Sainsbury's 2015 School Games
Manchester 3-6 September
A look back at day 3 of the Sainsbury's 2014 School Games
6 September 2014, 8:27 pm
Saturday saw swimming make a splash at the Sainsbury's 2014 School Games, as nearly 200 athletes started to battle it out for supremacy in the pool.
The weekend started in full flow as swimming was one of 11 sports to take place across Manchester.
One of the stars at the Manchester Aquatics Centre was Joe Litchfield, who had recently watched older brother Max compete at Glasgow's Commonwealth Games.
And the talent clearly runs in the family as Litchfield stormed to gold medals in the 100m backstroke and 400m individual medley for England North.
He said: "Hopefully I experience more atmospheres like this in the future at events such as the Olympics and Commonwealth Games. I just want to keep going and hopefully be involved in them.
"Doing so well today has given me a lot of confidence as it is a big event among people that you know.
"Watching Olympians gives me a lot of inspiration as they were once at the School Games and Nationals so it makes you ask yourself "why can't I achieve what they have done and reach that level?"
In the 400m freestyle relay England North also reigned supreme, as both the boys' and girls' squads topped the podium. The finals will continue on Sunday.
At the Phones 4u Arena, Georgia-Mae Fenton took All-Round gold and helped lead the England team to top the podium with a breath-taking display of gymnastics.
The 13-year-old, who crowned winner on the uneven bars at her first Junior English Championships in March, posted a score of 53.050 to claim gold ahead of her team-mate Alice Kinsella, with Wales' Maisie Methuen claiming bronze.
England were in dominant form in the team event, claiming top spot with a score of 205.100 with Wales (196.350) taking home silver and Scotland (189.100) bronze. The individual events continue on Sunday.
"It feels amazing to be a Sainsbury's School Games champion," Fenton said. "It's my first time competing at the Games as I missed them last year through injury and it's also my first competition on All-Round so to win is really good and I'm pretty surprised.
"It means the world to win team gold as well. We've all worked really hard together and we've all done the best we could do so we're all really pleased. It feels amazing to be competing on the behalf of England as well."
The wheelchair basketball was hotting up at the Manchester Regional Arena as England North booked their place in Sunday's final 50-30 at the expense of England South.
Chris Rainforth of the Sheffield Steelers was the driving force behind the victory with 18 points, while Leah Evans chipped in with 12. England North will face England Central in Sunday's grand final.
It was also boiling down to crunch time in the rugby sevens as eight teams tussled for a place in the cup semi-finals.
The Welsh derby was arguably the tie of the round as Wales Dragons A team squeezed past Dragons B 12-5, while the England London and South-East team eased through against Ireland 19-0.
It was a comfortable win for England North, who dished out a 31-0 defeat to England Midlands, while England South-West were also on top form after beating Scotland 26-0.
Also returning for their finals on Sunday will be hockey, as both the boys' and girls' competitions come to a head, as well as the individual badminton after the group stages kicked off on Saturday.
The table tennis saw England South-East and England Midlands locked in a battle for gold after both teams impressed to beat Wales and England South-West 4-2 and 4-0 respectively.
And it was a similar story for England South-East's girls, who won all four of their matches against Wales to advance to the final against England South-West - who had also seen off Northern Ireland 4-0.
The volleyball competition was nearing the end of the league stage and so far England Cadet had been untouchable in the Under-16 girls' competition, winning all four of their matches - including all eight sets.
And the England Junior team ruled the roost in the Under-17 boys' event having dropped one set in their four wins, though Scotland West were nestled close behind in second.
The cycling picked up where it left off on Friday and the impressive England North West were leading the inter-regional track championship after a run of podium finishes.
In the para-cycling individual omnium, Matthew Hamilton was the athlete to beat after flying 200m and Keirin time trial golds earlier in the competition.
The finals got underway in the fencing after gruelling pool and knock-out stages on Friday, and England's Dimitri Coutya snatched the first gold of the evening in the foil wheelchair fencing.
He said: "It was really fun I have to say - I hugely enjoyed it. The first match, the foil is my main weapon and I thought I'm going to go out there, put on a good show and win that gold medal."
After two days of individual competition at the judo, the team event will start at the Amaechi Centre on Sunday.
The Sainsbury's 2014 School Games certainly promises to end with a flourish, with more thrilling action from all 11 sports.
