Guildford Open Saturday 9th April 2016

Good results across all categories, with some first time competitors taking part. starting with Amelia Murray (daughter of Alison Murray) skating in the novice section. A great race as Amelia was racing Leila Murray, daughter of Pam Murray (Mohawks). Two very young cousins. A treat to watch. Katie Mills also skated in the novice category for the first time. Katie skated very well. Smooth and confident races gaining PB's in the 333m and 222m races. She came first in all of her races.

Joseph Armstrong Jun E skated well in mixed D&E races earning himself PB's in 333m and 500m races. Joseph managed to get to the B final in the 333m. Josh Romero also skated well although one race saw him fall (a bit excited). Josh gained a PB in the 500m. Jack Weedon, although no PB's, managed to come 2nd in the 333m C final. Ollie Rowe Jun D took command of the D&E group and took 1st place overall. Well done.

Group 1 comprised the fastest 12 skaters.Solomon Prempeh Jun C skated with some impressive overtakes giving him 1st place in the 500m A final, 3rd place in the 1000m Afinal and coming 2nd overall on points in Group 1.He also came 3rd in the Tom Laming mile (A Super Final) to Ethan & Niall Treacy from Solihull Mohawks. Peter Riches Jun C looked to be doing well but a fall curbed his progression. Peter came 1st in the 500m C final and 1st in the 1000m B final. Olivia Weedon skated into the 500m B final taking 2nd place to Charlotte Hayward (Mohawks). Tanith Turner Jun B also skated into the 500 B final gaining 3rd place. Peter Armstrong Master made the 500m A final coming 2nd. A close race with Solomon with Peter's time 46.62sec, a PB, and Solomon's 46.57sec. Peter Armstrong came 5th in the mile. Peter Carr came 3rd in the 500 C final and 4th in the 1000m A final and took 4th place in the mile.

Group 2 comprised the next 13 skaters. Alex Collins Jun B skated into the 500 A final. Unfortunately he fell giving him a 5th place. Alex skated into 1st place in the 777m A final, achieving a PB, with Anton Carter Master 3rd. Alex came 2nd and Anton 4th overall in Group 2. David Somma skated well getting a PB in the 500m A final and a PB in the 777m A final. Matiss Ippolito Jun B skated into the 777m A final. Matiss was skating for the club for the first time in short track earning himself his Aldwych wings which were presented to him after the training session. In the 1500m (B Super Final) Peter Riches came 1st with Charlotte Hayward (Mohawks) 2nd and Kyle Ross-Waddell (Nottingham) 3rd. Alison Murray managed to achieve 2 PB's. Peter Carter came 3rd in the 500m C final and 5th in the 777m B final.

Tony Gallon, Head Coach.

Guildford Open Saturday 5th March 2016

A good competition for all skaters with Aldwych gaining PB's and places throughout the competition. With an added session of relays, handicap and pursuit races. This was promptly organised by Gerard Williams and went down very well with the skaters (most getting 5 races in the competition).

There were good results for the D & E categories which were raced together. A first position gained in all heats and all finals for Theo Collins. First place overall. Well done for your first year in Jun D. Well done to Ollie Rowe for coming 3rd overall in Jun D with PB's in all 4 races and a win in the 500 heats and in the 333 B final. Nayla Djemal took first place in the 500 B final and came 6th overall in Jun D. Joseph Armstrong skated well to get into the B final, with Nayla, and coming fifth. Joseph also gained a PB in the 333. Jack Weedon came 4th in the C final concentrating on his technique and with his new skates.

Senior and Jun ABC categories were skated together. Solomon Prempeh came 3rd overall with Ethan Treacy (Solihull), Jun A, first and Niall Treacy (Solihull), Jun C, second. A hard pair to beat. Peter Riches came 4th overall. Peter and Solomon both came first in their heats with Olivia Weedon second. Olivia gained a 3rd position in the 1000m B final and second place in the 500 B final. Alex Collins took first place in the 1000m C final leading the race with Lloyd Duncan skating a close race to come in second. Lloyd came second in the 500 D final. Lloyd gained a PB in the 500 heats. Tanith Turner won the 500 C final with Alex coming second.

