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Introduction and background to the Swim School
16-11-2015: We are delighted, honoured and very
excited to announce you that our swim school which is based in Croydon
has won the ASA Aquatics Award for the Swim School of the Year 2015.
AMES UK Sport Club has come first in the UK out of the thousands swim schools around the country.
Read more.
Vicky Panagiotidou – Owner of AMES UK Swim School
An Introduction to AMES UK Swim School
Vicky has a BSc in Psychology, an MSc in Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology and is currently discussing with a London University the possibility of embarking on a doctorate centered on “Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology for Children with Special Needs”.
Vicky was an Olympic Torchbearer for the London 2012 Olympics. She took part in the Torch Relay on Monday the 21st of May in Minehead, Somerset. She was selected by the Olympic Committee for her outstanding teaching skills and methods, and her commitment to the sport of swimming. Vicky teaches, helps, supports and mentors special needs children and mainstream children in relation to the sport of swimming. (more photos from the Olympic Torch Relay 2012 are in our gallery pages)
Also in the sport of swimming Vicky has competed at International level for Greece. At the height of her swimming career she was the Greek National 200m Breaststroke Champion for 3 years running – narrowly missing the Atlanta Olympics in 1996 because she missed the start of the selection procedure having by then taken up residence in the UK to start her first degree. At that time Vicky was the No 1 Breaststroker in her event for the country but because of procedural oversights, Greece finished up taking their No 3 ranked swimmer to the Olympics.
Vicky has lived, studied and worked in the UK since 1995 and has Dual Nationality (Greek and British).
All AMES Swim School classes are taught using the framework laid down by the Amateur Swimming Association’s (ASA’s) National Plan for Teaching Swimming (NPTS). This scheme delivers a structured approach with progression through 10 distinct stages. (see ASA NPTS Stages for more details).
Swim School classes at AMES UK are grouped solely by the ability of the swimmer and not their age.
All our classes will be taught by an ASA qualified Teachers.
Each swimmer will be assessed and integrated into the classes at the appropriate level for his/her ability.
To motivate our swimmers the school endorses the inexpensive ASA Award
scheme that runs along side the NPTS scheme. This provides incentive and
recognition of achievement for the swimmer as they progress through the
various levels.
“Mission
statement: The mission of AMES UK Swim School is to provide all
swimmers, children and adults, with a memorable, high standard and
positive swimming experience. Our caring, well-trained and experienced
staff will work on positive reinforcement, support and technical
practice in order to built confidence in the mental and physical well
being of the swimmers. ”
Vicky Panagiotidou
Vicky believes in giving everybody the opportunity to achieve their maximum potential. To achieve this it is vitally important that the parents/guardians of the child are involved with the development of their child’s swimming abilities. To this end you may be given certain exercises to do with your child in between Swim School lessons.
Vicky has been teaching and coaching swimming in the UK since 1995. As a swimming coach Vicky worked for Croydon Amphibians SC (coaching their second highest squad) and was the Head Coach for the Greek arm of AMES in 2004. While she was in Athens in 2004, she trained 12 children to a high enough standard to compete in the Greek National Swimming Championships. Vicky has also worked as Head Coach for Orpington Ojays SC and more recently at Salisbury Stingrays SC as Head Coach for their Perfomance Squad’.
Swimming is Vicky’s life. She lives for the sport and thrives on imparting her skill and knowledge onto others. If Vicky is not in or around a swimming pool she is not living.
