Twice as good as gold

Denton Artistic Swimming Club’s Masters team has been crowned national champions in the technical team event at the sport’s UK championships – their second success in two weeks.

They were awarded the gold medal for their Charleston-themed routine at the championships held in Sheffield, following on from their gold medal success at the North West and North East Multi-Regional championships at the Manchester Aquatics Centre a fortnight earlier.

The six-strong team triumphed above 22 teams to win the coveted national title and are now setting their sights on entering next year’s European championships – logistics permitting.

The team, which ranges in age between 21 and 48, trains twice a week in the pools at Active Tameside’s Wellness Centre, in Denton, and at Active Medlock.

And for two of the members, Jo Priest and Sue Williams, the latest titles are particularly sweet as they have been swimming together since the age of eight, having first met at nursery aged three.

Jo, who recently raised over £2,500 for charity by swimming the equivalent of the English channel over seven days in the pools at Denton and Hyde, says: “Back in the 80s, there was a synchro team called Tameside Synchro, which used to swim at the old Denton baths, and Sue and I competed on the same team back when we were eight years old.

“When we both turned 40, we ended up back in the pool together, and then Sue came on board and formed part of the team. And as it’s progressed, we’ve got other members of the old Tameside squad that have come back as well.”

Along with Jo and Sue, the team is made of Aimee Carey - the baby of the team at 21 - former Tameside synchro swimmers Lesley Layton and Tina Mann, and Vicky Worsley, who at the age of 47 has only been competing for two years.

Denton Artistic Swimming Club welcomes boys and girls from the age of seven with no upper age limit and once swimmers get to the age of 18, they can join the masters squad and compete.

Jo adds: “Synchronised swimming has had a bad rep in the past, it’s even been ridiculed, but it’s actually a superpower.

“You need the grace of a ballerina or a dancer. You need the agility and the flexibility of a gymnast. You need the spatial awareness of a footballer. You need the stamina of a long-distance runner. And you need to be able to do all those things without needing to breathe!”

With this year’s competition season ending until next Spring, the club’s swimmers of all ages gathered to showcase their talents at the Denton pool, whilst its annual presentation night will take place at Curzon Ashton Football Club on Saturday 19th July.

If you are interested in joining Denton Artistic Swimming Club, contact headcoach.dssc@gmail.com or visit the website: https://www.dentonartisticswimmingclub.org/