In the Masters category Simon Wallace and Peter Armstrong had a close competition. The 777 A final was good to watch, first and second places were closely fought. Peter and Simon both won their heats but Simon won both A finals resulting in Simon coming first overall and Peter second. Simon gained a PB in 500m. Anton Carter came fourth in both A finals resulting in coming fourth overall. A good result as only his first race this season due to injury. Mike Maynard had only his second race meeting of the season. David Somma had a PB in both his distances. In the 500m B final David came second, Mike third, Peter Carter fourth and Alison Murray fifth. This was Alison's first competition. Alison skated throughout the competition in a controlled style with just a couple of slips and determined starts and finished with a smile.

Club Skater Of The Year

The medals were awarded by Clinton Cast competitive steward and Chairman of Aldwych Speed Club. Congratulations to the award winners of Club Skater of the Year. Guildford being the last of the six competitions of the season, presentations were made at the end of the competition. Points were awarded at the six competitions during the season.

In the Masters category Peter Carter came 3rd, Junior A&B boys Lloyd Duncan 1st, Junior A&B girls Tanith Turner 3rd, Jun C girls Olivia Weedon 2nd, Jun D boys Theo Collins 1st & Ollie Rowe 3rd and Junior D girls Nayla Djemal 2nd. Although not a medal place in the Jun E mixed, Joseph Armstrong came 4th & Jack Weedon 6th out of a field of 21 skaters. Well earned.

Good luck to Theo and Solomon who have qualified for the Europa Cup Final this weekend in Budapest, Hungary.

Tony Gallon, Head Coach

STARCLASS 5 (DC-3) - Leeuwarden, Netherlands - 19-21 February 2016

  Well done to Aldwych skaters at Starclass at the week-end
  Men Junior C 7th Solomon PREMPEH, 20th Peter RICHES
  Ladies Junior C 15th Olivia WEEDON
  Men Junior D 9th Theo COLLINS

Heats 1000 meter Men Junior C. Finish line photo
Semi Finals 1000 meter Men Junior C. Finish line photo
Final 1000 meter Men Junior C. Finish line photo
Heats 1000 meter Ladies Junior C Finish line photo
Semi Finals 777 meter Men Junior D (1000) Finish line photo

Solihull, Mohawks open competition of 13th February 2016

     Jun E. Jack Weedon raced concentrating on his technique giving him a PB in his 333m. Joseph Armstrong skated well producing a PB in his 500m C final. He also came 2nd in his 333 B semi-final.

     Jun D. Ollie Rowe achieved 3 PB's, one in each distance. He had a good competition including an overtake of Noah from Solihull in the last lap of his 500m heat to finish 2nd behind Theo. In his A semi-final Ollie came 2nd to Jack Urquhart from Nottingham. Well done. Theo Collins commanded his races throughout the competition with determination to take 1st place overall (1st in his heat, the A semi-final and the A final). Well done.

     Jun AB&C. Olivia Weedon came 4th overall in the Jun ABC ladies with a 4th place behind Tanith in 1000m heats, 1st in 500 B semi-final and 3rd in 777m C final (mixed). Tanith Turner came 3rd overall in the Jun ABC ladies with a 3rd place in 1000m heats, 4th in the 500m A semi-final and 5th in the 1500m B final (mixed). Solomon Prempeh came 4th overall in Jun ABC men coming 2nd in the 1000m heat, 2nd in the 500m A semi-final and 4th in the 1500m A final. Skating against Ethan & Niall Tracey from Solihull, Ethan took the 1500m A final away very fast and left Solomon & Peter Riches to work out how to pace the 1500m. Peter Riches came 3rd overall in the Jun ABC men coming 1st in 1000m heat, 1st in 500m A semi-final and 3rd 1500m A final. Left to work out how to pace the 1500 against Ethan & Niall, Peter managed to bring back Niall towards the end of the race to finish 3rd. Lloyd Duncan came 10th overall in Jun ABC men coming 4th behind Tanith in 1000m heats, 1st in 500m B semi-final and 3rd in 777m C final. Lloyd skated well to be up behind Tanith in the 1000m. Alex Collins came 12th overall in the Jun ABC men. He came 4th in the 1000m heats but fell in the 500m B semi-final to finish 3rd which put him in the 777m D final which he won. The fall cost him a higher ranking place.

