Six World Champions crowned, hundreds of athletes hosted and student success – another stellar year of sport at University of Bath

With the dawn of a new Olympic and Paralympic year upon us, University of Bath-based sportspeople will be looking to build on the outstanding global success they enjoyed during a memorable 2023. Six athletes were crowned as World Champions – Joe Choong (modern pentathlon); Matt Weston (skeleton); Tom Dean, James Guy and Suzanna Hext (swimming); and Piers Gilliver (wheelchair fencing) – while others secured historic podium placings and continental crowns. In total a stunning 74...

20 December 2023

Tributes paid to Dr Tom Hudson – the University of Bath’s first Director of Sport, Olympian, sporting scholarships pioneer and rugby coaching great

Dr Tom Hudson, who served as the University of Bath’s first Director of Sport from 1971 to 1992, sadly passed away on Tuesday (19th December). A passionate advocate of helping students achieve at the highest level of sport while continuing successfully with their academic studies, Tom’s trailblazing spell saw Bath become the first University in the UK to offer sporting scholarships. He also oversaw the opening of the original sports hall, now known as Founders...

20 December 2023

Five gold provides seasonal cheer for Bath students Joshua Gammon and Jemima Hall at Swim England Winter Short Course Champs

Joshua Gammon capped a fantastic 2023 by winning a hat-trick of gold medals and Jemima Hall bagged two titles as University of Bath swimmers excelled at the GoCardless Swim England National Winter Short Course Championships in Sheffield. There were further impressive performances by fellow University of Bath Performance Swimming squad members at the Dutch, Irish, Portuguese and Scottish championships too, with more than 50 per cent of swimmers recording personal bests at the culmination of...

17 December 2023

Golden finish to 2023 for World Champion Matt Weston as Bath-based British Skeleton athletes impress again on IBSF World Cup stage

World Champion Matt Weston recorded his first win of the 2023-24 IBSF Skeleton World Cup season on another strong day for University of Bath-based sliders in Innsbruck, Austria. Fellow Brit Tabby Stoecker also won her second medal in as many weeks as she followed up her gold from last Friday by claiming a brilliant bronze in the women's race on only her third World Cup appearance. Weston, who trains with the British Bobsleigh & Skeleton...

15 December 2023

VIDEO: Storming second half sees University of Bath stun old rivals Loughborough to finish BUCS Super Rugby 2023 action on a high

The University of Bath men’s 1st XV are going into the Christmas break on a high after rallying from 17-5 down to beat old rivals Loughborough 31-17 in a BUCS Super Rugby classic at the Team Bath Sports Training Village on Wednesday. Their last match of 2023 saw the Bath Building Society-sponsored hosts concede two early Jacob Cusick tries, both converted by Morgan Meredith, as they found quickly found themselves 14-0 down to the second-placed...

14 December 2023

Happy home debut as University of Bath sporting scholar Jayda Pechova helps Vitality Roses secure series win over South Africa

Team Bath Netball’s Jayda Pechova helped England secure a hard-earned Vitality Netball International Series victory over South Africa. It was a first Vitality Roses senior appearance on home soil for the 19-year-old defender, who came off the bench in all three matches as England eventually came out on top 2-1 overall. University of Bath Trendell Sporting Scholar Pechova’s home debut came in the closing stages of Wednesday’s 54-51 victory in front of a record crowd...

11 December 2023

Freya Anderson provides golden flourish as Bath-based swimmers help Britain make history at European Short Course Champs

A superb 200m freestyle gold for University of Bath-based Freya Anderson on the last night of competition ensured British Swimming finished top of the medal table at the 2023 European Short-Course Championships in Otopeni, Romania. It was a fifth medal of the week for British Swimming Performance Centre Bath star Anderson, who also anchored the mixed 4x50m freestyle relay quartet to victory in a British and Championship record time. Team-mate Jacob Peters notched his first...

10 December 2023

Tabby Stoecker wins glorious gold in only her second World Cup race as British Skeleton land medal of each colour in La Plagne

Tabby Stoecker won a stunning gold in only her second ISBF World Cup race as University of Bath-based British Skeleton athletes claimed a full set of medals in La Plagne, France on Friday. World Champion Matt Weston and fellow Olympian Marcus Wyatt also finished second and third respectively in the men’s race as the GB squad excelled at the second international event of the 2023-24 season. Reigning Junior European Champion Stoecker produced two consistent performances...

09 December 2023

Dimitri Coutya’s fantastic foil victory helps Bath-based wheelchair fencers end year with impressive medal haul at Thailand World Cup

The University of Bath-based British wheelchair fencing team won one gold, one silver and three bronze medals at the last World Cup of the year in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand – contested as part of the 2023 World Abilitysport Games. Dimitri Coutya got the week off to an outstanding start, his dominance in the Category B foil competition underlined by a 15-3 victory over France’s Maxime Valet in the final. He only conceded eight hits in...

08 December 2023

VIDEO: Comeback falls just short as University of Bath are edged out by Durham in BUCS Super Rugby top-four thriller

The University of Bath men’s 1st XV saw a spirited comeback fall just short as they slipped to a narrow 35-33 BUCS Super Rugby home defeat to Durham on Wednesday. A pulsating top-four contest at the Team Bath Sports Training Village saw the Bath Building Society-sponsored hosts twice lead in the first half through a brace of tries from Number 8 Ted Johnson, both converted by Iwan Price-Thomas. Durham replied in kind on both occasions...

07 December 2023