Irish Masters Swimming

The postal swim is now open for submissions all year round.

The details and form for the postal swim scheme are in this [download]

As part of a pilot for a new online entry portal for masters galas in Ireland, entries are now open for the upcoming Dublin Masters Sprint Gala.

The link to the process is https://irishmastersswimming.ie/dublin-masters-sprint-gala-2018-online-entry/

Entries are now closed and the psych sheets are available at https://irishmastersswimming.ie/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/dublin-psych-sheets-2018.pdf

The pool season will shortly be upon us and here is what is on the menu . .

Kilkenny begin proceedings in September, apply [ here ]

The annual Dublin masters gala returns for its 5th instalment on October 14th, the programme can be downloaded [ here ]

The Celtics short course Irish open is also set to return on November 10th / 11th with an extended programme. Details can be viewed [ here ]

enjoy . . .

The Irish contingency had their final outings in Slovenia this weekend with the open water 3km and 5km events taking place in Lake Bled over Saturday and Sunday.

24 swimmers competed in the 3km on Saturday with plenty of vocal Irish support on hand as the swimmers took to the lake over 23 waves throughout the day.

Aer Lingus Masters swimmer Dymphna Morris had a superb week in the pool where she focused her efforts on her best events; 200m, 400m and 800m freestyle, picking up gold in all.  Morris was also part of the 4x50m mixed freestyle relay team on Thursday to add another gold medal to her collection.  Having registered for both the 3km and 5km open water events it was clear Dymphna had her eyes on at least one more medal.  Deciding to swim only 3km and give it her all, the Aer Lingus swimmer swam a sublime 40:23.2 to pick up her final gold medal of the competition, a total of 5 golds for Dymphna Morris at this European Championships.

Plenty of the female swimmers showed their versatility for pool and open water swimming with Leinster Open Sea regular Charlotte Reid finishing a strong 8^th in the ever competitive 35-39 age group.  In the same age group Roisin O’Brien finished 20^th while Comans swimmers Marie Kean and Arlene Mc Guinness finished 21^st and 22^nd in their respective age groups.  Ann McGrath flew the flag for Dublin SC with a 25^th place finish in the 30-34 age group.  The Donegall Diamonds team who featured in last year’s World Masters Water Polo event focused on the open water this year with four swimmers in action while Templemore swimmer Emma Van Loock also took to the open water.

In the men’s 3km event Boyd Freeman of Aer Lingus Masters finished best of the Irish in 7^th place in the 55-59 age group after a busy schedule in the pool earlier in the week.  Next best was Dublin SC’s Ceall O’Dunlaing who finished 11^th in the 45-49 age group, with Mick Kelly of St. Vincent’s finishing 17^th in the same age group.  As with the pool session during the week there were plenty of Aer Lingus Masters swimmers in action; Peter Conway (32^nd), William Irwin (53^rd), Liam O’Gradiagh (66^th) and Liam Ryan (68^th).  Other swimmers in action in the men’s race were Templemore Masters swimmer Ciaran’Flaherty (33^rd), Ennis Masters’ Paschal Phelan (39^th), Eamon Dempsey (46^th) of Glenalbyn Masters and Kilkenny’s Duncan Russell (54^th).

The final event of the European Masters Championships was the 5km open water on Sunday morning.  Just two Irish swimmers took to Lake Bled for this event.  Brian Harris of Asgard SC travelled to compete in this one event, putting in a solid swim to finish 10^th in the 40-44 age group in 1 hour 1 minute.  Paschal Phelan of Ennis Masters showed true grit to compete in both the 3km and 5km events this weekend and had the honours of final Irish swimmer at this competition to finish 29^th in the 50-54 age group in 1 hour 13 minutes.

Congratulations to all swimmers who competed across eight day of competition in Slovenia.  Irish swimmers are bringing home a total of 14 medals; 8 gold, 2 silver and 4 bronze.

Friday 7^th September marked day 6 and the final day of racing in the pool in Kranj, Slovenia.  The events included 200m butterfly, 50m backstroke and 100m breaststroke.

Marie Keane of Comans was first up this morning in one of the toughest events on the program – 200m butterfly, finishing 5^th in the 60-64 age group.  In the men’s heats Peter Conway was the top Irish finisher in 6^th while Aer Lingus Masters colleague Declan O’Sullivan placed 12^th in the 55-59 age group.  Gabor Szabo of Guinness took 13^thplace in the 40-44 age group.

Starting at the opposite end of the pool was the 50m backstroke.  Liz Cosgrave of Trojan SC was keen to add to her medal collection and did not disappoint with a first-place finish and Irish record time of 36.94.  Today’s medal brings Liz’s total for the meet to 4; 3 gold (clean sweep in backstroke events) and 1 silver, along with 4 Irish records.  In the men’s 50m backstroke Aer Lingus Masters’ swimmers Vivian Mongey and Boyd Freeman competed in the 55-59 age group finishing 7^th and 11^th respectively.  Trojan’s Andrew Desmond placed 12^th in the 50-54 age group in a time of 36.67.

