My name is Maisie Macartney, I am 14 and I have recently started my GCSE courses at Sir Roger Manwood’s Grammar school. I have swum as long as I can remember and when I was 5 I joined Thanet Swim Club. I started swimming competitively when I was 8 with my first competition being my club championships. I have developed since then, swimming for my club at county, regional and national level, as well as representing Kent and the South East at multiple national competitions. I currently train 8 times a week for about 2 hours every session. I am part of the England Talent Programme and I hope to take my swimming further.

Most memorable sporting achievement to date

The achievement that is most memorable is when I gained my first ever National qualifying time, a year early. It was at the South East Regional Swimming Championships where, after qualifying for the final, I won gold. The time was for the 400 metres freestyle and afterwards I gained more times for multiple other events. This allowed me to go to my first National Championships and gain more experience in my swimming.

Biggest sporting disappointment to date

My biggest disappointment was this year at the British Summer Championships. I went expecting to medal in most of my events, and I succeeded in having lots of good swims. However I did not do well in my 200 freestyle as I was ranked highly and expected to medal but I ended up not even making the final.

Most respected sportsperson

Most respected sportsperson is Rebecca Adlington, Swimming.

Ritual before sporting competition

Before I swim I like to jump up and down behind the blocks to warm myself up.

“The support from KTY4S has meant that I have been able to swim at an international level, which may not have been otherwise possible. It has allowed me to travel and train away from home and also to compete at some competitions that I otherwise would not have been able to due to cost. This has given me many more opportunities, and without this support I may never have achieved GBR selection as we would have been unable to take part in selection races, due to the amount of travel involved.

For every year I have had funding I have represented GBR at International Competitions, travelling to a variety of countries. Travelling to USA, Malta, France, Italy, Belgium, Mallorca and now Israel. Whilst not always having time to experience the culture I have enjoyed the variety of these destinations. I have met many new friends, experienced different styles of coaching and competing. This has opened up a wide network of possibilities.”