Market Drayton Swimming Club achieves record success at regional championships
A Shropshire swimming club is celebrating an outstanding performance at the West Midlands Summer Championships, held over five days at the prestigious Sandwell Aquatics Centre.
Sixteen swimmers from Market Drayton Swimming Club qualified in 89 events for the highly competitive regional event - a record achievement for the team. This was up from 12 swimmers and 55 events in 2025.
Across the competition, the swimmers entered 71 events, with 40 races finishing inside the top 10 (56 per cent). The team brought home nine medals: one gold, two silver and six bronze. All swimmers qualified for the championships by achieving times at previous galas.
Head coach Luke Harris praised the swimmers’ dedication and effort.
“We’re immensely proud of our swimmers’ performances at the West Midlands Summer Championships.
“Our swimmers displayed high class in their attitude, technical ability and race speed. They produced a fantastic set of results credited to their hard work, and the dedication of the support network around them. We run a small programme, and taking 16 swimmers to the competition and delivering an excellent set of performances highlights the talent our programme has to offer.”
Two of the club’s swimmers have since gone on to qualify for national championships, with Ava Highfield (14), qualifying for British and English nationals and Paige Simpson (15) qualifying for English nationals. They will compete in July this year at the Ponds Forge International Centre, in Sheffield, among the top swimmers in the country in their age.
Fundraising for diving blocks
The club is also fundraising for six new competitive diving blocks for the team to use. The previous ones have been used since the early 1990s and need replacing.
If you or your business is interested in donating to the team’s fundraising campaign, please get in touch at: mdscsecretary@hotmail.com
Join the Club
Market Drayton Swimming Club welcomes swimmers from ASA Stage 7 onwards. The club offers an initial assessment followed by three free trial sessions. Currently, two spaces are available for new swimmers.
For more information or to arrange a trial, please contact mdscsecretary@hotmail.com
