Out to Swim sent one of their biggest ever teams to Paris last week for the Tournoi Internationale Paris. 25 swimmers took off to Paris to put this year's work to the test and returned with a plethora of PB's, medals and personal triumphs. In total OTS brought home 30 Gold, 24 Silver and 10 Bronze.....much to the upset of Paris Aquatique.
The fact we were able to field 6 relay teams is a huge testament to the depth of our squads. We even managed to draft a mixed gender medley relay thanks to Tali from Synchro joining Laura, Craig and Vincent for a one off performance.
Although everyone exceeded their own expectations there are a few fabulous achievements that must be noted:
Synchro success: Golds for Steph and Sue's solos and their duet, and silver for John's solo
Congrats to Gareth and Jaime for taking part in their first ever competition. Their attitude and enthusiasm were everything OTS stands for.
To John, David Forest and Neal for winning their age group for every event they swum, untouchable!!
To Ian, for probably the most brutal schedule of events: 400fc, 800fc, 1500fc, and a casual 400 IM!! Nutter!
To Chris Claux for claiming gold in 200 bk on Sunday, with probably the worst hangover and latest finish on Saturday!
To everyone at the after party for coming together and showing we are all just as fierce on the dance floor.
Special thanks to Daniel for sorting accommodation, Christophe, Vincent and David Buxton for translating and a huge thanks to coach Nathan for taking all the splits, technique pointers and encouragement over the weekend.
Out to Swim will be taking part in Gay Games next year in Paris, we are hoping to make this our biggest team yet! If reading this has given you FOMO, then sign up! Not many places are left.
Report by Swim Captains: Andrew and Laura