York City Baths Club swimmer Andrew Burns has marked himself as one to watch after being crowned three times National Age Group Champion.

The 11-year-old obliterated the field in the 200m breaststroke, 400m individual medley and had daylight over the second-placed swimmer in the 200m butterfly at the Ponds Forge championships where he also snared two silvers and a bronze.

To top the clutch of medals, Burns was also named the third best overall boy in the age group.

Both freestyle events ended at the heat stages but he ploughed into the remaining six finals with ease.

He went faster in all but one final than his earlier times, with his eight-second 400m IM victory coming after knocking the best part of 11 seconds off the heat time that had left him third on paper going into the final. He also raised his game in the 100m breaststroke to lop three seconds off his heat time to gain two places and take silver.

A five-second improvement from heat to final sealed the 200m fly victory. And in the 200m breaststroke he still managed to win by close-on six seconds despite going slower in the final.

The only reverse came in the 200m IM where his top qualifying time of 2-37.72 was undercut and he had to settle for silver despite shaving two seconds off his heat time.

Burns was the only medallist for York at the games, although 12-year-old Sophie Glasby made the final of the 100m backstroke and finished tenth. Anna Atkinson-Smith just missed the 200m breastsroke final, finishing 13th in the heats, and James Wilby found himself an agonising 12th and 13th. Andrew's brother, Chris, was 22nd in the 100m breaststroke.

National Age Group Swimming Championships

Andrew Burns (11): 100m freestyle - heat 14th 1min 06.09secs; 200m individual medley - heat 1st 2-37.72, final 1st 2-35.60; 100m butterfly - heat 4th 1-13.04, final 3rd 1-10.94; 200m breaststroke - heat 1st 2-53.64, final 1st 2-54.99; 200m butterfly - heat 1st 2-37.44, final 1st 2-32.01; 100m breaststroke - heat 4th 1-25.08, final 2nd 1-22.07; 400m IM - heat 3rd 5-32.23, final 1st 5-21.49; 200m freestyle - heat 17th 2-23.98.

James Wilby (11): 200m breaststroke - heat 13th 3mins 06.42secs; 100m breaststroke - heat 12th 1-28.61.

Anna Atkinson-Smith (11): 200m breaststroke - heat 13th 3mins 03-08secs; 400m IM - heat 45th 6-02.17.

Sophie Glasby (12): 200m backstroke - heat 17th 2mins 36.06secs; 100m backstroke - heat 10th 1-12.47, final 10th 1-13.26; 800m freestyle - heat 36th 10-12.52.

Chris Burns (14): 100m breaststroke - heat 22nd 1min

13.95secs.

Updated: 10:54 Wednesday, August 10, 2005