A YOUNG swimmer from Cornwall could be representing her country at the delayed Tokyo Olympics in July after qualifying for the British Championships and Olympic Trials, set to take place this Easter.

Ruby Griffiths, from Looe, is just 14 years old – her qualifying times for the 200m Butterfly and 400m Freestyle were recorded all the way back in March 2020.

With a determination to succeed that has been present since she began swimming seriously aged six, this young woman is on course to get to the pinnacle of her sport.

The Cornish Times spoke to Ruby and her dad Simon two days after they received the news.

“I was surprised – and then I was really happy,” said Ruby, whose swimming career began with Caradon Swimming Club.

“Her coach at the time was Keith Haynes and she improved with him a great deal and really enjoyed her swimming,” said Simon.

“She comes from a swimming family – three of her four siblings are swimmers, and her eldest sister Mollie was a county champion.”

At the age of 10, Ruby became Cornwall champion in her age group, and at 11, seeing her potential, her family decided to send her to the Plymouth Leander club, which could offer a wider range of training times and where numerous world champions have come up through the ranks. She became Plymouth Leander’s junior captain and was awarded Junior Swimmer of the Year, as well as being part of the winning team at the National Junior Arena championships in 2018.

Taking up a scholarship at Plymouth College, Ruby swam under the guidance of coaches Jason Criterio and then Richard Beard, who encouraged her to concentrate on her strength: middle distance.

Swimming in four events in the 2019 English championships, Ruby finished fourth in the 800m Freestyle and qualified for the British Championships in her favourite event, the 200m Butterfly.

She could have gone away to various European meets with Plymouth Leander, but they weren’t keen to take her because of her young age.

In September 2020, Ruby took up a scholarship and bursary offer at Mount Kelly College, enabling her to train, study and live all under one roof.

The youngster boards in Tavistock from Mondays to Saturdays, coming home to Looe for a day’s down time and relaxing with her family at the weekend, when all she likes to do best is walk the dogs and chill out in her pyjamas.

Mount Kelly’s generous scholarship offer came on the strength of Ruby’s excellent times through 2019 and 2020 – they realised she was one to watch, says Simon.

The move has been great for Ruby, who is thriving alongside young people of her own age with the same focus on their sport.

She says that boarding alongside four other girls who swim is great; and while there’s a certain amount of competition, they are supportive of each other.

And her dad admits he doesn’t miss the 20-30 hours of taxi duty a week that he had been doing to ferry Ruby between school, home and training!

“Since she has been at Mount Kelly her improvement has been outstanding.

“She loves the school and her coach, Neil Edwards, who has been working finely on her stroke technique, which has really helped her times.

“She’s also been assigned to the Swim England national talent development squad.

“They’ve identified Ruby as a future champion and she is having workshops and coaching weekends which are all South West based.”

Ruby is currently Swim England’s SW regional top swimmer on the basis of the 2019 competition, which saw her take five golds – in the 200, 400, and 800m Freestyle events, the 200m Butterfly and the 400m Individual Medley.

Competition was put almost completely on hold during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

But her long-course times at a Plymouth Leander competition in March of last year – two minutes 24 for the 200m Fly and four minutes 28 for the 400m Free – were what enabled her to qualify for the Olympic trials. Since then, Ruby has produced some even better short-course times.

Training during the lockdowns has been cancelled for all but the very top elite of the country’s swimmers, and like all her peers, Ruby can’t wait to get back in the water.

The young people who have been selected for Olympic trials are in a strange position: having qualified on the basis of times logged a year ago, they may now find that the first time they can enter the water after a long period away is at the trials themselves, which are set to go ahead on April 11-18.

Dad Simon hopes that students will be able to return to school before then – meaning that Ruby will once again be able to train in the pool with her year group bubble.

“The only time I’m happy is when I’m in the pool so it’s strange not to be in the water at all,” said Ruby.

“I’ve been doing quite a lot of exercise out of the pool which I wouldn’t normally do.

“My brother Zak is a personal trainer and has his own programmes which people can do on social media – so I follow them, as well as doing the training set by Mount Kelly, and going for runs with my mum.”

One contest that did take place during 2020 was Swim England’s Level X competition – a virtual event run nationally.

Ruby had no fewer than eight top-three finishes in Britain for her age group, and one top-three finish in the Open age group with the 200m Fly.

Over the last two or three years she’s been regularly ranked number one in the country for various middle-distance events. She’s been swimming with peers in her own age group, but her times, which are exceptional for someone of her age, have propelled her into the Olympic trials which are in the Open age category.

Ruby’s dad describes her as having the “strength of an ox” and the competitor who can keep going right through to the end of a race when her fellow competitors are flagging. This, together with her focus, makes for a pretty unstoppable combination.

“In a normal week when she can get in the water, Ruby trains for about 16 hours a week in the pool as well as several hours in the gym. She’s up at 5am to swim, and there again after school before getting out to do her homework. She’s renowned for her dedication!”

The Olympic Trials will be held during the British Championships at the London Aquatic Centre – the venue of the 2012 Olympics.

The event may well have to take place behind closed doors. So far, only four places on Team GB have been secured, with the rest up for grabs.

As Mount Kelly, Plymouth Leander (with Plymouth College), and Millfield in Somerset are the country’s only centres offering dedicated education and swimming coaching, these venues attract upcoming swimmers from all over the UK, meaning that the South West has become a hub for young talent, Simon explains.

Mount Kelly has 50 students who’ve qualified for the Olympic trials this year – but Ruby is the youngest, and among just a handful of children of her age to qualify.

With time very much on her side, she can enjoy the experience and not put too much pressure on herself, says her dad – although of course, she wants to go through.

“We’re very proud of her – she’s been wanting this for seven years. She’s going to rub shoulders with world-class swimmers,” said Simon.

“Swimming is Ruby’s life. It’s swimming, school, swimming, sleep. But it’s what she wants, and we don’t put any pressure on her at all.

“Ruby finds that when she’s in the pool all her pressures go away, and she finds it therapeutic. And she deeply wants to succeed.”