A YOUNG swimmer, formerly of St Matthew's Catholic Primary School in Allerton, has helped to raise just shy of £2000 for the earthquake victims of Turkey and Syria.

Six-year-old Lola Malcolm joined forces with a number of other swimming students in a bid to show support to those affected by the horrific events in those two countries.

On Monday the fundraiser took place at Pudsey Leisure Centre, the place where Lola attends swimming lessons, and her aim was to complete as many lengths as possible in one hour, with her target being 64 lengths (one mile).

However, she blew that target out of the water and achieved a remarkable 76 lengths.

Speaking on his daughter’s accomplishment, Nathan Malcolm said: “Lola attends swimming lessons at Pudsey Leisure Centre over in Leeds, and one of the younger lads from her class wanted to do a sponsored swim to help raise money for the earthquake victims in Syria and Turkey. So, some of the kids decided that they wanted to join in and swim as far as they could within an hour.

“So, they’ve all been raising money and setting up JustGiving pages to help raise funds and it has gone extremely well. So far, Lola has raised £1,945 and in total the kids have raised over £5,000 between them. All the parents went to watch and there was even a bake sale going on with hope of raising more money. It was a great watch.”

Malcolm added: “I’m extremely proud of Lola and the rest of the students for helping to raise that kind of money for such a great cause. It’s a difficult time for all the people who have been affected by the earthquake, so fundraisers like this will only help.”

In July 2022, Lola was offered a fantastic opportunity to take her career to the next level after impressing in the water throughout her younger years.

The talented swimmer was handed a place on the Ghyll Royd Sports Scholarship Programme (Ilkley) on the basis of merit and she now enjoys weekly swimming at Ilkley Pool with Ghyll Royd School.

Her mum Kristina Bell has been thoroughly impressed with how quickly her daughter has taken to the sport.

Speaking to the T&A last year, she said: "Lola has been in the pool since a couple of months old and she has always seemed one step ahead of the other students, but it's only in the last year we've really seen her come along and begin to excel.

"She absolutely loves being in the water and I know it's a bit of a cliche, but it really is her happy place.

"She's growing up now and she's becoming more aware of what she wants, especially after watching the Olympics. She now knows how far she can take this and she's already really determined to succeed and is now looking up to role models like Adam Peaty (Olympic swimmer).

"She's young so we can't put too much pressure on her, but I'll do my best to support with any of her career choices. I know she is determined to go to the Olympics now she has watched it and seen numerous videos on YouTube.

"I'm so proud of everything she is doing."

Currently too young, Lola has ambitions of performing at swimming galas and she will be allowed to come January 2024.