Making waves: Swimmers flying the flag for the region

WINNERS: Paul Callis, left, and Hugh Taylor with their medals at the European Masters Swimming Championships

By Rick Lyon, Co-Editor

Two East Yorkshire swimmers are making a splash on the international stage, showcasing both their personal dedication and the region’s potential in the pool.

Hugh Taylor, 61, from Swanland, and Paul Callis, 47, from Beverley, have recently returned from the European Masters Swimming Championships in Lublin, Poland, with an impressive haul of medals between them.

Competing against some of the best swimmers in their age categories from across the continent, the pair have firmly established themselves among the elite of Masters swimming.

Masters swimming is a special class of competitive swimming for swimmers aged 25 years and over.

For both Hugh and Paul, however, their achievements represent more than just medals. They are keen to raise the profile of swimming in Hull and East Yorkshire, not only as a competitive sport but as a lifelong activity with huge physical and mental health benefits.

“The European Championships probably represent my best achievement in swimming because that’s the first international competition I’ve done,” said Hugh.

“I’ve won gold medals in the British Championships before and had some really good domestic meets in the last couple of years, but the Europeans were the pinnacle for me because of the broader competition and the higher standard.”

Hugh returned from Lublin with three individual silver medals in his 60 to 64-year-olds category, as well as relay gold and silver.

COMPETITOR: Paul in action

Paul secured two individual gold and three silvers in his 45 to 49-year-olds category, two team golds, and set a new British record in the 200m individual medley.

Hugh’s relationship with swimming stretches back to his early childhood.

“I started swimming properly when I was about eight-years-old. I was quite good, so it was natural to join a club,” he said. “I just kept it going over the years with different clubs, and did a bit at university.”

Like for many, however, life eventually took over.

“I had a massive break from it and had a couple of brief comebacks, but I’d had enough really. Then I came back to it about four years ago. Now that I’m retired, I’ve got the time to do it, and it also gives me some extra focus and purpose – that was one of the main reasons for coming back to it.”

That sense of purpose is something Paul can relate to as well too, though his return to the sport after a break came from a different motivation.

“I wasn’t planning on getting back into it again in the slightest,” he said. “I also wasn’t planning on my two boys getting into it, but they said they wanted to see their daddy race again.

“My main driver was to show them that I could walk the walk, as well as talk the talk.”

MESSAGE: Hugh is keen to highlight the health benefits of swimming

Paul, who co-owns an estate agency, had previously competed at an elite level when he was younger.

“My mum and dad got me into it,” he said. “I tried a lot of sports -gymnastics, football, tennis and hockey. I was quite good at hockey and had to make a decision between that and swimming, and I went down the swimming route.

“I did it from the age of six up to about 15, then I’d had enough. When I was 19, I was watching the Commonwealth Games and my mates from swimming when I was 15 were on TV and I thought ‘that could be me’.

“I decided I wanted to go again and threw myself into it. I did three years on the elite circuit.”

Despite competing at a high level, both swimmers now train largely alone, which they say is a challenge.

“It can be hard, from a mental perspective, training by yourself,” said Hugh. “I’m normally in the water three or four times a week, with a gym session twice a week.”

Paul said: “Training on your own is a very lonely world. It can be soul destroying. When you are training with someone, you push each other on.”

The pair previously trained with a club in Sheffield – a high-performance environment they both praise.

MOTIVATION: Paul would like to see more done to promote swimming

“It’s excellent training for people of our ages,” said Hugh. “It helps push you on and it’s really supportive – it’s just difficult to get across there all the time.”

Now, much of their preparation takes place closer to home, including sessions in Beverley and Willerby. But both believe there is room for improvement in the region’s training infrastructure.

For Hugh, the appeal of swimming is as much about the feeling as the results.

“There’s something absolutely beautiful when you feel your swimming stroke correctly or you try and make an improvement, and you can just feel it,” he said.

“Forgetting times and everything else, there’s just the pure joy of moving through the water in a way that feels like you’re at one with it, not fighting it.”

That connection with the water also brings tangible health benefits.

“I’m 61 now but I’m probably the best weight I’ve been since I was in my late 20s, and probably as fit as I’ve been for most of my life. It gives you so much energy,” said Hugh.

Paul echoes that sentiment.

“Getting back into swimming has got me fit again, it’s got me back out doing something again,” he said. “I’ve never been into running or cycling, so swimming is ideal for me. It gives you a really strong feelgood factor.”

And while competition provides motivation, it is the experience itself that keeps them coming back.

“From a competition perspective, it just gives you a target and a motivational goal,” said Hugh. “I wouldn’t do the training if it wasn’t for the competition.

“It’s also exciting, getting on the blocks with your adrenaline going, because you’re trying to achieve something.”

Paul said: “You go through all the nerves building up to it but once you dive in, they just vanish. It’s wonderful.

“I can’t say I’m a massive fan of the competitive week, but it’s so satisfying when you touch the end and you’ve done well.”

For Paul, one of the most rewarding aspects of his return has been sharing the sport with his sons, Henry, 11, and Emerson, eight, both of whom are now swimmers.

He said: “Henry is catching me up now, and soon it’s going to be me chasing him!”

Hugh and Paul are keen to stress how swimming can be a lifelong activity – one that supports both physical and mental wellbeing at every stage of life.

“Swimming is such an important life skill but it’s just not pushed enough,” said Paul. “It needs to be promoted more.”

One of the biggest challenges facing swimmers in Hull and East Yorkshire is access to facilities.

“There will be a natural limit on how much it can grow because of the pool time available in Hull,” said Hugh. “Better quality pools would also help and, in an ideal world, Hull would have a 50m swimming pool, but I can see that is very challenging for the council.”

Paul said: “I think that if Hull had a proper timetable for swimming, with a professional coach for Masters, there would be substantial growth because there are a lot of decent, talented swimmers here.

“The council used to really support Kingston Upon Hull Swimming Club. The club was given a lot of pool time for training, which was great.”

Both swimmers have no intention of slowing down. They are already targeting upcoming competitions, including the British Championships in Aberdeen and the next European Masters event in Slovakia.