Free ferry travel for Olympic swimming hope
     
A local swimming prodigy has been given a year’s free travel by Gosport Ferry. The company’s sponsorship will help 14-year-old Sophie Teasdale to maintain a rigorous training schedule that could lead to her representing England at the 2012 Olympics.

Sophie, who lives at Stubbington, gets up at 4.15am four days a week for a two-hour training session with Portsmouth Northsea Swimming Club. She then catches the ferry back to Gosport where her mother meets her and takes her home to get ready for school. After her last lesson she’s back on the ferry again for another two and a half hours training, every evening except Wednesdays. On Saturday mornings she manages to find time for another lengthy session.

Sophie is ranked top nationally in her age group for the 100 m backstroke, number two for the 50 m and 200 m backstroke, and number four in the
200 m freestyle. The Amateur Swimming Association believes she has the potential to go far in the sport and has given her a place in the England Talent Development Programme, the London 2012 Training Squad, the South East Talent Development Squad and the Hampshire Training Squad.

“Gosport Ferry has been brilliant,” says Sophie. “Although tickets are not expensive, all my trips backwards and forwards across the harbour would soon mount up. I’m really grateful to them for their support.”