Besides the easy access to the pool in Putney, it is the club atmosphere that makes it special. With adult swimmers coming in from Barnes, Wimbledon, Richmond, Fulham, Wandsworth and further east, the club’s sessions are a greater mixer for members to enjoy their swimming but also socialise. After sessions, it is not uncommon for teammates to head up the road to the pub or tennis club for a catch-up.

Most people are familiar with Putney for the famous Boat Race between Oxford and Cambridge, which is perhaps one of the most significant symbols of sporting endurance and teamwork. A short walk from where these elite athletes are pushing themselves to the very limit on the water, the Spencer swim team are also challenging themselves in pursuit of competition honours, personal bests, or fitness improvement.

Whether you’re training for Masters Nationals, aiming to perfect your butterfly, or love the feeling of moving through water, you’ll find yourself surrounded by people who share your drive and who support your journey. Coaches know every swimmer by name, sessions are structured with purpose, and progress is celebrated at every level.

In this corner of southwest London, you’ll find more than a pool — you’ll find your team, your challenge, and your swimming home.

The post Putney Remains Popular Swimming Home of Spencer Team appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

Spencer’s superb squad produced a string of splendid swimming at the Bracknell Masters Short Course 2022. The club finished 5th in Top Club Points, a very notable achievement.

Sally Ritchie 
Gold: 100 IM 
Silver: 50 BCK
Bronze: 50 FREE 

Sarah Tripp 
Bronze: 100 BRST and 50 FLY

Fiona Wiggins
Gold: 200 BRST
Bronze: 100 BRST and 50 BRST

Laura Mason
Gold: 50 BRST; 100 BRST; 200 IM
Silver: 100 IM

Robyn Le Friec
Gold: 50 Fly; 100 Fly; 200 Fly and the Trophy as the Top scoring 200 Fly swimmer!
Silver: 200 Free

Amanda Heath
Gold: 200 Free; 100 BRST; 200 BRST

Godfrey Admans
Silver: 50 Bck and 100 IM

Luca Milana
Silver: 200 IM
Bronze: 100 BRST

Oliver Lungley
Gold: 50BRST; 100 BRST; 100 FREE
Silver: 50 FREE
Bronze: 50 FLY
In the top swimmer rankings placed 9^th! 

Medley Relays

Sally Ritchie, Sarah Tripp, Robyn Le Friec, Jess Campbell
Silver: Womens 120+ 

Olegas Petrikas, Luca Milana, Oliver Lungley, Ross Needham
Bronze: Mens 120+

Freestyle Relays

Sally Ritchie, Laura Mason,Jess Campbell, Robyn Le Friec
Bronze: Womens 160+

Olegas Petrikas, Luca Milana, Oliver Lungley, Ross Needham
Bronze: Mens 120+

Mixed Fly Relay 120+

Oliver Lungley, Olegas Petrikas, Sally Ritchie, Robyn Le Friec
Bronze: Golden Fins (fun name of the team)

The post Spencer’s medals blast at Bracknell appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

Spencer’s most senior and distinguished swimmers shone at the Swim Wales Masters Long Course, 5-6 March, bringing home 30 medals, 18 of them gold, and a World Record.

Alan Parkins 60-64
4th 1500 free, 7th 800 free

Amanda Heath 60-65
Gold 200 breast (WR), 200 free, 50 free

Godfrey Admans 65-69
Silver 100 back, 50 free

Grace Isaac 90-94
Gold 50, 100, 200 back

Muriel Hitchcock 80-84
Gold 50, 100, 200 breast, 50 back, 50 free

Peter Stephens, 75-79
Gold 1500 free, 50, 100 breast, 50 back, 50 fly; Silver 100, 200, 400, 800 free

Simon Berrey, 50-54
Silver 1500 free, bronze 800 free

Sue Lauder 75-79
Silver 200, 400 free; bronze 800 free

Suzanne Maidment 55-59
Bronze 50 free, 4th 200 free, 5th 50 breast & 800 free, 6th 400 free

Women’s 280+ 4×50 free – Gold
Suzanne Maidment, Muriel Hitchcock, Sue Lauder, Amanda Heath

Mixed 280+ 4×50 free – Gold
Alan Parkins, Peter Stephens, Sue Lauder, Amanda Heath

The post Spencer triumphs at Swim Wales Masters Long Course 2022 appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

A group of Spencer swimmers braved the first competition of the year, facing down K2 Crawley for the South East Regional long course Masters champs.