     Masters/Seniors. Peter Carr won the Masters/Seniors. Peter Carr came 1st in all of his races. Peter was skating against Steve Humber from Solihull and seniors Anja Chong from Nottingham and Luke Smallman from Forth Valley. Well done. Mike Maynard came 9th overall in the Masters/Seniors. He had an unfortunate contact, with a clash of skates, with Helen Kirkby from Solihull resulting in a 2nd place finish behind her in the 777 B final. Mike made determined starts in the 500m races but fell in both races having a nasty contact with the barrier on one occasion. This resulted in a lower placing. Peter Carter came 10th overall in the Masters/Seniors. He came 5th in the 777m heat and 4th in 777 B final beating Pammie Murray from Solihull. In the 500m he came 5th in the heats. The 500m B final was Peter's chance to beat Pammie again and possibly Mike who fell, but Peter was unable to take part in the race. But you have to be in it to win it. Looking forward to Guildford.

     Tony Gallon, Head Coach.

British Short Track Championship, 2nd and 3rd January 2016

  The British Championships completed, with the Aldwych skaters top of the medal table with a result of 5 Gold, 2 Silver & 2 Bronze. All Aldwych skaters competed throughout the competition with a determination that earned them 27 PB's over the 18 skaters. The racing was hotly contended with a few scrapes costing Simon Wallace-Master (PBs 1000m 1.46.242, 500m 49.048, 777m 1.15.581) and Theo Collins-Pee Wee boy (PB 333m 35.097) a chance to earn a different colour medal. Simon won a bronze and Theo a silver.

  To win gold in the masters category Peter Armstrong had some hard finals against Robert Mitchell from Solihull Mohawks, winning 2 out of the 3 A finals. A gold medal position for Jonathan Moody-Jun men who won the 500m & 1500m finals and came 2nd in the 1000m final. Nice to see Jonathan competing for the Aldwych club as he now trains with the national squad in Nottingham. Also a gold medal for Olivia Weedon-Juv girl winning 2 out of the 3 finals. There was a clash in the other final leaving Olivia in the barrier padding and the other skater with a penalty. Peter Riches-Juv boy (PB's 500m 46.400, 777m 1.14.333) also won a gold medal winning 2 out of 3 of the A finals. Peter rose to the occasion hotly contesting races with Solomon Prempeh-Juv boy (PB 777m 1.14.945) who won bronze even with a penalty. Peter took 7sec off his 777m time. The other gold medal was won by Nayla Djemal- Pee Wee girl (PB's 777m 1.32.884, 500m 58.724). Nayla skated with determination to win 2 out of her 3 finals. Looking forward to Nayla continuing to progress.

  Along with Theo the other silver medal was won by Tanith Turner-Jun lady. Tanith won the 1500m, 2nd in the 500m and 3rd in the 1000m. The 2 bronze medals were won by Simon Wallace & Solomon Prempeh as mentioned above.

  Joseph Armstrong-Pee Wee 2 (PB 222m 31.638) skated really well coming 10th. Ollie Rowe- Pee Wee boy (PB's 777m 1.33.969, 333m 39.090, 500m 58.645) also skated with determination coming 5th with PB's in all 3 distances. Alex Collins-Jun men (PB 1500m 2.51.324) gained 6th place overall coming 4th in the A final of the 1500m. A strong skate from Alex. Lloyd Duncan-Jun men (PB's 1500m 2.52.492, 1000m 1.47.421) came 7th overall and skated really well and well deserved his position with a massive 13sec off his 1000m time. Peter Carr-Master (PB's 1000m 1.42.980, 500m 49.329) had a good competition with 2 A finals and a win in the B final coming 4th overall. Zoe Clark-Master (PB's 1000m 1.57.303, 500m 56.570, 777m 1.29.385) skated well to achieve top lady in a mixed masters category coming 9th overall with PB's in all 3 distances. Roy Shave-Master (PB's 1000m 1.57.116, 500m 56.470, 777m 1.31.440) also skated well getting into the B finals coming 8th overall with PB's in all 3 distances. Clare Upton-Master skated a good competition coming 12th overall and coming 2nd in the ladies. Peter Carter-Master (PB's 1000m 2.14.556, 500m 1.03.901, 777m 1.42.840) also had a good competition with PB's in all 3 distances. Well done. Well done the Aldwych B Relay team for making the 5000m final. This team were:- Olivia Weedon, Peter Riches, Tanith Turner & Peter Carr. Skating against teams containing national squad members the Aldwych B team came 4th with a good performance.

