Swim England, the national governing body for swimming in England, has announced plans to open five performance centres nationwide to nurture young talent.
The body is working in partnership with swimming clubs and universities to “give swimmers the opportunity to stay in the sport, achieve academic excellence and perform to the highest standards”, according to a release.
Located at High Wycombe, Leeds, Guildford, Manchester and Nottingham, the centres were chosen following an application process and have been developed using a “partnership model” to “ensure long-term sustainability”.
Swimmers will have the opportunity to move from the junior to senior swimming ranks alongside their school studies. Eventually, certain swimmers may make the British Swimming world-class programme and go on to further successes within the sport.
Guildford City Swimming Club will team up with University of Surrey; Leeds Swimming Club with the University of Leeds and Leeds Beckett University; the City of Manchester Aquatics Swim Team (COMAST) will team with Manchester Metropolitan University; Nova Centurion Swimming Club, Nottingham will work alongside Nottingham University; and Wycombe District Swimming Club will partner with Buckinghamshire New University for the venture.
"We are incredibly proud to be working with local partners to develop these Swim England Performance Centres," said George Wood, Swim England sport development director. "We are passionate about providing our club members with opportunities to keep training and by working with local universities, this will enable them to achieve both their academic and swimming potential."
