Canvey's disabled swimmers turned in good performances at the Disability Sport England National Championships and Paralympic trials.

The event - held at Sheffield's Ponds Forge pool - attracted more than 400 swimmers from 42 countries for what was almost a dry run of this summer's Paralympic Games in Athens.

Chief coach Rob Park saw his swimmers win three medals and said: "The weekend medals were earned the hard way.

"Our swimmers were in world class company competing in events where many world records were broken.

"Their times speak for themselves and naturally we are all proud of their achievements."

Adam Puddick, fresh from a Deaf Swimming training camp in Scotland, captured two medals. The 2100m backstroke saw him take the silver - Canvey's highest achievement.

He followed this with a bronze in the 100m freestyle. Puddick also competed in 50m and 400m freestyle, 100m breaststroke and 200 individual medley and was fourth in all events.

Keeley Spooner, 17, saw tough foreign competition take many of the medals but still managed to set many personal bests.

The 400 freestyle and 100 backstroke saw Keeley finish seventh overall -- her best placing -- but third for British swimmers.

In the 200m IM and 100m freestyle she completed a fine weekend by coming eighth and ninth respectively. Chloe Williams captured the club's third medal of the weekend in the 200m IM.

Fifteen-year-old Williams has improved greatly in this particular event, showing her strength at the finish.

She finished just outside the medals in the fourth place in the 100m freestyle and backstroke despite setting new best times. Williams finished sixth in the 100m.

Published Friday June 18, 2004

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