  Aldwych A team (Simon Wallace, Jonathan Moody, Peter Armstrong & Solomon Prempeh) finished in 2nd place in 3000m heats but due to a penalty did not make the 5000m final. Aldwych C team (Zoe Clark, Roy Shave, Lloyd Duncan & Alex Collins) also skated in the 3000m heats coming 4th against teams containing national and ex national squad skaters. So well skated Aldwych C.

Tony Gallon, Head Coach.

British Short Track Championships in Nottingham 2nd & 3rd Jan 2016

A Weekend Full of Action at the British Short Track Championships.

The annual competition displays an array of talent with skaters ranging from nine through to 66 years old. From Pee Wee through to Masters.
Among those participating was the GB Short Track squad, representing their own speed skating clubs.

The Aldwych Speed Club based at the Guildford Spectrum were top of the medal table with 5 Gold, 2 Silver & 2 Bronze.
The British Champions are:- Masters Peter Armstrong,
Junior Men (A&B) Jonathan Moody,
Juvenile Boys (C) Peter Riches,
Juvenile Girls (C) Olivia Weedon
Pee Wee Girls (D) Nayla Djemal.

Other podium places were:- Junior Girls (A&B) Silver Tanith Turner,
Pee Wee Boys (D) Silver Theo Collins,
Masters Bronze Simon Wallace
and Juvenile Boys (C) Bronze Solomon Prempeh.

During the championships 13 out of the 18 skaters produced 27 Personal best times.

Mohawks 80th Anniversary Open, Saturday 21st November 2015

  Alex raced well in the Jun B/C category skating 1500m in the B final pulling the competition back in the last laps to gain a PB (2.53.00) with an 8th placing overall. Olivia had to pull out of the competition after the first race due to a previous injury. Tanith skated well coming 11th overall in this category but gained 3rd place in the Mary Cutts trophy. Solomon made it to the A final and came 4th overall in this category even with a fall.

 In the Masters/Senior/Jun A category Lloyd skated well to gain a PB in both the 500m (54.76) and 1000m (2.06.81). He came 1st in the C final and 11th overall. Peter Carr made it to the A final coming 5th overall skating against current squad and past squad skaters who raced from the gun to break the track record. Hard work Peter but well done. Roy skated well making the C final and coming 14th overall. Unfortunately a clash on an overtake lost a few positions but Roy gained a PB in the 500m (57.90). Zoe settled into the racing at Solihull well making the C final and coming 12th overall. Zoe also came 5th in the Mary Cutts trophy. David Somma skated hard and had a fall in the 500m but gained a PB in the 1000m (1.59.56). He skated into the B final and was placed 10th overall finishing in front of Adam from Solihull. Peter Carter had a good technical skate, still adjusting from long track. Times will improve. He came 17th overall.

 In the Jun D/E category Theo had good control of his races coming 1st overall and winning the Mary Cutts Cup. Well done. Ollie skated well and got into the A final coming 5th overall with a PB in the 500m (59.64) and a PB in the 777m (1.35.93). Well done Ollie. Jack skated with determination in all of his races giving him 21st overall.     Tony Gallon Head Coach.

Guildford Open Saturday 7th November 2015

 In the Jun A/B/C category Olivia skated with determination skating into 2nd place to Niall Treacy in the 500m and 777m and then coming 3rd in the A final to Solomon and Niall. Solomon skated well to win the A final. Alex skated hard getting a PB in the 777m (1.24.87). Tanith had a good competition against Alex. Peter Riches skated well gaining a 500m time of 50.50sec to qualify for star class. He also did a PB in 777m (1.21.50).

