MARK Stowe has set his sights on making Worcester Swimming Club one of the best in the region after being appointed full-time coach.

The Sansome Walk-based club have taken the unusual step of employing the 41-year-old in a permanent role in a bid to raise their profile and nurture the swimming talent of the future.

The club is also getting more involved in the community by developing links with local schools and the University of Worcester.

Stowe has been a swimmer since he was eight-years-old, competing internationally while a student in Bath, and a coach for the last 18 years.

However, he has turned his back on a career as a manager with Lloyds TSB to devote himself to the sport he loves.

He said: "I am excited to be doing it and it's going to be a fantastic, exciting journey.

"My role is to coach all the swimmers in the club from those just starting out to our early performers.

"It's about giving swimmers opportunity to achieve their potential and that's important. It's not all about elite-level performers by any stretch of the imagination.

"I also want to try and move the club forward so that we are consistently one of the best in the West Midlands.

"The club has been very successful in the past but what we haven't been able to do is consistently achieve success at Midlands or national level.

"The only way to ever achieve that is to appoint a full-time coach to devote all his energies into the swimming club and not be distracted by a full-time job outside.

"Worcester is still a bit of a sleeping giant. The previous coaches, Malcolm Latta and Arran Stevens, did a great job but there's a lot more to come I think."

He added: "One thing I am very clear on is we need to restructure the pathways for the talented swimmers to progress through the club at the right speed.

"The other is that our best-performing swimmers need to be doing more training.

"If you want to compete at national level, eight to 10 hours a week is inadequate. You have to be doing 18 to 20, which is a hell of a commitment."

Chairman Neil Monkhouse believes Stowe's appointment is a positive move which will hold the club in good stead.

He said: "It's quite exciting for an amateur club. It's a big thing to do.

"I want Worcester to become a much more high-profile and more responsible club. We are trying to put a lot more into the community."