Caitlin McClatchey
Encyclopedia
Caitlin McClatchey is a Scottish
swimmer. To date her greatest sporting achievement was winning two gold medals at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
.
Between 2007–2009 she held several individual British records, including the 100m, 200m and 400m Freestyle. She is a part of the teams that hold the current 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays British records
At club level Caitlin represents Northampton
Swimming Club in England
, and is currently studying politics at Loughborough University
.
, Northamptonshire
, and hence eligible for the England
team, Caitlin chose to follow in the footsteps of her parents, John and Louise, who swam for the Scottish team at the 1970 and 1974 Commonwealth Games respectively. Her uncle Alan McClatchey was an Olympic bronze medallist in 1976
.
in the 2004 Olympic Games in the British team that placed fifth; and won a bronze medal in the 400 m freestyle in the 2005 World Championships
.
Competing in the 2006 Commonwealth games, McClatchey made national headlines by winning two gold medals. McClatchey won her first Commonwealth gold in the 200 m freestyle, beating Australia
n favourite Libby Lenton
. In the 400 m freestyle she narrowly shaded a 3-way sprint for the line, winning in a time of 4:07.69.
McClatchey competed in the 2007 World Championships
, but did not win a medal, placing 7th in the final of the 200 m freestyle and failing to reach the final in the 400 m freestyle. She swam in the British team that came 5th in the 4×200 m freestyle final, setting a new British record. McClatchey was disappointed in her results and said that she needed to revise her training schedule to build up muscle.
Selected for the 2008 Olympic Games she finished sixth in the 200m freestyle
being the only Briton to reach the final.
She was also selected for the 4x200m freestyle relay team that was widely tipped for a chance of winning a medal, but a gamble to rest top swimmers; including McClatchey in the heats backfired and the team failed to qualify. This was particularly diappointed as McClatchey had already pulled out of the 100m freestyle individual event to concentrate on this.
McClatchey competed for Scotland in the 2010 Commonwealth Games
in Delhi, reaching the semi-finals of the 100 metre freestyle
, finishing fifth in the 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
, fifth in the 4 x 100 metre freestyle relay
, and fifth in the 4 x 100 metre medley relay
.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
swimmer. To date her greatest sporting achievement was winning two gold medals at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
2006 Commonwealth Games
The 2006 Commonwealth Games were held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia between 15 March and 26 March 2006. It was the largest sporting event to be staged in Melbourne, eclipsing the 1956 Summer Olympics in terms of the number of teams competing, athletes competing, and events being held.The site...
.
Between 2007–2009 she held several individual British records, including the 100m, 200m and 400m Freestyle. She is a part of the teams that hold the current 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays British records
At club level Caitlin represents Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
Swimming Club in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and is currently studying politics at Loughborough University
Loughborough University
Loughborough University is a research based campus university located in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, in the East Midlands of England...
.
Selection of Nationality
Although raised in BrixworthBrixworth
Brixworth is a village and civil parish in the Daventry district of Northamptonshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a parish population of 5,162. The village is particularly notable for All Saints' Church, Brixworth, its historic Anglo-Saxon church....
, Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, and hence eligible for the England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
team, Caitlin chose to follow in the footsteps of her parents, John and Louise, who swam for the Scottish team at the 1970 and 1974 Commonwealth Games respectively. Her uncle Alan McClatchey was an Olympic bronze medallist in 1976
1976 Summer Olympics
The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event celebrated in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in 1976. Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12, 1970, at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam, over the bids of Moscow and...
.
Main Achievements
McClatchey competed in several international meets before the Commonwealth games: she swam in the 4×200 m freestyle relaySwimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics - Women's 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
The women's 4×200 metre freestyle relay was a swimming event held as part of the Swimming at the 2004 Summer Olympics programme. The competition was held on August 18, 2004.74 swimmers from 16 nations competed.-Medalists:...
in the 2004 Olympic Games in the British team that placed fifth; and won a bronze medal in the 400 m freestyle in the 2005 World Championships
2005 World Aquatics Championships
The 2005 World Aquatics Championships or the XI FINA World Championships were held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada from July 16 to July 31, 2005...
.
Competing in the 2006 Commonwealth games, McClatchey made national headlines by winning two gold medals. McClatchey won her first Commonwealth gold in the 200 m freestyle, beating Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n favourite Libby Lenton
Libby Lenton
Lisbeth "Libby" Constance Trickett OAM is a world record holding and Olympic gold medalist swimmer from Australia. She was a gold medallist at both the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2008 Summer Olympics. She is the world record holder in the short-course 100 metres freestyle...
. In the 400 m freestyle she narrowly shaded a 3-way sprint for the line, winning in a time of 4:07.69.
McClatchey competed in the 2007 World Championships
2007 World Aquatics Championships
The 2007 World Aquatics Championships or the XII FINA World Championships were held in Melbourne, Australia from 17 March to 1 April 2007...
, but did not win a medal, placing 7th in the final of the 200 m freestyle and failing to reach the final in the 400 m freestyle. She swam in the British team that came 5th in the 4×200 m freestyle final, setting a new British record. McClatchey was disappointed in her results and said that she needed to revise her training schedule to build up muscle.
Selected for the 2008 Olympic Games she finished sixth in the 200m freestyle
Swimming at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Women's 200 metre freestyle
The following new world and Olympic records were set during this competition.-Heats:-Semifinal 1:-Semifinal 2:-Final:-References:...
being the only Briton to reach the final.
She was also selected for the 4x200m freestyle relay team that was widely tipped for a chance of winning a medal, but a gamble to rest top swimmers; including McClatchey in the heats backfired and the team failed to qualify. This was particularly diappointed as McClatchey had already pulled out of the 100m freestyle individual event to concentrate on this.
McClatchey competed for Scotland in the 2010 Commonwealth Games
2010 Commonwealth Games
The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games, were held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 2010. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events, making it the largest Commonwealth Games till date...
in Delhi, reaching the semi-finals of the 100 metre freestyle
Swimming at the 2010 Commonwealth Games – Women's 100 metre freestyle
The Women's 100 metre freestyle event at the 2010 Commonwealth Games took place on October 5 and 6, 2010, at the SPM Swimming Pool Complex.Six heats were held, with most containing the maximum number of swimmers...
, finishing fifth in the 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
Swimming at the 2010 Commonwealth Games – Women's 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay
The Women's 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay event at the 2010 Commonwealth Games took place on October 6, 2010, at the SPM Swimming Pool Complex.There were just eight teams, so all teams made the final and only one race was swum.-Final:...
, fifth in the 4 x 100 metre freestyle relay
Swimming at the 2010 Commonwealth Games – Women's 4 x 100 metre freestyle relay
The Women's 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay event at the 2010 Commonwealth Games took place on October 8, 2010, at the SPM Swimming Pool Complex.A final was held only, containing eight countries. -Final:-References:...
, and fifth in the 4 x 100 metre medley relay
Swimming at the 2010 Commonwealth Games – Women's 4 x 100 metre medley relay
The Women's 4 × 100 metre medley relay event at the 2010 Commonwealth Games took place on October 9, 2010, at the SPM Swimming Pool Complex.There were just eight teams, so all teams made the final and only one race was swum.-Final:-References:...
.
Personal bests
- 100 m freestyle: 54.31
- 200 m freestyle: 1.56.62
- 400 m freestyle: 4.07.02