 In the Jun D/E category Joseph skated well even with an unfortunate corner block incident. Jack skated all the way to the line getting a PB in the 333m (1.00.16). Ollie had a fall which took him out of the competition. Looking for good results at Solihull for Ollie. Theo skated to win and completed the task.

 In the Masters/Senior category Peter Carr just back from long track had a few tangles which hindered his progress. Hopefully will adjust by Solihull. David Somma skated some good races keeping in touch with Adam from Solihull. David gained a PB in the 500m (59.13sec) and another in the 777m (1.34.16). A continued progression with technique gradually improving. Peter Carter had some tidy races. Improved technique will bring the times down.

 In the Novices, Josh skated with great determination to win and did.

Nottingham Open Sun 1st November 2015

Theo came 3rd in the Jun C/D category A final. He was the highest placed Jun D skater.
Solomon and Olivia came 1st & 2nd respectively in the B final of the Jun C/D category.
In the Jun B and above A final 1000m Jonathan Moody came 3rd. Jonathan skated some good tactical races with some good to see corner overtaking.
He is now training with Aydin Djemal in Nottingham with Team GB. First and second places in this final were also taken by team GB skaters.
In the C final in this category (also 1000m) Alex took a well deserved 2nd place gaining himself a PB.
Ed faced hard competition in this final finishing in 5th place behind Steve Humber from Solihull who is a hard man to beat. Ed also gained a PB for his 1000m.
In the D final (500m) Lloyd came 4th with a fall 1.15.007 compared with his heat time of 56.420.
David Somma came 1st in the E final (also 500m) with a 1.02.564 compared with 59.647 done in the heats. A tidy up on technique will progress David in future races.
Peter Carter came 4th in this final. He skated consistently and tidy. With a better race line he will make progress.
Joseph and Jack skated in the Jun E category. Joseph skated some nice tidy races to come 2nd in the C final (500m).
Jack came 3rd in this final and gained a PB in the 333m semi final. Well done.
There were 5 devil races. Alex was the only Aldwych skater to get chocolate.

Tony Gallon Head Coach.

Nottingham Open 4th October 2015

A good race meeting and good experience for those skating away for the first time.
Solomon won the Jun C/D category. Theo came 2nd overall in the Jun C/D category with a PB in his 777m (1.20.573).
Both looked comfortable in their races, with Theo skating from the front most of the time and Solomon producing a great overtaking manoeuvre on three skaters into the corner.
Ollie started with promising technique but unfortunately encountered a couple of falls in his last two races. Ollie proved himself by being part of the winning relay team.
Nayla skated with determination and earned herself a PB in the 500m (59.038).
There was close competition in the races where Alex and Tanith competed against each other. They also had stiff competition in Jun B+ group skating against Jun A and senior skaters.
Alex was looking good before his fall in the 1000m but he did get a PB in the 500m (51.824) beating Theo's time !!!!
Lloyd (Jun A) was skating in the Jun B+ group and had stiff competition. He skated well and gained a PB in his 777m (1.42.843.) He experienced a fall in his 500m.
Eds first meeting for this season. He skated hard, his fitness showing. The result was marred with an issue re: race line up.
David Somma skated well but had an unfortunate fall where he appeared to be air bourne for a few seconds. David broke the 1 min barrier by getting a PB in his 500m (59.361).
Peter Carter skated consistantly well with improved technique and gained a PB in his 500m (1.06.594).
The meeting was held on a good sheet of ice but as Matt Rowe pointed out the increased speed of the newer skaters caught them out.
Well done the Jun C/D relay team ( Ollie, Solomon, Nayla & Theo) who all skated really well and won the 2000m relay.
The 2000m Jun B+ relay team (Lloyd, Alex, Tanith & Ed) came 3rd out of 5 teams. This was the first competitive relay for Lloyd. Well done.
David Somma & Peter Carter were in the mixed relay team that came 5th. This was also their first competitive relay. Well done. Tony Gallon Head Coach.

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