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Alan's still making waves after 25 years

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At the age of 67, swimming coach Alan Bagnall could be forgiven for wanting to take life a little easier.

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But the Essington-based instructor has no plans to step back from the poolside any time soon, as he continues to nurture the next generation of potential champions at Walsall's Broadway Swimming Club.

Bagnall is now into his 25th year of coaching at the club, which has around 200 swimmers on its books.

Alan Bagnall poses with his happy students at Broadway Swimming Club.

He spends up to three hours a day, six days a week helping swimmers from as young as four to hone and develop their skills.

The club trains at Barr Beacon School in Aldridge and Wolverhampton University's Walsall Campus.

The only day Broadway do not train is Saturdays, and even then Alan is often coaching the club's youngsters at various competitions.

Far from looking to reduce his hours of involvement with the club, he said: "I enjoy it and I will carry on for as long as I can.

"I have always been involved in swimming, first as a competitor and then as a coach.

"I started competing when I was still at junior school at Walsall Swimming Club and I used to do some swimming teaching when I was 17 or 18.

He laughed: "I got involved with Broadway through my daughter Emma back in 1989-1990. She was a very good swimmer and she roped me into helping out at the club.

"It has proved to be a very fruitful partnership with Alan helping to develop numerous county, regional and national level swimmers over the years.

"Swimming is a life skill and once you have got it you don't lose it. When you see someone swim well it looks effortless, but it is a long process to get to a good level.

"I enjoy the challenge of getting people to reach that. We take children from four-years-old and it's satisfying to see them improving."

He added that swimming can also provide valuable lessons and qualities that can be applied outside the pool.

He said: "If you go for a job interview many of the candidates probably all have the same qualifications so employers are looking for something different on top of that.

"If you can show them that you have been a swimmer and done it for 10 years or more they know you are a committed person and I have given dozens of references for jobs to swimmers over the years."

Bagnall is keen to share any of the plaudits he receives for his own dedication with the rest of Broadway's five-strong coaching team.

It includes Jane James, her daughter, Holly, and her son, Mark, and instructor Richard Plant. But club liaison officer Anne-Marie Butler reckons his efforts deserve recognition in their own right.

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She said: "He's impeccable. He provides fantastic support for the children, he's very encouraging and he instils a can-do attitude in them which is fantastic.

"Some of them don't have great confidence when they start, but then they start to achieve and you can see the pride that he feels, let alone them, when that happens.

"He is there every single night of the week. We don't train on Saturdays but he is usually taking swimmers to galas that day and he also does a lot of open meets.

"He will get there at about 7.30-8am to make sure he is there when the children arrive and he doesn't leave until the last child has done their last race. It is a long day.

"He just encourages the children to try hard and do their best and he deserves recognition."

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