As we arrived, you could already hear the noise of all the other county's preparing themselves for an exciting day of racing. Nearly 900 swimmers taking part, representing their teams, wearing their county colours with pride. Before the event began, the opening ceremony took place where our swimmers Luke Poulton and Katie Ford lead the team out with the Berkshire South Buckinghamshire flag. The team was in full colours supporting up high in the stands of Pond Forge, covered in green and yellow.

As each event unfolded, it was clear to see that the standards of the competition had risen from previous years. Our Berks & S Bucks team were fighting hard to gain as many points as possible throughout the meet to stay in Division 1. There were strong performances from Katherine Williams of Wycombe and Johnny Ireland of Maidenhead in the 100 Backstroke, achieving 2nd and 6th place respectively. After a hard-fought battle in the pool. The Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire County Team finished in 18th place, meaning that next year we will be in the 2nd Division on the 2024 National County Team Championships.

Thank you all for your support throughout this competition, to Paul Lloyd for organising the team. Team Managers Rachel Russel, Kasia Wozniak, Corin Wing. Coaches Joe Evans & Fabian Whitbread. Finally thank you to Peter Roycroft and Nina Bagot for officiating.

Here's to next year, where we plan to bounce straight back up to Division 1.

Report by: Fabian Whitbread