By Steph McNally, BNSC club chair
It’s been a tough year for grassroots sports. Like many other community groups up and down the country, Bristol North Swimming Club (BNSC) has had to adapt to survive and find new ways to keep its members fit, healthy and engaged.
The commitment of our coaches and young swimmers during lockdown was nothing short of staggering, dialling in week after week for strength and conditioning, psychology, nutrition and even yoga sessions; the community spirit was alive and strong. But when April finally rolled around, we were delighted to see the back of the Zoom sessions and embrace the water once again.
Now we’re back in our chlorinated happy place, we’re getting ready to race again. The Swim England Level X racing series kicked off for our older swimmers on Monday 28th June and we’ll be hosting club time trials for our younger swimmers so everyone can work towards new PBs and qualifying times for the 2021-22 competitive year.
We’ve seen a healthy intake of new members during 2021, from our learn to swim school right up to our ever growing Masters squad and are thrilled to count Bradley Stoke and Stoke Gifford as one of our most popular catchment areas. As a North Bristol club we train at multiple venues across the district, from the Winterbourne Academy to Badminton School using Filton as our centrally located home pool. We’ve also teamed up with Soundwell Swimming Club who cover a large part of East Bristol to create the North Bristol Network. The aim of the network is to do something we feel is currently missing in Bristol; create a more cohesive and collaborative approach to swimming. By sharing our resources, knowledge and passion for swimming we hope to unite and inspire our young athletes and create pathways for development that everyone can benefit from.
Looking ahead to 2022 we’ve got a lot to be excited about. We hope to welcome the return of county, regional and national competitions, something our squads have been missing a lot this year. And as a club, we’ve got a big birthday coming up as Bristol North turns 100, making us the oldest and most established club in Bristol. We have lots of plans in the works to mark this very special year and we hope our friends in Bradley Stoke and Stoke Gifford will help us celebrate in style!
If you’re looking for a local, friendly and competitive swimming club, then we’d love to hear from you. We welcome swimmers of all ages, from 4 years old right up to Masters (18+) and offer a wealth of coaching knowledge, expertise and guidance along with excellent social events (when permitted!).
Contact us at headcoach@bristolnorthsc.org.uk
This article originally appeared in the July/August 2021 issue of the Bradley Stoke Journal magazine (on page 26). The magazine is delivered FREE, nine times a year, to ALL 8,700 homes in Bradley Stoke. Phone 01454 300 400 to enquire about advertising or leaflet insertion.
