The longest event in the female programme set the 2004 Reading Swimming Club championships in train in an evening session at Central Pool, where 36 swimmers tackled the 32-length 800m freestyle.

Many were swimming the distance in competition for the first time. One of these, 10-year-old Annette Hopson, swam an exemplary first heat in an evenly paced 13:11.42 to take the youngest age group ahead of Alice Hopkins.

The two fastest 11-year-olds on paper were also in the same heat, with Rachael Mills’s previous best very slightly quicker than Frankie Wilkins. Mills set out powerfully, but Wilkins paced it beautifully and some very good turns helped take her to the title in 11:52.86 to 12:10.40, both girls swimming big PBs. Katie Beth Hawkins placed third and Natalia Ciecierska-Holmes fourth.

Ashley James won the 12s group in 10:51.47 ahead of the much less experienced Zoe Knott, Isobel Wise and Rebecca Turner, and the youngest member of the Top National Squad, Amy Kunicki, took nearly three seconds off an already sub-10-minute PB to take the 13s gold in 9:52.92. Rheannon Sandell took the silver by five seconds from fellow Top District Squad swimmer Kristina Paige, either side of 11 minutes, with Vanessa Wood fourth in a stylish heat win and just ahead of Naomi Herring.

Top 14-year-olds Louisa Downs and Holly Tanner both hold meet records from earlier years and, remarkably, swam identical times to the hundredth last time out over the distance at August’s national championships in Sheffield. Tanner took it this time in 9:12.42 to 9:14.07, with Downs closing towards the end.

Louise Gillatt placed third and County Squad’s Lisa O’Brien gave one of the night’s best displays relative to previous experience in finishing one place outside the medals. Entered on 11.45, O’Brien took her heat by the scruff of the neck from the start and slashed her PB to 10:36.12.

Louisa Herring (9:48.69), Leanne Haas and Charlotte Thompson took the honours among the 15-year-olds, although all three and fourth-ranked Amy Thomas were slightly outside-entry. Sofia Matich, fifth, did record a big PB.

The hugely experienced Emma Zadrozny, 16, took the top age group by a big margin as expected, in 9:24.90, with Leona Jones second in a three-second best of 10:01.24 and Hannah Lamb third.

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