Benson gets the perfect warm-up for British debut

SWIMMING: It’s been a heady year for James Young High’s Craig Benson, and he added to his long list of successes by taking the top boy award at the West Lothian Schools’ Championships at Deans Community High School.

The girls’ award was won by West Calder High School’s Gulsum Onal, who claimed four gold medals in the 13-14 year-old section.

Benson, a 17-year-old sixth year pupil, won the 100m and 200m breaststroke in the 17-19 year-old age-group and it was the perfect send-off for a busy December.

Winner of the 100m breaststroke at the World Junior Championships in Peru and a triple gold medallist at the Commonwealth Youth Games on the Isle of Man, the teenager is making his British senior team debut at the European Short-Course Championships in Poland this weekend.

“It’s been a fantastic season and it’s nice now to be noticed by the British selectors,” said Benson, who swims for the Warrender Club and has now set his sights on next year’s Olympics. Gulsum, a member of Swim West Lothian, won the 100 and 200m freestyle and the 100m and 20m backstroke. Benson helped James Young High claim the secondary schools’ title, while the Primary award went to Williamston Primary in Livingston. Overall, 134 qualifying times were posted for the Brodies Scottish Schools’ Swimming Championships at the Dollan Baths in East Kilbride on January 27. Craig, who will be at the Olympic trials at the start of March, and Gulsum have both confirmed that they will be available to swim for West Lothian.