British Swimming Sending 24 to European Juniors; Led By Matthew Johnson

This year’s British squad for the European Junior Championships, to be held from July 10th-14th in Poland, is a solid mix of newcomers to international swimming, as well as the return of some veterans to lead them to continental battle. The team was selected based on results of the British Gas International Meet (BGIM) a week ago in Leeds

Matthew Johnson brings the starpower on this team. At last year’s meet, he won gold in the 400 IM in 4:17.26, another in the 200 fly with a 1:58.50, and a silver in the 400 free in 3:51.04. He is a huge part of the team’s plans headed toward the 2016 Olympics when the Brits will have to reload to deal with a big wave of retirements.

James Guy from Millfield finished one spot behind him in the 400 freestyle last year; the 17-year old since then has made big strides, especially in his speed. While he’s knocked about a second-and-a-half off of his best 400 time, at the BGIM he got his 200 free down to a 1:48.2, which if repeated will make him a contender for a relay spot in Barcelona. Millfield is the same club that has produced stars like James Disney-May (at Auburn), Neal Harper (head coach at Florida State and two-time Olympian), and the great Mark Foster.

The leads on the women’s team include 15-year old Harriet Cooper from Leicester. She’s a sprint freestyler and backstroker who was a 56.5 in the 100 free and 1:02.4 in the 100 back last week to qualify for this meet.

The British Gas GBR Swimming Team is:
Harry Ackland            Plymouth Leander
Alex Dunk                   Prescot
James Guy                Millfield
Caleb Hughes          Hatfield
Matthew Johnson    City of Sheffield
Joel Knight                Millfield
Max Litchfield            Doncaster DARTES
Jack Smith                Plymouth Leander
Mark Szaranek          Carnegie
Nathan Theodoris    British Gas Swansea ITC
    
Shauntelle Austin    Blackpool Aquatics
Megan Briggs           Warrender Baths
Harriet Cooper         City of Leicester
Kathleen Dawson   Warrington Warriors
Emma Day               Guildford City
Alice Dearing           Royal Wolverhampton School
Lucy Hope                Borders Elite Swim Team (BEST)
Ellena Jones           Swim Swansea
Amber Keegan        NOVA Centurion
Katie Latham          Thanet Swim
Lucy McKenzie        Cockermouth
Erin Nabney             Ealing
Rosie Rudin            NOVA Centurion
Linda Shaw              City of Leeds

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About Braden Keith

Braden Keith

Braden Keith is the Editor-in-Chief and a co-founder/co-owner of SwimSwam.com. He first got his feet wet by building The Swimmers' Circle beginning in January 2010, and now comes to SwimSwam to use that experience and help build a new leader in the sport of swimming. Aside from his life on the InterWet, …

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