Swimming: Amelia misses out after Games quest (From Bournemouth Echo)

Swimming: Amelia misses out after Games quest

4:56pm Wednesday 25th August 2010 in

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QUALIFICATION for the Commonwealth Games proved a step too far for Amelia Maughan – despite beating two seasoned Olympians in one of her races.

But the 14-year-old certainly did enough to remind the swimming community that she could be a formidable force in the future.

Maughan arrived at the ASA National Championships in Sunderland ranked third in England in the women’s 100m freestyle and fifth in the 200m following outstanding performances at the National Youth Championships two weeks earlier.

But it was clear from the start that she was not in the kind of form that had enabled her to break three British 14yrs age group records in the youth competition.

In the 200m freestyle, she recorded a time of 2:04.93 – more than four seconds slower than her record-demolishing effort in Sheffield.

Her youth championship time of 2:00.82 would have placed her first in the heats at Sunderland.

Instead, she had to settle for 18th, with only the top 10 going through to the final.

She then had to watch a final in which only Manchester’s European junior multi-medallist Emma Saunders and Rebecca Adlington’s Nova team-mate Sasha Matthews swam quicker than her British 14yrs age group record.

Maughan’s performance was better in the 100m freestyle the next day, recording a time of 57.01 to win a heat in which her fellow competitors included world and Olympic medallist Jo Jackson and world championship medallist Caitlin McClatchey.

That qualified her third quickest for a final in which her British age group record in this event (56.09) would not only have won the gold medal, but almost certainly secured qualification for the England team in Delhi.

But again she was unable to repeat her Sheffield form, finishing fifth in 57.07 as Saunders again took the gold in 56.12.

Maughan, now based at British Swimming’s Intensive Training Centre in Bath but still a member of Bournemouth Dolphins, said: “I knew I only had a small chance of qualifying for the Commonwealth Games but I’m disappointed I didn’t make the team.

“It’s particularly annoying when you think that I have already done the time it would have taken to win.”

She added that she believed her coaches’ decision to taper off her training for a week before the championships had affected her fitness.

“I’ve never tapered before with other coaches and I don’t think I should be tapering. Everyone is different and I don’t think it helps me,” she said.

“It’s something I will be raising with them.”

Maughan, who pulled out of her third event, the 50m freestyle, is hoping for a return to form early next month, when she represents South West England in the UK School Games in Sheffield.

Dolphins’ Bournemouth Uni’ student Scott Denham, 22, made his nationals debut in the 50m breaststroke at Sunderland, finishing 17th in 30.87.