lane 6. For the full meet report that I write for the paper each week, click this link.

Regional Championships

I've just wrapped up a good weekend's racing at the South-East Regional Championships, jointly held between Crawley and Guildord, both of which boast 50m pools. On day one I picked up Gold in the 50m Free with a decent time of 23.77. Irritatingly, I got ran down in the 100m Free and touched-out by just five hundredths of a second. I've posted the video below. (Never underestimate your opposition.) Nonetheless, I was happy with the time - 52.11, which is the fastest I've been all season besides the first round of the Olympic Trials in March. To round things off, I competed in the 200m Free yesterday and took Silver in the final. It's not an event I normally take very seriously, but it's good conditioning, and the time I posted (1.57.2) is the fastest I've been in a very long time, since the days of the ultra fast bodysuits. Things are coming along nicely. Here is the full meet report that I wrote for the club website and the local newspaper. Next weekend I compete in Hatfield, which holds a short-course (25m) meet every year, and it's sure to be extremely fast. Wish me luck!

I'm in lane 5 with the white cap.

Thank You

Hello and welcome to my site. I've set this up to document my run-in to the London Olympics as a way of thanking those of you who responded to my appeal for sponsorship and came to my aid. I am extremely grateful for every card and letter wishing me luck, and for all the cheques, whether large or small, that make my dream a possibility. I cannot thank you enough. On this site I'll post updates and reports to keep you abreast of my progress between now and the Games.

Many of you have asked me to set up a donations page, which proved difficult, but if you would like to donate click the link in the top right corner and you'll be directed straight to Paypal. Also, if you would like to view my complete sponsorship profile, email me at the address below and I'll send it your way.

robmattstroud@hotmail.com