2025 has been quite a season for the Haslemere Swimming Squad. They were represented by four Haslemere swimmers at Nationals this summer: Delilah, James, Lily and Freya. All were ranked in the top 24 nationally for their events to qualify. Delilah and Lilly qualified for a final and James swam a great PB in his race. The club has also gained promotion in the National Arena Swimming League.

It has been a particularly great season for local swimmer Freya Gordon under the guidance of her coach Andy Snelling.

Freya qualified for 13 events at the Aquatics GB and English Nationals last summer: the 50, 100, 200, 400, 800 and 1500 metre Freestyle, the 400 and 200 metre Individual Medley, the 50, 100 and 200 metre breaststroke and finally the 200 metre backstroke and butterfly. We're tired just thinking about! But not much can stop Freya! She smashed all her races, qualifying for 10 finals and winning gold medals in the 100, 200 and 400 metre Freestyle and in the 400 metre Individual Medley, as well as taking home a bronze medal in the 200 metre Butterfly.

In April, Freya also qualified to swim at the British National Championships at the London Aquatics Centre. But not only that. Over the season, she has broken 17 club records and a junior county record. Some of these had stood since before Freya was born.

The next big competition is the South East England Winter Regionals, which will be held in Winchester in November. Followed by the Winter Nationals in Sheffiled in December.

Freya has been swimming with the Haslemere Swimming Club since she was seven. At first, it was the convenience of the lessons and the smaller group coaching that appealed to Freya's parents. From there, Freya joined Pebbles - the pre-competitive squad - and then was picked for the first competitive squad when she was 8. By this time, she had already started to love swimming and being in the water.

It's amazing what Freya has achieved from these small beginnings. Freya now hopes to represent Wales at an International meet and would love to one day compete at the Commonwealth Games. She told us: 

Nationals was incredible. I was so happy with what I achieved and it far surpassed what I was expecting - I was really happy to have qualified and definitely wasn’t expecting to win any medals. But my coach had real faith that I could win and I think this helped me begin to realise what I could achieve. I’m really excited about my selection to the Welsh National Squad. It’s going to be a challenge balancing the travel to Swansea with my training here in Haslemere - and I’m doing my GCSEs this year too. I’m going to have to manage my time very carefully. But I know it’s an incredible opportunity and I’m going to try to enjoy it as much as I can. I’m hoping that I can be selected for an International meet this season but it’s very competitive to make the team, so I’ll just keep working hard and hope that’s enough.

She is certainly well on her way to getting there. She has already been selected for the National Elite Transition squad, which means she will attend monthly training sessions with the Welsh squad in Swansea. She will also now be open for selection for the National team for International meets. And, she has even been invited to weekly training at the Swim Wales high-performance center in Swansea. This will give her access to Swim Wales' highest-level coaches and the opportunity to train with some of their highest-performing National swimmers. But, first and foremost, Freya just wants to, 'Keep enjoying swimming wherever it takes me.' 

Being pro in swimming is a bit different to many other sports - most swimmers still have to have another job to supplement their income. So working hard at school always has to be a priority too. Freya told us, 'There are some excellent swimming programs running at UK universities so it would be great to get on to one of these maybe. And it would be amazing to one day be on the senior GB Team.'

Swimming is certainly a big commitment for Freya and many of the other swimmers at the club. Each week, Freya usually spends about 12 hours in the pool plus 3 - 4 hours of land training in the gym.

Swimming is also a huge financial commitment for Freya and her family. National competitions take place in Swansea or Sheffield so there is a lot of travel involved in competing at this level. This summer, Freya was in Sheffield for two weeks and will be back for Winter Nationals for another 5 days in December. This, combined with the travel to Swansea for training 2 or 3 times a month, means she often has to stay away from home. The cost of this mount up quickly.

And then there’s the kit… Freya has to compete in FINA approved race suits which cost between £300 and £600 each. Most swimmers at this level get through 3-4 race suits a year. Put simply, swimming at this level is expensive! Freya is hoping to be able to contribute a little to this herself once she has qualified as a coach, but there is only so much money she can earn when she is also in full-time study.

It's no surprise then that Freya is hugely grateful to Sport Haslemere who have generously given her £500 as part of their Create a Star bursary. This was awarded last night at the annual Sport Haslemere Awards.

Freya is now looking for a local business who may like to sponsor her.  If you may be interested in helping, please do drop us an email and we will put you in touch with Freya and her family. 

Alternatively, if you have been inspired by Freya to join the Haslemere Swimming Club, you can find out more on their website. The club currently has approximately 120 members. The youngest are 7 and 8 years old whilst the oldest are masters swimmers who can be aged 70+. Training takes place at the leisure centre in Haslemere. There is training most mornings before school, along with evenings and weekends. The Masters train on Sunday evenings. Squads are arranged by ability. 

It's so apparent from chatting with Freya that the club is a real community. Freya clearly enjoys the physical and mental challenge of being involved in a competitive sport. But, she also really enjoys the social aspect of having a great group of friends who all have a common interest. As you progress through the club, there are also opportunities to get involved in coaching and mentoring younger swimmers too. So, why not give it a go.... who knows, you could be a future Team GB swimmer!