Cambridge Dive Team recently brought back an impressive 15 medals from the Swim England East Region Age Group competition held in Southend. This event spanned two days and is used as a qualifying event for the Swim England National Age Group Championships which this year is to be hosted in Sheffield at the end of June. Cambridge took a team of seven divers to the event, ranging from some experienced competitors at this level and some who had never competed on a regional stage.
The first event of the weekend was the Girls Group C 1m event in which two Cambridge divers took part. Tobi Fayomi and Daisy Maddocks-Hunt both put in a solid set of dives, with Tobi taking home the silver medal along with a new personal best and achieving qualifying standard. This was the first event of such calibre for Daisy and one in which she performed very well to place 6th.
Next up was the Boys 3m event in which Cambridge had four representatives spread over different age groups. Ryan Church held his nerve while competing in his first age group event, and took home the gold medal in the Boys D competition with a respectable score of 111.55. Charles Tibbatts matched his team mate and took home the gold medal in the Boys C event with a score of 204.40 – a new personal best and qualifying score for Nationals. Ben Matthams placed 4th in the Boys B 3m event, competing two new dives and achieving a new personal best with a qualifying score of 223.45. Meanwhile Rufus Bord took home the silver medal with a score of 261.35; a new personal best by just over 30 points and qualifying score for Nationals.
Platform was the first event of the weekend for the Girls Group B in which Amelia Aldridge flew the flag for Cambridge. Putting in a good set of dives, Amelia secured the silver medal and a qualifying score for Sheffield, with a new personal best by almost 20 points.
The Girls Group C were back in action this time on the platforms, and Tobi once again showcased her impressive skills and came away with a bronze medal, personal best and qualifying score.
The final event of day one was the Girls B 1m event and Cambridge diver Amelia once again put in a good set of dives after a long day to place 3rd, scoring 185.95. Aldridge competed a new dive for the first time and the regional meet was a great environment to gain confidence and practice in a competitive atmosphere.
The start of the second day kicked off with the Boys 1m event. Ryan, competing again for the first time at this level, took home the gold medal in the Boys D event with a commendable score of 105.85. Charles also took home his second gold medal, a personal best and qualification for Nationals in the Boys C category. Cambridge divers Rufus and Ben consolidated the club’s impressive performances, both making the podium in third and second respectively and achieving a qualifying score for Nationals.
Next up was the Girls Group C 3m event where both Daisy and Tobi competed, placing 6th and 3rd with a new personal bests and national qualification. This rounded off a successful meet for both divers with focus now on continued up-skilling ready for the summer.
The last event for the boys was the platform, with Charles taking home a 3rd gold medal of the weekend with a score of 188.45. This is a fantastic achievement and makes three out of three and national qualification for Charles. Rufus bord secured himself a second silver medal of the weekend with a score of 211.50, narrowly missing out on the gold. Rufus also achieved the targeted three national qualification scores and set two personal bests over the weekend.
The final event of the weekend was the Girls Group B 3m event in which Amelia dived well to win the gold medal, completing her set of medals for the weekend – one of each colour. Amelia scored 237.35 gaining a triplet of national qualifications and another huge personal best beating her previous highest score by 44 points.
This was an impressive weekend for Cambridge Dive Team, with a large medal collection and places secured for the National Age Groups later in the season.
