Swimming

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During our time at Grange the school had an excellent reputation in swimming. Perhaps this was partly due to the fact that we had swimming baths on the site.

Below are a number of photos of swimming teams over the years.

Swimming

Staff: Mr B Dobson, Mr B Baines

Pupils included: Hardisty, Bennett, Wilkinson, Fowler, Newsholme, Searle, Johnson, Vinette, Walker, Hoddy, Tate

 

 

 

 

 

Swimming

 

Staff: Mr B Dobson, Mr B Baines

Pupils included:Wilkinson, Searle, Johnson, Newsholme, Ogden, Vinette, Hardisty, Bennett, Fowler

 

 

 

 

 

Swimming

 

Staff: Mr B Dobson, Mr B Baines

Pupils included:Searle, Vinette, Johnson, Newsholme, Bennett, Fowler, Tate

 

 

 

 

 

Swimming

 

Staff: Mr D Wright, Mr McSorley, Mr B Baines, Mr B Dobson

Pupils included:Pearman, Vinette, Bennett, Pfeiffer, McCarthy, Tate

 

 

 

 

If you know the identities of others, please let us know

Tony VinetteTony Vinette

 

Tony Vinette has sent us copies of certificates that he won at the annual Bradford Schools’ Swimming Gala

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1958 School Magazine Report

In the Inter-School Gala, we were narrowly beaten by Bradford Grammar School, competing for the first time. Several of our individuals did well, notably Johnson again, who broke the record for the junior backstroke and Bennett who broke the breaststroke record (junior).

We must also congratulate these two on their success in the Yorkshire Championships.

1959 School Magazine Report

Grange has for so many years been regarded as the inevitable winner (of the Inter-Schools Gala), that many old boys will read with shocked surprise that this time we had to be content with 3rd place. But things are not quite as bad as they seem; the result was pretty close and the entry of Bradford Grammar School into the competition has made victory more difficult to achieve than it used to be.

Several of our swimmers did well in the BSSA Championships. K Bennett was 1st in the breaststroke and butterfly events, both in record time, and 2nd in the freestyle. C Johnson won the freestyle race and also set up a new record in winning the Middles backstroke. D Higgins was 3rd in the breaststroke championship. Searle, Johnson and Higgins were 2nd in the breaststroke team race. Durrans, Johnson and Bennett, 3rd in the freestyle team race. Mitchell, Siswick and Lee were placed 2nd in the Junior breaststroke team race. P Wilkinson achieved 2nd place in the Senior butterfly and L Hardisty 3rd in the Senior dive.

Also worthy of special mention are the boys who have won awards from the Royal Life Saving Society: D Hoddy, J Barber, K Lawson, N Rainey, D Foster, G Thornton, P Wilkinson, S Holdsworth, C Johnson, D Higgins and K Bennett.

While on the subject of life-saving, it may be appropriate to mention an unusual distinction which has fallen to a Grange boy. Andrew Pearson (3Sc) was awarded the Royal Humane Society’s testimonial for rescuing a child from drowning at Wyke Swimming Baths. We cannot praise Andy’s resourcefulness - and subsequent modesty - too highly, and we hope his action will encourage many more of our swimmers to take the life-saving courses.

1960 School Magazine Report

In the Inter-Grammar Gala (July ‘59) we did extremely well, being narrowly second to Bradford Grammar. Bennett set up a new record for the breaststroke (Middles) and Johnson 2 new records for the freestyle and backstroke (Middles).

Bennett, Johnson, P Wilkinson and Hardisty represented Bradford in the Yorkshire Schools’ Championships, Hardisty coming 1st in diving.In the BSSA Gala, a number of our boys gained awards. Searle, Bartle and Lee won the Middles breaststroke trophy. K Bennett won both the Senior breaststroke and butterfly, C Johnson won the Senior backstroke, R Searle was 2nd in both the Middles breaststroke and butterfly, and M Bateman was 2nd in the Junior freestyle.

Special congratulations to those boys who have gained life-saving awards: Riddlesden, Porchetta and Walker (6B), Fowler (5A), Searle and A Johnson (3Sc) and Bartle (3M).

1961 School Magazine Report

We are proud to say we again won the Inter-school Gala, beating our nearest challengers, Bradford Grammar School, by 15 clear points. Our winners - the 2 Bennetts, the 2 Batemans, P Wilkinson, Tate, Jennings, Tiffany, Hardisty and the Under 13 relay team.

