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SGS pupils celebrate selection for National Swimming Trials


Swimmer Eliza Pinkstone in action

We were delighted to learn that two of our Fifth Year pupils, Colleen Devlin and Eliza Pinkstone, had been selected to take part in the Olympic Swimming Trials in April at the London Aquatics Centre in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Colleen said: “When I found out that I had qualified it was like a dream come true. I was not expecting to qualify for such a high-ranking competition this year due to the pandemic, it felt so surreal.”

The news that the pandemic has now affected the junior side of the competition has been deeply disappointing for Colleen but she said:  ”I am determined to be positive and focus on what I can control such as my schoolwork and internal assessments to get the best grades I can in my GCSEs.”

Having qualified in 2020, Eliza was eagerly awaiting for the rescheduled event to compete in butterfly, freestyle and individual medley races.

Eliza said: “I have been swimming for around six years, gradually moving up through Stockport Metro training program and I’m now on the International Squad.

“In 2018 I was lucky enough to enter the English and British Nationals in 2018/2019 winning Gold in 100m fly at the English Nationals.”

Both swimmers train up to eight times a week and incorporate land based training such as running, weights and yoga into the busy schedule.

SGS has helped the pair to pursue their passion at school; Eliza has swum in all the House Galas and has been House Swimming Captain for a number of years. Whilst Colleen has competed in the AJIS Swimming competitions and became the junior Swimming Captain for school – she also volunteers to supervise the Junior Swim Club as part of her Duke of Edinburgh Award.

As well as swimming, the girls have enjoyed exploring the many sporting opportunities at SGS including football, rounders, hockey and athletics.

Colleen adds: “School has been fantastic; the PE department have been so encouraging and supportive. They constantly encourage and motivate me; they always have time to talk and check in with me to see how training is going. My coach has been welcomed to school to help facilitate some training sessions and I am so grateful for this opportunity and I have been able to move some PE lessons to have additional training in the pool.”

Whilst our pupils were remote learning and to aid their development, the Sport, PE, Health and Fitness department created the ‘SGS Talks Sport’ series where they speak to figures from the world of sport who can impart their knowledge to our pupils.

SGS delivers lessons, co-curricular activities and competitions with the benefit of excellent sports facilities. The opportunities for Sport, PE, Health and Fitness at SGS are almost limitless with sports from dance to climbing to football and fencing and the option to study sport at IGCSE and A-Level.

Colleen commented: “I would really like to take this opportunity to thank all my teachers and everyone at school for the support they have provided me and my friends during the last 12 months. They have worked so hard to teach in difficult situations, they have made learning interesting and have always been there to offer help.”