LEDBURY and District swimmers concluded their club long-distance championships.

There were fine performances in the 400-metre individual medley, 800m freestyle and 1,500m freestyle.

In the senior girls’ 400m individual medley, winner Eve Watson was a second faster than closest rivals Lydia Freeman-Girvin and Lily Wood.

Freeman-Girvin recorded the fastest backstroke leg but a strong breaststroke section proved decisive for Watson.

Her lead going into the freestyle leg was too much for second-placed Freeman-Girvin and Wood to close.

The junior girls’ 400m race was dominated by 11-year-old Daisy Wood, as she recorded the fastest time on all four strokes.

She left Robyn Munday, Emily Russell, Rosie Loraine, Francesca Harvey-White and Emma Tillott to battle for the other podium places.

The breaststroke proved vital, with Munday forging ahead to finish runner-up, just a second ahead of 10-year-old Russell.

The boys swam equally well with Elliot Heath storming into the lead in the senior boys’ 400m individual medley from the first length and swimming confidently to take the gold medal.

Matt Thomas secured second spot, with Seb Roffey taking the bronze just inside the five-minute mark.

The junior championship was won by William Hughes, who has improved with every competition.

Ten-year-olds Danny Kearley and Tom Birley showed skills on all the disciplines to take the silver and bronze medals.

The freestyle distance events saw William Kennedy and Freeman-Girvin win the double by claiming both 800m and 1,500m races in the junior boys and senior girls respectively.

In the junior boys’ 800m, Kearley was second to Kennedy with a strong consistent pace edging Birley into third.

In the 1,500m event, Owen Wake showed dogged determination and improvement to take the silver medal.

In the junior girls’ 800m, Munday triumphed with Loraine in silver position and Russell bronze.

Munday was runner-up to Daisy Wood in the 1,500m with Loraine taking bronze.

In the senior boys’ 800m, Heath was the championship winner with Bradley Williams runner-up and Thomas in third.

Williams set a fine example after recent knee surgery by winning the 1,500m from Thomas and Roffey.

Sprinter Ellie Ainsworth finished second in the senior girls’ 800m with Lily Wood putting in a robust effort for third place.

Talesha Hunt is another showing marked improvement and, having been nudged into fourth in the 800m, secured the silver medal in the longer race with Lily Wood finishing third.

Head coach Duncan Loraine said: “The longer events are not popular with the majority of swimmers as we mostly focus training and competing on shorter events.

“However, they are invaluable as an assessment of both technique and fitness and offer me the opportunity to monitor progress. All those who competed should be congratulated.”