May we again commend here the Life-saving classes to the attention of all our swimmers? It is a great comfort to non-swimmers like myself to know that there are plenty of bronze medallions about. Think, reader, how proud you would be if you rescued your English master from the Leeds-Liverpool Canal. Nobody at school would ever speak to you again, but you would have the satisfaction of seeing your name in the ‘Telegraph’.

Boys who have qualified for awards this year are: Intermediate: P Bateman, M Siswick, T Tiffany. Bronze Medallion: DH Gill, HS Surbutts. Bronze Cross: SJ Taylor. Award of Merit: KL Bennett, PF Wilkinson.

Competitors in the Bradford Schools’ Championships brought back, as usual, their quota of trophies. Bennett was 1st in the Senior breaststroke (a new record) and 2nd in the butterfly event. The Middles freestyle team (Vinette, Hanson & Bateman) also broke the existing record in winning their race, and M Bennett worthily followed big brother’s example by winning the Junior breaststroke and coming 2nd in the backstroke.

Other boys to be placed in their events were Green, M Bateman, Vinette and Tate. The Junior breaststroke team (Bennett, Pratt & Dixon), the Junior freestyle team (Johnson, Dixon & Burgoyne) and the Middles breaststroke team (Tiffany, Lee & Mitchell) were also placed.

1962 School Magazine Report

We had another successful year in swimming, although in the Inter-Schools Gala we failed to beat Bradford Grammar ans, indeed, only just managed by half a point to beat St Bede’s for second place. The reason for our defeat was that certain boys failed to turn up on the night of the gala, and some even refused to swim. We had our share of winners in P Bateman, M Bateman, Dixon, Bennett, Pfeiffer, Jennings and Tate and the under-thirteen medley team. If only we had been at full strength we would have won.

I wonder how many boys who have gained their fourth and fifth stage certificates could save a drowning person? Not many, I suspect; and yet all these boys should be able to do so. I wish more boys would enter for life-saving certificates. This is the most important thing you can do in swimming. This year we have increased our number of awards - three intermediates, thirteen bronze medallions and three bronze crosses - but we are still not getting enough.

We had three boys - M Bateman, H Hanson and M Bennett - who were members of the Bradford team in the Yorkshire Championships.

1963 School Magazine Report

The highlight of a vintage year was another resounding win for Grange in the Inter-Grammar Gala. We scored 82.5 points, our nearest challengers being Bradford Grammar with 73. Cummings, Booth, Bennett, Bateman, Pitman, Dixon, Hanson, Tiffany and Tate shared eleven first places between them. Bennett, Hanson, Tiffany and the under-15 relay team all set up new records in their respective events. The same names, plus those of Green and Pratt, figured prominently among the winners in the Bradford Schools’ Gala. We had more success in the Yorkshire Schools’ Championships when Tiffany, Bateman, Hanson and Bennett won both the freestyle and the medley team races. Bennett and Hanson added further to their laurels by gaining two third places in the individual events.

1964/65 School Magazine Report

It is good to see that we maintain our proud position in competitive swimming, as the result of the Inter-Grammar Gala shows:1. Grange 83.5 2. Bradford Grammar 81 3. St Bede’s 36.5 4. Hanson 34 5. Belle Vue 33 6. Carlton 32

A close thing indeed, reminding us that now Bradford Grammar have entered the lists, only our best will do. All our competitors swam well, several outstandingly so. We gained nine first places, nine seconds, five thirds and one fourth. Tiffany set up new records in winning the under 16 breaststroke and freestyle; Robertshaw broke the record for the under 13 freestyle, and other first places were won by Bateman, Bennett, Dixon, Pitman and Tate.

In the Bradford Schools’ Gala Tiffany collected three firsts, a second and a third in a variety of events, breaking the senior freestyle record; Bennett was second in both the senior backstroke and breaststroke; Pitman was third in the middles diving and the middles breaststroke team (Finlay, Booth and Pratt) gained second place.

A good number of boys - though still far fewer than there ought to be - won life-saving awards, personal survival badges and swimming certificates during the course of the year. We hope for many more.

It is to be hoped that the standard of Grange swimming has not been too seriously affected by the fact that our bath was out of commission for the whole of the Christmas term.

Colours were awarded to Bateman, Bennett, Green, Tiffany and Dixon.