BRITISH GAS SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
Venue: Ponds Forge, Sheffield Dates: 16-20 March Coverage: Listen live from 1750-2000 GMT on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra, Monday to Thursday and the BBC Sport website on Friday
 Simmonds is hoping for more success at London 2012 |
Paralympic champions Eleanor Simmonds and Heather Frederiksen both claimed new world records at the British Swimming Championships in Sheffield. Double Beijing gold medallist Simmonds, 14, smashed the S6 400m freestyle mark by 10 seconds while Frederiksen knocked two seconds off in the S8 category. "I didn't feel like I was going that fast but I hit 200m and just felt so exhausted," said Simmonds. "That was such hard work. I don't know how I managed to get back." Simmonds's time of five minutes 31.44 seconds saw her win gold in the event - where results are determined on how close athletes get to the world record in their category. She became the youngest recipient of an MBE earlier this year and recently received her award at Buckingham Palace.  | 606: DEBATE |
She added: "It's all a bit of a surprise, I felt more relaxed than I did in Beijing and that time is just so amazing." Frederiksen lowered American Jessica Long's world record in her heat with a time of 4:45.67 but failed to improved on that time in the final, touching home in a time of 4:47.08 to take the silver medal. "The world record was my aim coming into this event so I am happy to have broken it," Frederiksen said. "My training has been going well although it has been a bit on and off since Beijing. My grandfather died at the beginning of the year and that record was for him." The men's 400m Freestyle was won by Paralympic champion Sam Hynd with Rob Welbourn and Sean Fraser taking silver and bronze. Paralympic champion Sascha Kindred took gold in the men's 100m breaststroke, beating Dave Ellis and Hynd while Charlotte Henshaw claimed the women's 100m breaststroke title ahead of Claire Cashmore and Louise Watkin.
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