In 2019 Otter wanted to celebrate its 150th anniversary in style and so joined together with Swim England, which was also celebrating 150 years of the swimming governing body, and planned a unique swimming and water polo festival. We wanted to put on an event which was a bit different to the normal open meets. Something that brought together masters swimmers from across the country to celebrate all the best bits of masters swimming: the camaraderie, friendship, occasional athleticism, and perhaps a little competition. The programme paid homage to Otter and swimming’s history, resurrecting the plunge and some old English backstroke for the day, alongside more recognisable events.
Read More2019 Q3 Saturday Training Sessions
The following Saturday training sessions have been confirmed for this quarter:
13th July: 11.00am-12.30pm @ London Aquatics Centre
20th July: 11.00am-12.30pm @ London Aquatics Centre
27th July: 10.30am-12.00pm @ Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
3rd August: 11.00am-12.30pm @ London Aquatics Centre
10th August: 10.30am-12.00pm @ Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
17th August: 11.00am-12.30pm @ London Aquatics Centre
24th August: 10.30am-12.00pm @ Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
31st August: 11.00am-12.30pm @ London Aquatics Centre
7th September: 10.30am-12.00pm @ Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
14th September: 12.30pm-2.00pm @ Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
21st September: 12.30pm-2.00pm @ Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
28th September: 12.30pm-2.00pm @ Crystal Palace National Sports Centre
Otter 150th Anniversary Swimming and Water Polo Festival
2019 marks the 150th anniversaries of both Otter Swimming Club and Swim England and on Sunday 14 July, Masters swimmers and water polo players from across the UK will join Otters at the London Aquatic Centre to celebrate.
Read MoreNew Head Coach Martin Edwards
We are pleased to welcome Martin Edwards as the swimming section new head coach. Martin will be on deck the 2nd May at QMSC.
Read MoreTesting the water in Swansea
For the first weekend of March, 7 Otters made the long journey out to the Welsh National Pool in Swansea, the venue for this year’s British Masters Championships in June, to compete in the Swim Wales Open Masters 2019. After a grey and rainy, but very successful, 2 days, the small team brought a total of 20 medals back to London.
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Anniversary kit from #TYRUKIreland now available
To mark the 150th anniversary of the club, we’re extremely excited to inform you that we've agreed to terms with TYR and Ness Swimwear to be our exclusive official team kit supplier!
Read MoreSwim England and Otter celebrate 150 years
2019 is a year of celebration for both Otter Swimming Club and Swim England as they mark their 150th anniversaries. One of the highlights of the year will be a unique team gala event at the London Aquatic Centre on Sunday 14 July which provides an opportunity for Masters swimmers all over the country to participate in these celebrations.
Otter has secured sole use of the main Olympic competition pool in London for a fun, informal gala which will include relay and individual swimming races. The teams will comprise many different Masters clubs including some of our traditional rivals (and friends!) such as Spencer, Barnet and Teddington. It is a fantastic opportunity not only to race in the Olympic pool but to join in the fun and celebrate the camaraderie and longevity of masters swimming. Otter is putting together a programme to include a mixture of current and historic events which we hope will feature the plunge as well as some old English backstroke and novelty relays.
Swim England is coordinating an “All Stars Team North” and “ All Stars Team South” so that masters swimmers from across the country can join us. If you would like to be involved please contact:
Team South: Simon Veale (simon.veale@outlook.com)
Team North: Verity Dobbie and Nicola Latty (otter150.teamnorth@gmail.com)
Any past and present Otter swimmers who would like to be involved should email us at otter150gala@gmail.com. Please save the date now!
2019 represents a significant milestone for Otter and we would be delighted if you would celebrate with us by supporting this special event.
Details:
Where: London Aquatics Centre, Olympic Park, London E20 2ZQ
When: Sunday 14 July 2019. Warm-up at 10am with racing scheduled to finish at 2pm at the latest, with socialising to follow!
Over a thousand years of membership...
A gathering of “Mature” (i.e. older) Otters, and guests took place on February 1st for their annual post-Christmas dinner. For this sesquicentennial year it was upgraded to a black tie event at the Lansdowne Club, Mayfair.
Read MoreHere's to 150 years!
On Friday 11th January, it was great to see around 50 Otters from swimming and water polo congregate at the Reliance Pub to mark the beginning of the 150th anniversary celebrations. We thanked James Stewart and Cat Hasnain for their work on producing the 150th anniversary “History of Otter report”, which had been posted to all members earlier in the week. We heard from our current and recent ex-Presidents (Paul Hindle, John Iliffe, James Stewart and Charles Doxat) as they shared some of their highlights and reflections from their time with the club.
Read MoreOtter 150th Anniversary Report
All members should receive a printed copy of the Otter History 150th Anniversary Report in the post this week. Written by James Stewart and edited by Cat Hasnain, this is an excellent update to the Club History written by John Goodbody to celebrate the club’s 125th Anniversary in 1994.
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