Despite losing our long course training pool last year at Crystal Palace, there were some amazing performances. We brought home nearly 40 medals and the incredible Amanda Heath marked her move into the 65/69 age group by smashing British and World records.

We were pleased to be joined by some of our ‘out of towners’ including Peter who traveled from Cornwall.

Other highlights included a gold in the men’s 240+ 4x50m Free relay and a nail-biting finish in the women’s 72+ 4x50m IM relay to pip Tunbridge Wells to the win.  

GOLD

800 free: Peter Stephens

50 back: Guy Emerson, Godfrey Admans

Men’s 4×50 free relay 240+

100 breast: Esther Iseppi, Amanda Heath (British Record), Diane Ford

200 IM: Amanda Heath (European Record), Esther Iseppi

100 back: Helen Cumber, Godfrey, Guy Emerson

50 breast: Amanda Heath (British Record), Rebecca Pritchard, Diane Ford, Esther Iseppi

200 fly: Abba Newbery, Esther Iseppi

100 free: Abba Newbery, Diane Ford, Guy Emerson

200 breast: Esther Iseppi, Amanda Heath (World Record)

200 back: Helen Cumber, Amanda Heath

4×50 women’s 4x 50 IM relay

SILVER

50 fly: Oli Lungley

400 free: Peter Stephens

400 free: Sue Lauder

50 breast: Oli Lungley

50 free: Oli Lungley, Godfrey, Peter Stephens

100 free: Oli Lungley

100 fly: Abba Newbery

BRONZE

800 Free: Sue Lauder

200 free: Sue Lauder

50 free: Helen Cumber, Abba Newbery, Guy Emerson

The post Medal rush for Spencer appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

John Gordon was simply one of the most intense, enthusiastic and committed swimmers and coaches that you will ever meet.  His very sudden death, at the age of 76, has been a great and tragic shock to many.

John Gordon was the founder of Spencer Swim Team, based at Spencer Park School Adult Education Complex in Wandsworth, where John was a tutor. From the humble beginnings of a 20-yard training pool, John grew the club in a few short years to become one of the most successful Masters clubs in Britain, if not the World.

John was an outstanding swimmer and very hard trainer in pool and gym.  He represented England at Commonwealth and Empire Games in Jamaica 1966 where he recorded 7^th in the 440 yards Individual Medley in a time of 5.15.

John was an individual medley swimmer who excelled at Backstroke.  

As a young swimmer he was swimming 30,000 metres plus a week without the use of goggles and most of his training was on his own.  A major feat of physical and mental commitment and strength.

John was a pioneer of Masters swimming, taking Spencer Swim Team to the US Short Course Masters, Hall of Fame pool, Fort Lauderdale, Florida in 1980 and 1982.  The team included Dave Mace, Tony Pearce, John Gordon, Godfrey Admans, John Middleton and Jack Hale. In 1978, John, together with Vic Lohr and Tony Pearce, made Spencer Swim Team the first British Masters Team to compete at an overseas Masters Meet at Brown University, Rhode Island.

An enthusiastic competitor in Masters swimming from the outset, he consistently won World, European and National medals of all colours and set records including at:

• Blackpool 1987 (E), G 100 and 200 Back.
• Casablanca 1998 (W) S B S 200 100 50 Bk respectively. G 4 x 50 Mixed Medley Relay. (Pictured below with Amanda Heath, Carol Fellows, Tony Cherrington)
• Mallorca 2001 (W) G 200 IM, S 200 Bk, B 50 Bk 55-59.

As examples of his national dominance, at the inaugural British Long Course Championships, in Aberavon, John won the 50, 100 and 200 Back and took silvers in the 50 and 100 Free, setting the British record in the 50 back. In 1990, John won 7 events at the GB Masters in the 45-49 age group, 50, 100 & 200 Back and Free and 200 IM, and he continued to break British records as he moved into the 50-54 and 55-59 age groups.

John had a love of cars and was easy to spot in South-West London in his Rolls Royce, Jaguar and later other sports and classic cars back in the day and in later years spent much of his time in Thailand.

His contribution to Spencer Swim Team cannot be underestimated as founder and early driving force.  

Dave Mace trophy winner, Godfrey Admans, and John Middleton met John Gordon for a social drink only two weeks ago and John looked in good health.  His passing is therefore even more shocking.