The final event of the meet was the 100m breaststroke and Marie Keane finally got her hands on a well-deserved bronze medal in a superb time of 1:38.56 which is also a new Irish record.  This was quickly followed by Charlotte Reid who picked up a silver medal in a time of 1:20.99, just 1 second outside her own Irish record.  The honour of final dip in the pool went to the oldest team member on the trip; Gerry Flynn of Cathal Brugha putting in a solid swim to finish 13^th in the 70-74 age group in a time of 2:05.96.

The swimming action now moves to Lake Bled with the open water 3km taking place tomorrow Saturday 8^th and 5km on Sunday 9^thSeptember.  Twenty-five swimmers will feature in tomorrow’s event with another four brave and hardy souls hitting the water on Sunday in the 5km event.

Irish Masters were in good company today with Irish Ambassador to Slovenia Myles Geiran showing his support to the athletes.  The swimmers did not disappoint with 2 gold, 1 silver and 1 bronze medal to show off for the photo call with the Ambassador.

Liz Cosgrave of Trojan SC has announced her arrival in the 60-64 age group with a definitive win in the 200m backstroke in a time of 3:02.12, knocking an impressive 37 seconds off the current Irish record.  Helena McGrath, also of Trojan SC was the only other Irish swimmer in the 200m backstroke and posted a time of 2:54.41 to claim 7^th place in the 45-49 age group.

Cosgrave barely had time to catch her breath before she took to the blocks in the 50m butterfly, swimming a speedy 35.13 which was good enough for a silver medal and new Irish record.  Agnieszcka Wysocka of Aer Lingus Masters just missed out on the podium with a 4^th place finish in the 30-34 age group while Brenda Healy placed 22^nd in the 35-39 age group.

In the men’s 50m butterfly John Cunningham, Limerick Masters picked up his second medal of the meet with a bronze medal in a time of 26.88 in the 45-49 age group.  Aer Lingus Masters team mates Peter Conway and Declan O’Sullivan placed 11^th and 13^th respectively in the 55-59 age group.  Glenalbyn Masters swimmer Csaba Egly placed 26^th in the 35-39 age group.

The 100m freestyle saw fourteen Irish swimmers take on the sprint event.  Tina Reynolds of Sandycove Island was best of the women in 7^th place in 55-59 age group.  Jasenka Solaja (Trojan SC) placed 24^th in the 40-44 age group while Brenda Healy (Marlins SC) and Roisin O’Brien (Kilkenny SC) finished 16^th and 19^th in the 35-39 age group.  In the 30-34 age group Agnieszcka Wysocka (Aer Lingus Masters) placed 12^th, Ann McGrath (Dublin) was 23^rd and Catherine Fenton 30^th.  In the men’s event Boyd Freeman and Vivian Mongey of Aer Lingus Masters swam in the 55-59 age group, finishing 15^th and 28^th.  Andrew Desmond (Trojan SC) placed 18^th in the 50-54 age group while in the 35-39 age group Mike O’Connell of Kingdom Masters placed 15^th and Glenalbyn Masters’ Csaba Egly was 26^th.

The Aer Lingus Masters team of Vivian Mongey, Agnieszcka Wysocka, Peter Conway and Dymphna Morris finally got their hands on a medal, finishing top of their age group (200-239) in a time of 1:54.51 in the 4x50m mixed freestyle relay, with a new Irish record to match their gold medal.

The Irish team medal tally now stands at 10; 6 gold, 1 silver and 3 bronze.  Tomorrow, Friday is the final day of swimming in the pool with 200m butterfly, 50m backstroke and 100m breaststroke closing out the program.

Irish Masters swimmers continued their good form in Kranj, Slovenia today.  Featured events on day 3 included 200m breaststroke, 50m freestyle, 100m backstroke and 4x50m mixed medley relay.

Marie Keane (50-64) of Comans SC and Aer Lingus Masters swimmer Charlotte Reid (35-39) were the only Irish representatives in the 200m breaststroke.  Keane was placed 4^th in a competitive heat in 3:35.06, while Reid went one better to make it on to the podium in 3^rdplace in 3:01.01.

The 50m freestyle saw seven swimmers fight it out in the splash and dash event.  Best of the Irish was John Cunningham (Limerick Masters) who picked up a bronze medal in the 45-49 age group, clocking a time of 25.71.  Peter Conway (Aer Lingus Masters) was 11^th in the 55-59 age group, Csaba Egly (Glenalbyn Masters) 27^th in the 35-39 age group and Gerry Flynn 28^th in the 70-74 age group.  Best of the women was Agnieszka Wysocka (Aer Lingus Masters) who was 7^th in the 35-39 age group, Tina Reynolds (Sandycove Island) 9^th in the 55-59 age group and Roisin O’Brien of Kilkenny SC was 32^nd in the 35-39 age group.

