The close of another annual cycle for the Masters...and arguably the fiercest competition of the year! Upon every second weekend in November, all the Counties of England coalesce within their respective regions to take part in the Inter-County Masters Championships, with venues ranging from Millfield School in Glastonbury to the newly opened Sandwell Commonwealth Centre in Birmingham. Up for the taking are both the Regional crowns, but also the honourable title of Top County across all Thirty-Two ceremonials - a title that Hampshire and the Channel Islands snatched in 2023...

It took a mere 30 minutes from the entry window going live for Swim England National Masters Championships 2024 to near-every event (individual and relay) to reach capacity...that's how far this aquatics discipline has come in just five years. To add, the introduction of Phase One and Two entry times, the former being extremely challenging considering the nature of your 'average' Masters athelete, illustrates the shift from leisurely trainer to high performance - whether it be a Varsity swimmer reaching the end of study or complete retiree. The event welcomes...

Second time to the K2 Centry in Crawley for Southampton Masters in 2024 as Short Course Regionals saw nine Reds make the trip to the familiar South London venue ahead of the National Swim England Championships come October end - qualifying window for the latter firmly closed despite severely steep entry times...quite the testament to the discipline! Heading up the haul was senior leader Tim O'Brien (70-74yrs), unstoppable across the FC events - sprint to distance - with titles in the 50m (0034.00), 100m (01.16.94) and 200m (02.49.99), an open...

In a Hampshire and Channel Island Masters first, those slightly longer in the tooth took to not just one, but two days of provincial racing, with hosts Basingstoke Bluefins and Hart Swimming Clubs sharing the shifts over Saturdays in both in May and June. The first half way up the M3 catered for those that like their turns, introducing 400m and 800m FC events together with a 400m Individual Medley - distances where Masters traditionally struggle to clock much-needed qualifying times without travelling the length and breadth of Britain. Given...

It was the Welsh turn to host the British Masters Championships this year, and as is now commonplace, the City of Swansea stepped up for duty. Their Performance Centre Pool is perennial popular, hosting not only the provincial Championships for Age-Groupers, but also a successful Masters event over the Saint David's Day weekend. Very supportive officials and volunteers from across Wales and West England ensure such competitions run smoothly and are welcoming. Every year, British Masters appears to improve in terms of quantity and quality of athletes...and in just the...

The 2024 World Masters Championships took place in Doha, Qatar just two weeks after the small (but increasingly influential) Middle Eastern State successfully hosted the elite Championships. With its swelling sporting infrastructure post the FIFA World Cup, World Athletics Championships and Artistic Gymnastics Internationals - swimming saw a similar injection of cash with multiple 50m pools (indoor and outdoor) and elaborate facilities all built from scratch. Many Masters from Great Britain made the trip to the Arabian Peninsular, including City of Southampton's own newcomer Tom Williams (25-29yrs). An alumni from...

Together with Counties, the Royal Navy Masters Meet is seen as an ideal opportunity for those new to the discipline to cut their teeth - whether it be those former competitive swimmers that have not seen action for several years', or those completely fresh to the concept of competitive swimming. An entry-level meet with no qualifying times, its timing frequently spars with many Age Group County events (the Royal Navy itself falling under Hampshire and Channel Island jurisdiction and thus attempting to source the same forever shrinking pool of judges...

2024 sees another Summer Olympic Year...which of course means little to all the retirees of the sport spare a shift in calendar dates. We'll see all levels of Masters competition move up a few months, from local events to Welsh, Scottish and British Nationals...often resulting in clashes and truncations (only so many weekends in a row to which part-timers can commit!) Thankfully, the opening event of the calendar nearly always remains the same, South East Regional Long Course Masters Championships, K2, Crawley...on a weekend that saw the much-favoured venue host...

The K2 Centre in Crawley certainly does well out of playing hosts to so many swimming events...from Age Group Regionals, to Masters, and now the Down Syndrome National Championships - a wonderful occasion that welcomes athletes from across the United Kingdom and beyond as European and World records are firmly within competitors' sights. City of Southampton has long been the home of the Stewart family, with siblings Adam (35-39yrs) and Lucy (30-34yrs) frequently partaking in races both in the pool and in the Mediterranean (their mainstay is Gilbraltar, but love...

A delight to return back to the London Aquatics Centre for 2023 and the annual South East Region Inter-County Masters Championships...a definite draw for the best and boldest 'retirees' of the sport, but judging by the standard of sprinting, you wouldn't know this featured an age-range of nearly 80 years (yes, a 92 year old swam against an 18 year old!) Hampshire and the Channel Islands had a title to defend, and with hosts Middlesex coming in a close second in 2022, knew it was going to be a tough...