Helena Romanes School pupils were celebrating after winning the district gala for the first time at Bishop Stortford College.

The Dunmow school took a team of swimmers ranging from year seven to 10 and all performed brilliantly to come out on top of the overall standings.

They got off to a great start winning the first nine races across all year groups and continued to dominate.

The girls’ competition had been won by Herts & Essex every year since it began in 2005 but Helena Romanes led from start to finish to claim a comfortable victory.

The boys’ competition was much closer, with HRS ending up in third place after suffering a couple of disqualifications in the relay events.

But the overall title went to HRS for the first time, ending Saffron Walden County High’s three-year reign as champions after Bishop Stortford College had won for five successive years prior to that.

Liz Evans-Barlow said: “The students were great, in and out of the pool, and staff from other schools congratulated the teachers from HRS, not only on the students’ performance but also the way they conducted themselves throughout the day.

“They were a true credit to the school and their parents. The students are nearly all club swimmers who race for a mixture of Dunmow Atlantis and Braintree & Bocking Swimming Club.

“The win is reward for the hours of dedication they put into training. We will be looking forward to continued success in future swimming competitions as the gala was for students up to year 11 and our oldest were year 10.

“This year’s success was even more impressive and we will not be losing any members of the team when looking forward to near year’s competition.”

Captains Maddie Lees and Jack Richardson offered a joint statement which said: “We are really pleased with how the gala went. It was great fun and it’s always n ice to be rewarded for all the hard work and effort that the whole team put into their swimming.

“Swimming is a massive commitment and it is great when you get success and recognition for it.”