Royal Wootton Bassett Otters young swimmers have enjoyed a wave of success at the recent county championships, in a year which has already seen a record number of regional qualifiers and a scholarship to a prestigious school for one successful swimmer.
The small, but speedy squad did themselves and their club proud during the recent county event at the Link Centre, with three golds, six silver and ten bronze medals – from a record number of 25 qualifiers.
Formed in 1973 and run entirely by volunteers, the club has grown to become a thriving and integral part of the local community, developing swimmers through a high level of technical coaching and an equally high level of fun – encouraging children to take the next steps into competition swimming.
A special mention must go to Alex D’Onofrio, who has earned a scholarship at the prestigious Mount Kelly School in Tavistock, Devon. A school which has developed over 60 international swimmers since 2000 and produced an impressive list of elite Olympians such as Sharon Davies and Lauren Steadman.
Ten year old Alex swam in the recent county event at the Link Centre and bagged an impressive 10 county medals. Swimming the fastest time on record (in his age group) for 100m fly in Wiltshire – and an impressive 6th overall time in the UK.
Alex will be starting at Mount Kelly in September. He’ll be hugely missed, but his development is a great example of what can be achieved at RWB Otters with the right coaching. Alex will remain part of the club and return for training during holidays. We all wish him the best of luck.
His parents, Gio and Sam (who is one of the coaches at Otters) say “we are very proud of all the hard work he has put in and we’ll always be grateful to everyone at the club – we know how much effort goes in behind the scenes to enable the swimmers to achieve this level of success.”
Head coaches Mark & Paul “We’re thrilled that Alex has done so well and wish him all the best for the future. His journey shows how swimming talent can be nurtured to follow a successful path to competitive swimming with RWB Otters.”
“We’re extremely proud of the achievements of all of our swimmers and look forward to more success later in the year.”