The Sainsbury's 2014 School Games, which is supported by National Lottery funding from Sport England and delivered by the Youth Sport Trust, is taking place in venues across Manchester (4-7 September 2014). Visit www.2014schoolgames.com for more information.
One of the stars at the Manchester Aquatics Centre was Joe Litchfield, who had recently watched older brother Max compete at Glasgow's Commonwealth Games.
And the talent clearly runs in the family as Litchfield stormed to gold medals in the 100m backstroke and 400m individual medley for England North.
He said: "Hopefully I experience more atmospheres like this in the future at events such as the Olympics and Commonwealth Games. I just want to keep going and hopefully be involved in them.
"Doing so well today has given me a lot of confidence as it is a big event among people that you know.
"Watching Olympians gives me a lot of inspiration as they were once at the School Games and Nationals so it makes you ask yourself "why can't I achieve what they have done and reach that level?"
In the 400m freestyle relay England North also reigned supreme, as both the boys' and girls' squads topped the podium. The finals will continue on Sunday.
At the Phones 4u Arena, Georgia-Mae Fenton took All-Round gold and helped lead the England team to top the podium with a breath-taking display of gymnastics.
The 13-year-old, who crowned winner on the uneven bars at her first Junior English Championships in March, posted a score of 53.050 to claim gold ahead of her team-mate Alice Kinsella, with Wales' Maisie Methuen claiming bronze.
England were in dominant form in the team event, claiming top spot with a score of 205.100 with Wales (196.350) taking home silver and Scotland (189.100) bronze. The individual events continue on Sunday.
"It feels amazing to be a Sainsbury's School Games champion," Fenton said. "It's my first time competing at the Games as I missed them last year through injury and it's also my first competition on All-Round so to win is really good and I'm pretty surprised.
"It means the world to win team gold as well. We've all worked really hard together and we've all done the best we could do so we're all really pleased. It feels amazing to be competing on the behalf of England as well."
The wheelchair basketball was hotting up at the Manchester Regional Arena as England North booked their place in Sunday's final 50-30 at the expense of England South.
Chris Rainforth of the Sheffield Steelers was the driving force behind the victory with 18 points, while Leah Evans chipped in with 12. England North will face England Central in Sunday's grand final.
It was also boiling down to crunch time in the rugby sevens as eight teams tussled for a place in the cup semi-finals.
The Welsh derby was arguably the tie of the round as Wales Dragons A team squeezed past Dragons B 12-5, while the England London and South-East team eased through against Ireland 19-0.
It was a comfortable win for England North, who dished out a 31-0 defeat to England Midlands, while England South-West were also on top form after beating Scotland 26-0.
Also returning for their finals on Sunday will be hockey, as both the boys' and girls' competitions come to a head, as well as the individual badminton after the group stages kicked off on Saturday.
The table tennis saw England South-East and England Midlands locked in a battle for gold after both teams impressed to beat Wales and England South-West 4-2 and 4-0 respectively.
And it was a similar story for England South-East's girls, who won all four of their matches against Wales to advance to the final against England South-West - who had also seen off Northern Ireland 4-0.
The volleyball competition was nearing the end of the league stage and so far England Cadet had been untouchable in the Under-16 girls' competition, winning all four of their matches - including all eight sets.
And the England Junior team ruled the roost in the Under-17 boys' event having dropped one set in their four wins, though Scotland West were nestled close behind in second.
The cycling picked up where it left off on Friday and the impressive England North West were leading the inter-regional track championship after a run of podium finishes.
In the para-cycling individual omnium, Matthew Hamilton was the athlete to beat after flying 200m and Keirin time trial golds earlier in the competition.
The finals got underway in the fencing after gruelling pool and knock-out stages on Friday, and England's Dimitri Coutya snatched the first gold of the evening in the foil wheelchair fencing.
He said: "It was really fun I have to say - I hugely enjoyed it. The first match, the foil is my main weapon and I thought I'm going to go out there, put on a good show and win that gold medal."
After two days of individual competition at the judo, the team event will start at the Amaechi Centre on Sunday.
The Sainsbury's 2014 School Games certainly promises to end with a flourish, with more thrilling action from all 11 sports.
The Sainsbury's 2014 School Games, which is supported by National Lottery funding from Sport England and delivered by the Youth Sport Trust, is taking place in venues across Manchester (4-7 September 2014). Visit www.2014schoolgames.com for more information.
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