2020 BUCS LONG COURSE SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS
- February 14th-16th, 2020
- Ponds Forge International Sports Centre, Sheffield, England
- LCM (50m) Course
- Event Channel
- Event Schedule
- Entry Lists (Draft)
- Live Stream
- Live results
Tonight’s opening session of the British Universities & Colleges Sport Championships (BUCS) long course swim meet features three relays and two distance events.
The Friday evening session begins and ends with the mixed 4×100 medley relay – heats open the session and finals close it. In between, we’ll get heats of the women’s and men’s 4×100 free relays (with finals to follow on Saturday night), along with timed final heats of the women’s and men’s 1500 freestyles.
You can read our full meet preview here.
A full live stream of the 2020 meet will be available via the SwimSwam Facebook page. For the first time, we will be expanding our coverage to live recaps of all 3 finals sessions of the meet, which will include an embedded live stream.
We’ll have live event-by-event updates of all the action. Keep refreshing this page for updates.
Mixed 4×100 Medley Relay – Heats
Top 8 Qualifiers:
- Edinburgh – 3:59.70
- Loughborough – 4:03.14
- Nottingham – 4:07.90
- Sheffield Hallam – 4:09.67
- Manchester Met – 4:11.11
- Bath – 4:13.19
- Stirling – 4:17.30
- Leeds Beckett – 4:21.03
Defending champs Loughborough took second in qualifying of the mixed medley relay, though all the top programs clearly saved up their best stuff for the final, which will happen later on this evening.
Loughborough won in 3:50.19 last year. In prelims tonight, only Edinburgh was under four minutes, going 3:59.70 for the top qualifying spot. Loughborough was 4:03.14. Edinburgh was third in this race last year. Returning runners-up Stirling barely snuck into the A final in 7th, though their 4:17.30 was a solid seven seconds clear of the ninth-place team.
Women’s 4×100 Free Relay – Heats
Top 8 Qualifiers:
- Edinburgh – 3:50.52
- Loughborough – 3:54.94
- Bath – 3:59.17
- Stirling – 4:00.57
- Birmingham – 4:00.73
- Swansea – 4:03.94
- Leeds – 4:05.91
- Nottingham – 4:07.86
The single-gender relays will have only qualifying tonight, with finals to come tomorrow night. Defending champs Edinburgh crushed a 3:50.52 to win the second-to-last heat. That’s actually two tenths faster than their prelims from last year. In 2019, Edinburgh cut all the way to 3:44.25 to win gold in the final, and they should be the favorites again.
Loughborough won the final heat in 3:54.94, and will swim beside Edinburgh in the final.
Men’s 4×100 Free Relay – Heats
Top 8 Qualifiers:
- Stirling – 3:23.91
- Loughborough – 3:27.83
- Edinburgh – 3:27.93
- Swansea – 3:31.27
- Manchester – 3:31.72
- Bath – 3:31.89
- Sheffield Hallam – 3:32.88
- Birmingham – 3:33.72
Last year’s winners from Stirling are back in the driver’s seat, going 3:23.91 this morning for the top qualifying spot. They won in 3:20.87 a year ago. Their heats swim sits almost four seconds ahead of the field, which includes Edinburgh and Loughborough.
Edinburgh were the runners-up last year, but finished third this morning. A tenth ahead of them, Loughborough looks to move up from a third-place finish a year ago.
Women’s 1500 Free – Timed Final
Medalists:
- Amber Keegan (Sheffield) – 17:08.63
- Em Clarke (Loughborough) – 17:11.50
- Katie Taylor (Strathclyde) – 17:28.30
Last year’s meet included heats of the 800 and 1500 free on opening night. This year the 800 has been moved to the second day, allowing the top swimmers from both to compete together without a two-event double.
Last year’s 800 free runner-up Amber Keegan won the 1500 for Sheffield, going 17:08.63. She didn’t compete in the 1500 a year ago. But her time at the 800 meter split in this race was within eight seconds of her 800 last year, boding well for that race.
In 2019, Em Clarke won the 800 for Loughborough and finished second in the 1500. She’ll defend that silver medal in the 1500, going two seconds faster than last year with a 17:11.50.
Katie Taylor was just 5th last year, but moved up by 11 seconds and three places for bronze.
Men’s 1500 Free – Timed Final
Medalists:
- Luke Turley (Bath) – 15:38.70
- William Ryley (Bath) – 15:46.78
- Asterios Daldogiannis (Loughborough) – 15:53.21
For the second-straight year, it’s a Bath 1-2 in the men’s 1500. Last year it was Tom Derbyshire and William Ryley; this time around it’s Luke Turley and Ryley.
Turley’s 15:38.70 is about five seconds behind Derbyshire’s winning time from last year, but beat the field by eight seconds. Ryley went 15:46.78, about a half-second off his time from last year.
Loughborough went 3-4, led by Asterios Daldogiannis and his 15:53.21, the last swim under 16 minutes.
Mixed 4×100 Medley Relay – Final
Medalists:
- Loughborough – 3:53.13
- Edinburgh – 3:55.09
- Stirling – 4:02.79
Loughborough defended its title in the final race of the night. Names of relay members weren’t available for this session, but Loughborough managed to go ten seconds faster in the final than they did in heats at the beginning of the session. On the other hand, they were actually three seconds slower than their winning time from last year.
Edinburgh held onto second after qualifying first out of heats. They were four seconds faster than heats and firmly second – Loughborough was almost two seconds ahead and third-place Stirling more than seven seconds behind. Stirling was 3:53 last year for silver, but only 4:02.79 this season for third.
