This year's Devon County Swimming Championships were held over four weekends in February and March at both Tiverton and Plymouth Central Park pools.

Twenty-seven Kingsbridge Kingfishers swimmers achieved the tough qualifying standards (21 in 2006) and set about the task of trying to make finals, which were to be pretty much fully populated by competitors from Devon's top clubs, Plymouth Leander and Kelly College.

It is very tough for swimmers from the smaller Devon clubs to reach county finals while Plymouth Leander and Kelly continue to pull swimmers into Plymouth College and Kelly College on swimming scholarships from all over the country.

With these two schools attracting national level swimmers, it does have the effect of raising the bar for everyone.

Kingfishers were therefore delighted to place a swimmer in 19 different finals and to improve on last year's medal haul of three silvers and two bronzes by taking one gold, one silver and five bronze medals.

Kingfishers' first ever Devon champion at an Olympic distance is 10-year-old Laker Wong, who produced a seven second personal best (PB) to take first place in the boys' 200m breastroke in three minutes 27.31 seconds.

It was a fantastic achievement, and Wong also won a bronze medal in the 10 and under 200m individual medley (IM), as well as reaching the finals of both the 100m IM and 200m freestyle, and taking second overall across all strokes in his age group.

He also set two new age group club records.

In the same age group, Richard Foreman continued his rapid development into a top class swimmer.

Foreman swam brilliantly to pick up bronze medals in both the 200 backstroke and 100m IM, and then surpassed this by taking his third medal, a silver in the 10/u 200m freestyle in a very quick PB of 2:42.76.

He also collected an award for taking fourth place overall in his age group, and picked up three new club records.

Karen Dorey, Kingfishers coach: "As well as the excellent performances referred to in this report I would like to congratulate a lot of the less experienced swimmers who produced personal best times in every championship race they swam."

Fiona Wilson returned from university and collected a deserved bronze medal in the ladies' 16/o 100m IM.

The final Kingfishers medal went to Will Rawlinson in the boys' 14/u 50m breastroke.

Ella Paddon, 9, swam with distinction in reaching finals in both the girls' 9/u 200m backstroke and 200m freestyle, swimming huge PB’s every time she was in the water and breaking a club record during the event.

Eleven-year-old Darcie Rhoden also made two finals in the girls’ 11/u 100m freestyle and 400m freestyle.

Like Ella, Rhoden also produced a substantial PB every time she raced, and broke three club records.

James Pinwell, 13, did very well to make the final of the boys' 13/u 100m backstroke.

Fourteen-year-olds Holly Gunner and Conor Morgan qualified for, and swam in, the most events at the championships (11 each).

Gunner made the final of the girls' 14/u 100m butterfly and set two new club records, while Morgan made the final of the boys’ 14/u 200m butterfly and set a whopping five new club records.

Club captain George Grace also set five new records.

The talented 17-year-old, racing in the men's open category, swam a fantastic PB 55.85 secs in the blue riband 100m freestyle, finishing 11th in Devon.

His best performances on the open stage were in his favoured breastroke event, where he finished sixth in the 50m event and eighth in the Olympic distance of 100m.

Other swimmers breaking a club record were Hester Stembridge (10), Sophie King (12) and William Trout (18).

Coach Karen Dorey said: "As well as the excellent performances referred to in this report I would like to congratulate a lot of the less experienced swimmers who produced personal best times in every championship race they swam.

"Daniel Arscott, Freddie Buckle, Abi Edmonds, Richard Forman, Ella Paddon, Harry Preston, Darcie Rhoden, Hester Stembridge, Edward Trout and Laker Wong all stepped up to the plate on every occasion and handled the pressure remarkably well.

"The more experienced Sam Jones and Sophie King also achieved this feat - and all of them can be very proud of their achievements."

Other Kingfishers swimmers qualifying for and taking part in the championships were Abby Read (11), Robert Dorey (11), Grace Mulligan (12), Bobbie Grace (13), Amy Widger (15), Ladies Captain Eleanor Burt (16), Paul Jacobson (17) and Alec Wilson (18).

This weekend Kingfishers start their Cornwall and West Devon League programme with a gala at Quayside Leisure Centre against Newton Abbot, Penzance and Plymouth Leander.

Warm up is at 5:15, and spectators are very welcome to attend.