The final individual event of the day saw Liz Cosgrave (Trojan SC) continue her domination in the 100m backstroke to claim gold in the 60-64 age group, breaking the Irish record by over 20 seconds.  Roisin O’Brien (Kilkenny SC) was 10^th in the 35-39 age group and Arlene McGuinness was 16^th in the 40-44 age group.  Vivian Mongey (Aer Lingus Masters) and Duncan Russell (Kilkenny SC) took to the pool in the men’s 55-59 age group, with Mongey finishing 5^th and Russell 20^th.

The Aer Lingus Masters team of Vivian Mongey, Charlotte Reid, Agnieszcka Wysocka and Peter Conway finished 4^th place in a time of 2:07.37 in the mixed medley 160+ age group.

Today’s 3 medals brings the current Irish tally to 5, 3 gold and 2 bronze.  Day four events include the 200m individual medley, 400m freestyle and 4x50m freestyle relays.

Day 2 of the European Masters Championships saw 15 Irish swimmers take to the water for 200m freestyle, 50m breaststroke and 100m butterfly.

Dorothy Ledwith of Ennis Masters was the first swimmer in action in the women’s 200m freestyle, swimming a new Irish record time in in 60-64 age group of 2.52.48 to finish in 5^th place.  Following swiftly on Dymphna Morris (Aer Lingus Masters) had her eyes on another medal and claimed her second gold of the meet in the 55-59 age group in a time of 2.32.08.  Jasenka Solaja (Trojan SC) finished 14^th in the 40-44 age group while Charlotte Reid (Aer Lingus Masters) claimed 9^th place in the 35-39 age group.

In the men’s 200m freestyle Aer Lingus Masters team mates Boyd Freeman and Vivian Mongey raced in the same heat with Freeman finishing 7^th overall and Mongey a close 8^th, with just .05 seconds between the swimmers in the 55-59 age group.  John Cunningham (Limerick Masters) opened his campaign with a strong 7^th place finish in the 45-49 age group.

Four swimmers competed in the 50m breaststroke.  Marie Keane, Comans finished 6^th in her age group (60-64) in 45.25 while Charlotte Reid was 4^th in the 35-39 age group in a time of 36.10. Gerry Flynn of Cathal Brugha placed 15^th in the 70-74 age group in 47.86 with Glenalbyn Masters swimmer Csaba Egly finishing 29^thin 36.32.

The women’s 100m butterfly saw Agnieszka Wysocka (30-34), Aer Lingus Masters and Helena Mc Grath (45-49), Trojan SC finish 4^th and 5^th place respectively, getting their competition off to a good start.  Best of the men in the 100m butterfly was Peter Conway (Aer Lingus Masters) finishing 9^th in the 55-59 age group in a time of 1.14.46.  Csaba Egly (35-39) placed 15^th, while Declan O’Sullivan (55-59) and Mike O’Connell (35-29) both finished 17^th in their age groups.

Tuesday 4^th September includes the 200m breaststroke, 50m freestyle, 100m backstroke and 4x50m mixed medley relay.  There will be plenty of Irish swimmers returning to the pool, keep up to date with live results on http://emc2018.microplustiming.com

The European Masters Championships got underway on Sunday 2^nd September in Kranj, Slovenia.  First event of the week was the men’s and women’s 800m freestyle with three Irish swimmers in action.

Boyd Freeman of Aer Lingus Masters was the sole representative in men’s event, finishing 6^th in the 55-59 age group in 10.27.24, good preparation for his 200m freestyle on Monday morning.

Ennis Masters swimmer Dorothy Ledwith placed 7^th in the women’s 60-64 age group in 23 minutes 34 seconds.

Best of the Irish on day one was Dymphna Morris from Aer Lingus Masters who has had a long road to recovery from a persistent shoulder injury.  Getting her week-long campaign off to a great start Morris won gold in the women’s 55-59 age group in a time of 10.58.40.  Dymphna has a busy schedule this week with 5 events in the pool and the 3km and 5km open water events next weekend.

The Aer Lingus Masters men’s team of Boyd Freeman, Vivian Mongey, Declan O’Sullivan and Peter Conway competed in the 4×50 medley relay placing 6^th in the 200+ age group in a time of 2.11.90.

Monday’s session gets underway at 8am Irish time with the 200m freestyle, 50m breaststroke and 100m butterfly.  Live results are available on http://emc2018.microplustiming.com/swimming/index_web.php

Beginning in September (22nd) the winter pool season starts in Kilkenny with a gala / open water double header: more details are expected soon.

The annual Dublin masters gala returns for its 5th instalment on October 14th, the programme can be downloaded [ here ]

The Celtics short course Irish open is also set to return on November 10th / 11th with an extended programme. details to follow but the schedule can be viewed [ here ]

We expect Mallow to take us into Christmas but for now we can look forward to the rest of the open water swimming that remains around the country.