Update – 6 October 2021

John Gordon’s funeral has been arranged for Monday 25th October at 9:20am. The funeral will take place at North East Surrey Crematorium, Morden.

The post John Gordon, 1945 – 2021. appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

The third annual Spencer Mile is now ready to enter. All the details you need are below!

Date:               Sunday 26th September 2021

Venue:             Thorpe Park Lake. Thorpe Lakes, Thorpe Road, Chertsey, Surrey KT16 8PH

Course:             4 x round 400m loop.

Time:                8.30am briefing.  9.00am first wave. 

 Swimmers must be registered prior to swimming.  Late swimmers will not be permitted to compete.

Organisation

The event will be swum in waves of similar ability based on previous results. Waves of ideally 5/6 will start 30 seconds apart.

The swim will start in the water by the pier of the lake. Swimmers must touch the pier on each lap and must swim around the outside of each buoy, keeping the buoy to their left.  Swimmers finish by touching the pier at the end of their fourth lap.

Timing:              Manual.

Categories:       Wetsuit and skins.  Age groups based on every 5 years from 20+.  

Entry

Entries made by email to Steve Baker (sbaker50@btinternet.com). Please provide your DoB and whether wetsuit or skin category.

Price:               £20 each to include entry, prize, refreshments.

Payment:          Please confirm your entry by emailing Steve for bank account details for payment.

No cash will be taken on the day!  

Prizes              

Prizes for first, second and third in each age group. 

Special overall award for skins v suits where wetsuits get a 10%-time calculation penalty.    1 men, 1 women.

Party!

We will be holding a barbecue and light refreshments at the lakeside straight after the racing.  This will be from 10am till lunchtime.  Drinks will be available but warm beverages are available from the lakeside café.

Donations: Intentions to offer a cake or similar will be very gratefully received.  Please advise intention to Steve in advance either in person at training or via email.

The post Spencer Mile 2021 – Entries Now Open! appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.

So many swimmers, so many winners.  Most important what a lovely stretch of river and a lovely race.  It started in 50’s dreamland at the Sea Scout headquarters.  For you youngsters, the 50s was last century!  After the safety announcements we all got in for the obligatory 5 minutes treading water and acclimatizing.  A rapid start and an 800m stretch of green on both sides of the river.  After the halfway point we got to the hard-standing area with rowing boat sheds for the Oxford colleges.  Another 400m saw the start of the final stretch.  A well laid out series of pencil buoys of 200 m upstream and then a sprint finish on the other side to a hard landing.  The whole race bar the final 200m was upstream but to the Spencer swimmers this mattered little.

To put a smile on everyone’s face, the sun had its hat on, and the weather was just perfect.  Just enough cloud to guard against burn and enough sun to make it warm.

Overall men’s winner was Tristan Slater in an absorbing race against Rob Tate.  Tristan won by a short head but had the advantage of a suit so both men won their categories and had a fantastic race.

Sue Swaine was the women’s overall winner and unusually for her did not wear a suit, well done Sue, a convert!!!!!

Lisa Hibberd was the overall senior women’s winner.

Your ever so humble coach was first in the infinity category and second in the senior men’s.  That’s over 55 if you need to know!!!! 

Very impressive swims were recorded by James Draper in 6^th, Luke Schuberth in 8^th, Willem Heskes in 11^th and  Ed Hill in 12^th.  James and Luke in rather dapper rubber suits with Willem and Ed in hairy pink versions.  Well done Willem and Ed.

Luca Milana completed his first ever open water race and swim in water below 26 degrees.  Forza Luca.

Luca of course had a good introduction to open water swimming by pulling the coach back by the trunks and having the temerity to cut across him during the race.  Naughty Luca!

Making up the team on the day were Jane Turner and Sara Luder who had a good personal race, Michael Barnett, Nicola Malin, Mel Thomas.  14 swimmers in all.  There were three withdrawals for various reasons.

Mel had made the trip all the way from Cardiff to compete.

Well done everyone on your efforts, please see the attached spreadsheet for results and times.

In terms of the open event of which we were a part, we had no fewer than 8 in the top 20 and when you consider there were lots of suited swimmers in the race that’s a great achievement.  The total entry was 120 swimmers, so we made up a little over 10%.

Following the race there was exceptionally good cakes with tea and coffee from the organisers.  We then trekked back to a lovely spot on the river for a picnic.  What a fab event that was.

The post Inaugural Spencer Mile 2019 appeared first on Spencer Swim Team London.