2025 BUCS SHORT COURSE CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Friday, November 14th – Sunday, November 16th
- Ponds Forge International Swimming Centre, Sheffield, England
- SCM (25m)
- Meet Central
- Results
- Livestream
The 2025 British Universities & Colleges (BUCS) Short Course Championships kicked off, with the 3-day competition taking place at Ponds Forge.
Swimmers are vying for individual titles but primarily for team points in their quest to come away with the men’s, women’s and overall team trophies.
As a refresher, BUCS points are awarded to the top 4 swimmers/teams; however, only the top 2 swimmers from each institution, or 1 team per institution for relay events, are eligible for BUCS points. If there are not enough eligible swimmers/teams in the top 4 to earn points, then the remaining points will be awarded to the next-best eligible swimmers/teams based on the rest finals or heats results.
Day 1 Highlights
For the second consecutive year, 21-year-old Olympian Freya Colbert notched two individual titles to kick off her BUCS campaign.
The Loughborough ace first took on the women’s 200m free, registering a big-time effort of 1:52.26.
That not only beat the field by nearly 4 seconds but it checked in as a monster lifetime best. This is the third time in a month that Colbert has been a best time in the event. She swam 1:53.06 on October 24 at the Toronto stop of the World Cup, and 1:53.51 at the Westmont stop of the World Cup. Coming into the calendar year, her best time was a 1:53.91 from December 2024.
Here in Sheffield, Colbert rocked splits of 26.43/27.90/28.79/29.14 to dip under the 1:53-barrier for the first time in her career.
Teammates Lucy Fox and Jessica Smelt wrangled up the minor medals, with the former hitting 1:56.14 for silver and the latter logging 1:56.51 for bronze.
As for Colbert, the versatile athlete now ranks as Great Britain’s #2 women’s SCM 200 freestyle performer of all time. She also ranks 3rd in the world at the moment.
Top 5 GBR Women’s SCM 200 Freestyle Performers All-Time
- Freya Anderson – 1:51.87, 2020
- Freya Colbert – 1:52.26, 2025
- Holly Hibbott – 1:53.54, 2019
- Francesca Halsall – 1:53.79, 2009
- Siobhan-Marie O’Connor – 1:53.82, 2015
2025-2026 SCM Women 200 FREE
O’Callaghan
WR 1:49.36
| 2 | Marrit Steenbergen | NED | 1:50.33 | 12/04 |
| 3 | Minna ABRAHAM | HUN | 1:51.47 | 12/04 |
| 4 | Lani Pallister | AUS | 1:51.75 | 10/24 |
| 5 | Freya Colbert | GBR | 1:51.94 | 12/04 |
Colbert’s next victim was the 200m IM where she topped the podium once again in a time of 2:06.26.
She and University of Stirling’s Katie Shanahan represented the sole swimmers to clear the 2:10 barrier, with Shanahan registering 2:07.79 as the runner-up. Leah Schlossan clocked 2:10.19 to give Manchester the bronze.
Colbert’s performance blew her winning time of 2:08.36 from last year to bits and also overtook her former PB of 2:07.99 from the aforementioned 2024 Swim England Winter Championships. She’s now the 6th-best British performer of all time.
Ulster’s Lotte Cullen turned heads en route to winning the women’s 100m backstroke over Shanahan.
Cullen of Ireland stopped the clock at a massive 56.96 to beat Shanahan by nearly a second on her way to establishing a new personal best.
Cullen opened in 27.42 and closed in 29.54 to lower her previous PB and Irish national record of 57.31 from the Toronto stop of the 2025 World Aquativs Swimming World Cup.
Shanahan snagged the silver in 57.87 and Honey Osrin bagged the bronze in 59.46. Shanahan’s effort ripped her own previous PB of 58.57 to shreds.
Additional Notes
- 20-year-old Tyler Melbourne-Smith posted a time of 1:44.05, a new personal best to win the men’s 200m freestyle. The Loughborough man led Bath’s Cam Brooker who settled for silver in 1:44.32 followed by Stirling’s Evan Jones who rounded out the podium in 1:44.83.
- Veteran Max Litchfield was too quick to catch in the men’s 200m IM, posting 1:56.61 for the gold. Jones once again collected silver, producing 1:57.07 and Matthew Ward of Bath also landed on the podium in 1:57.89 for bronze.
- Ward got on the board once more as the men’s 100m fly silver medalist. He touched in 51.88 behind Ed Mildred who clocked 50.76 as the decisive victor.
- Lucy Grieve of Stirling scored a new personal best en route to winning the women’s 100m fly. Grieve turned in a time of 56.76 to clear the 57-second barrier for her first time ever. She’s now GBR’s 4th-best performer of all time.
- Angharad Evans successfully defended her 50m breaststroke title from last year, hitting 30.04 ahead of Anna Morgan‘s effort of 30.18. Sienna Robinson of Loughborough got to the wall in 30.82.
- Despite battling inoperable brain tumors, Archie Goodburn came out on top of the men’s 50m breaststroke event. The 24-year-old stopped the clock at 26.43 a result only .17 outside his PB of 26.26 from the 2023 European Short Course Championships.
What is Max Litchfield studying now?
Looking at the UK top swims, it is sad to see how Holly Hibbott didn’t progress well as a senior, after such a great junior career.
Wouldn’t be surprised to see Freya only swimming freestyle before long. She isn’t far away from the times you need for global medals in the 200 now, and her LC profile is very progressive (1.57 2022, 1.56 2023, 1.55high 2024, 1.55.0 2025) – 400im looks nightmarishly strong and looking at the juniors it’ll only get stronger.
Split 24.1 yesterday in the 4×50 mixed medley in her 3rd event in a triple too.
Probs in 53. shape in a LC 100 rn.
Hopefully Freya, Okaro, and Taylor keep improving in the 100 going into LA, could maybe be a medal chance in the 4×1 if Anderson gets back to her best.
Hoping FA’s move to Stirling works well.
“Entering this competition, Colbert’s PB was represented by the 1:53.91.”
she went 1:53.06 at the Toronto stop of the World Cup. the top 5 performers graphic literally shows this.
Lottie represents Ireland internationally, not GBR.
Beat me too it!!