Cora Robinson, an eight-year-old from Blyth, Northumberland, has been winning swimming competitions across the UK. She has reached the age where she can compete for national awards.
The youngster has competed in both pool and beach swimming championships and has already won four gold medals. She began the year by winning two gold medals and a silver medal at the Welsh Championships in Swansea. Cora also broke a swimming record that had stood for 11 years. She then competed in the British Pool Championships in Cardiff, where she won a gold medal, a silver and a bronze.
Beach Championship Success
Earlier this month, Cora competed in the National Beach Championships in Barry Island, where she won another gold medal. She will now take part in the GB British Surf Lifesaving Championships in Cornwall on August 19.
Cora's mother, Casey Robinson, 27, who is also mother to Billie, five, said: "This is her first year of competing. They can compete in little competitions but they can't compete nationally until they are eight. She's absolutely phenomenal. Especially when you go to the big competitions and she's on the big stage."
Record-Breaking Performance
Casey added: "She is up against other eight year olds. I thought to myself we'll go and see where she is in the world. I put her out there and I was like 'wow she is good' because she absolutely obliterated them. She's absolutely smashing it. She went to the Welsh Pool Championships and won two gold medals and a silver. She got two gold in the 50m board race and the flipper race and she got a silver in the 50m manikin race."
She said the Welsh record for the 50m fins race, where you swim that distance with flippers on, had stood for 11 years. "She went to the British Championships for the pool and she won gold in the fins race again. So she is the British champion for the under eights! She won silver in the 50m manikin race and bronze in the 50m board race. We went to the beach championships two weeks ago and she won the board race. At the moment, she's national champion of the under eight board ocean race."
Club and Personal Background
Cora has been attending Blyth Lifeguard & Swimming Club, where Casey volunteers as a coach, for the last three years. Casey said: "She's been going to the swimming club since she was five but she's been doing swimming lessons since she was a baby. She's got autism and she's got ADHD. She struggled a bit in school and she finds making friends tricky. But at the swimming club everyone loves her. It's the one thing she loves to do. She trains everyday after school. She struggles to train slow. She's always in race mode, she wants to race all the time!"
Casey added: "Billie has just started in the club this year and she's at the beach everyday. She's definitely going to follow in her footsteps!"
