TWO young swimmers are preparing to make a splash at an inter county swimming competition next month. 

Alexa Atkinson and Jessica Lister, members of Workington Swimming Club, will be representing the Cumbria Swim Team at the inter-county competition in Sheffield on October 2. 

Jessica, aged 12, from Workington, first dipped her toes in the water at a young age, learning to swim at four years old before going on to join Workington Swimming Club at the age of six. 

Jessica started competing in galas in 2018 and has competed in county age groups each year as well as regionals in Liverpool in 2022 - she's a keen sports fanatic who also enjoys playing football for the Allerdale girls football team. 

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Alexa, aged 17, started swimming in 2013 and has swam at county, regional and national level. Last year, Alexa made the times for British Championships but due to the amount of entries, unfortunately, the entry times changed so she was unable to compete.

The 17 year old is currently doing an apprenticeship for Doosan Babcock, which involves her living away from home, which has made training difficult however, having returned to the pools after a bout of Covid, the swimming enthusiast hopes to make her mark this competition. 

Alexa's mum, Amanda Atkinson, said: "It's brilliant, she suffers with anxiety so she's done incredibly well to get where she's got to - it's a massive achievement. It's been hard for her but she's still at it, and she's trying her hardest." 

Coaches from the Workington Swimming Club, Mark Newby and Shaun Winstanley praised the duo for their extraordinary efforts. 

"It's been difficult for everyone getting back to fitness and racing again after a long break due to the pandemic, so being selected to represent Cumbria Swim Team is a fantastic achievement Everyone at Workington swimming club are extremely proud of Jess and Alexa and wish them and the Cumbria team every success at the inter county competition in Sheffield next month," they said. 

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