Tazmin delighted at the Nationals
23 Jul 2011
Tazmin competes in Nationals.
The biggest day of a young swimmer's life came to fruition this week for 11 year old Tazmin Pugh from Pershore Swimming Club. Just six months ago she had come of age of being allowed to try for the first time to hit the tough qualifying times from nearly 3,000 11yr old girls recording competition times for the National Age Group Championships at Sheffield's 'Ponds Forge' International 50m pool.
Tazmin, a pupil at Bowbrook House School in Peopleton, apart from being one of the very youngest, was one of the few who had qualified from both her short course and long course times. Her entry time of 2.41.35 initially ranked her 21st out of the 22 swimmers in the 200m backstroke heats. Two guest swimmers from Ireland were also in the mix travelling over to challenge the best twenty of the United Kingdom's 11yr old girls and battling it out for the top ten places for the finals. Her young age, International competition all meant it would be an even bigger task for Pershore Swimming Club's young starlet to fulfill.
Tazmin went in the second heat and immediately put into action her plan of taking out the race from the front with a superb start, her underwater kick having become one of her calling cards in the young swimming world. Still just in the lead after 150m it was all coming down to the last 50m, but it was clear she was going to pay the price for her early courage and being unable to draw on any reserves lost out on the touch. Coming 2nd in her heat may have been some consolation but with another eleven faster girls to go in the following heats meant she had to be content with eventually finishing in a creditable 11th place and being named first reserve for the finals with a time of 2.39.59. One of the Irish visitors did indeed make the finals and in fact went on to win overall.
Tazmin was thoroughly delighted with her showing especially as she had improved a massive ten places over her qualifying time also setting a personal best for a long course pool. Far from being fazed Tazmin came away desperate to find more time being made available to her club and to train even harder herself to enable her to compete in more events next year with a clear aim of making the finals in each. Her coach Tom Naughton thinks that with her continued dedication she could make another three or four events at the Nationals next year. With Tazmin remaining a true inspiration to her club mates at Pershore their Head Coach is also hoping for a record entry from other dedicated individuals in the club to the County Championships next March and maybe to start along their own road on to the Midlands and then the Nationals in the years to come. PHOTO
Ian