EVERYONE at Kendal Swimming Club were delighted and honoured when Lesley Capstick was elected president of Swim England North West .

It is the first time in the history of the Club that such an honour has been bestowed on a member and is a tribute to all the work she has put in over many years.

Her interest began when she taught her daughter Nicola to swim and developed into qualifying as a swimming teacher.

Mrs Capstick has been a member of the Cumbria Executive Committee for many years and undertakes several roles such as trophy controller, logistical organiser for the county team and also for the England Talent County Pathway programme.

Her experience has taken her up to J2S level and she still officiates wherever possible as well as running her own business promoting health and fitness.

And her daughter did the family and club proud at an event in Manchester this week.

Capstick was content just tackling her favourite events, the 50, 100 and 200 backstroke and had a set of highly satisfying results.

As 50m county champion she found herself in the mix with some of the North West’s elite but performed superbly and was just edged out into the silver medal spot in a brilliant 31.48.

Classed in the 17 and over category for the 100 and 200 backstroke she again demonstrated why she is a champion, finishing as third fastest 17-year-old.

Meanwhile fellow senior swimmer Robinson also showed his full range of skills at the same event.

In the 50 backstroke, he emerged with the bronze medal, and then set about the gruelling 200 butterfly where he swam into a commendable fifth place and also produce highly satisfying results in backstroke, butterfly and individual medley.

Two other Ulverston Otters, Indya Sharp and Amelia Mardel, competed in the English National Championships at the Manchester Aquatics Centre and produced high standard swims.

Sharp competed in the 16-year-old girls’ 100m breaststroke and as usual gave a powerful display, timing her finish brilliantly to finish 17th with a time of 1:19.17.

Mardel was in similar mode in the 14-year-old girls’ 50m freestyle, producing immaculate stroke pattern to snatch 14th place in a superb time of 28.46.

Meanwhile in a tournament in Blackpool, the youngsters found medals rather scarce but they came well up to standard with their swims.

Penelope Boyle, a star for the future at 9-years-old, got a great start winning the bronze medal at 50 butterfly with a well judged race.

She then set her sights on some longer distances and showed excellent skill and stamina in the 200 breaststroke and individual medley where she was just touched out of a medal into fourth place.

Daniel Jessop set himself a mammoth task entering no less than 11 events over the weekend.

Although he too was outside the medals he gave a wonderful account of himself, taking an admirable fifth spot in the 200 individual medley then sixth place in the 100 individual medley.

And 13-year-old Abigail Miller was also on good form at both sprinting and middle distance with the highlight a fifth place for her 200 backstroke.