Lifetime ambition becomes a reality for swimming star (From Gazette Series)

Lifetime ambition becomes a reality for swimming star

DURSLEY Dolphins swimming coach Matthew Sprague achieved a lifelong ambition at the weekend by winning the Men's Senior County Championship at the GL1 pool in Gloucester.

Swimming for the Stroud swim team in the 50m backstroke, Sprague broke his lifetime best to beat an impressive field of swimmers to win gold in a time of 29.90 seconds.

He failed to beat the all-time 17-year-old age group time by just six hundredths of a second, a remarkable achievement.

Sprague started swimming competitively when he was just ten years old as a representative of Dursley Dolphins, and has kept in close contact with the club ever since his move to the Speedo premier team in Stroud.

He remains a coach and regular swimmer at the Dursley club and can be seen on a Friday night along with other keen club members in the pool.

As he said after his latest success: "Dursley has given me a real love of swimming."