The Norfolk Inter Club Gala took place at Norwich’s UEA SportsPark on Sunday 9th June, with two separate competitions taking place – the first for junior teams and the second for senior teams.
The junior competition, for the Copeman Cup, saw strong performances from West Norfolk Swimming Club from the get go.
The first win of the day came courtesy of the Boys’ 11 and 12 Years’ 4 x 50 Metre Medley Relay team, before Elizabeth Litvinenko took the Purple Army’s first individual win of the day in the Girls’ 10 Years’ 50M Breaststroke.
Further individual wins came from Valeria Soldatihhina in the Girls’ 11 Years’ 50M Backstroke and Olivia Bradford Girls’ 12 Years’ 50M Butterfly, before Soldatihhina took another victory in the 50M Butterfly event for her age group.
Bradford then took maximum points once again in the Girls’ 12 Years 50M Freestyle, followed by Litvinenko becoming West Norfolk’s third repeat winner in her age group’s 50M Butterfly event.
Soldatihhina grabbed her third victory in the Girls’ 11 Years’ 50M Breaststroke before Ruby Baxter added her name to West Norfolk’s list of individual race winners in the Girls’ 12 Years’ 50M Backstroke.
One final West Norfolk race win came in the 11 Year Olds’ Mixed Medley Relay, helping the club to an overall second place finishing position on the junior leaderboard, twenty two points shy of the victorious City of Norwich.
The afternoon’s senior competition for the Christine Clark Cup for West Norfolk with a race win in the opening event – the Boys’ 13 and 14 Years’ 4 x 50 Medley Relay.
A second relay win quickly followed in the Women’s Open Age Group 4 x 50M Medley.
Thomas Baxter provided the first individual race win in the Boys’ 14 Years’ 100M Breaststroke, followed by Millie Harris in the Women’s 100M Butterfly.
Jamie Wilson was the West Norfolk swimmer to take maximum points, doing so in the Boys’ 15 Years’ 100M Butterfly; before Harris made it two from two with a race win in the Women’s 100M Freestyle.
The second run of relay events in the middle of the completion programme saw a first place finish for both West Norfolk’s Men and West Norfolk’s Women in their respective Open Age Group 4 x 50M Freestyle events.
As individual events got back under way, Alexander Pattison took the win in the Boys’ 14 Years’ 100M Butterfly, soon followed by Wilson in the Boys’ 15 Years’ 100M Freestyle.
Sarah O’Brien was West Norfolk’s next winner in the Women’s 100M Breaststroke before Eloise Collins finished first in the Girls’ 14 Years’ 100M Freestyle.
Joshua Jones was victorious in the Boys’ 15 Years’ 100M Breaststroke to provide the Purple Army’s final individual race win ahead of the closing Mixed Medley Relays.
West Norfolk’s 14 Year Olds placed first in their race, as did the 15 Year Olds, whilst the Open Age Group finished narrowly behind Norwich Swan in second place.
With all said and done, West Norfolk’s Senior Team were top of the leaderboard by a margin of nineteen points, bringing the Christine Clark Cup back to St James’ after a day of fantastic racing and an electric team atmosphere.
