British Para-Swimming team named for Manchester World Championships
A 28-strong British team has been selected for the Manchester 2023 Para Swimming World Championships, which take place from 31st July to 6th August this summer.
A roaring home crowd will await the British team in four months’ time, with the 11th edition of the Para Swimming World Championships set to take place in a newly refurbished Manchester Aquatics Centre – the latest chapter in the impressive legacy of global para-swimming competition hosted in the UK.
The team selected for the upcoming Championships features a vast amount of experience, with 15 of the athletes having taken to the competition pool in the last edition on British soil back at London 2019, and 10 swimmers who graced the top of the Worlds podium in Madeira last June.
Among those, Bethany Firth (S14) took home five gold medals, with Maisie Summers-Newton (S6) and Stephen Clegg (S12) claiming a hat-trick and brace of world titles respectively in 2022. That trio remain at the spearhead of the team and are joined by fellow world champions Ellie Challis (S3), Grace Harvey (S6) and Poppy Maskill (S14), for whom it truly will be a home Championships with the three based at the Performance Centre Manchester situated within this year’s competition venue.
Six debutants, meanwhile, have earned their opportunity following on from the trials event of the Para Swimming World Series meet in Sheffield. Faye Rogers (S10) and William Ellard (S14) both claimed Para Swimming World Series gold medals, with Rhys Darbey (S14) and Georgia Sheffield (S14) both additionally securing individual consideration times. Thomas Nevaro-Barber (S9) and Siena Oxby (S14) complete those earning their first senior British caps with their inclusion based on contributing to relay events and medal potential at future Paralympic Games.
Speaking on the selections, British Swimming Associate Performance Director Tim Jones said:
“It was fantastic to see competition thriving in Sheffield - with 35 nations in attendance at the Para Swimming World Series event, it provided a great opportunity for our athletes to test themselves against international counterparts and with the backdrop of this being our key selection event.
“Now the focus very much turns to ensuring this team can produce season's best performances when it matters most, on the World Championship stage in four months’ time. The British team selected boasts a hugely experienced cohort of Paralympic and world champions. Alongside that, it’s promising to see the development of a number of athletes who have moved it on in the right direction since their international debuts in Madeira, and we also welcome several new faces to the team as we build towards the future.
“Manchester 2023 is a brilliant chance to set the stage for ourselves one year out from Paris 2024, and we will be working closely with these swimmers and their home programmes to support them through the coming months and ensure they are in the position to bring their best to the fore in front of a home crowd this summer."
The British Para-Swimming team for the 2023 Para Swimming World Championships:
Jessica-Jane Applegate / Jordan Catchpole / Ellie Challis / Stephen Clegg / Rhys Darbey / Sam Downie / William Ellard / Louise Fiddes / Bethany Firth / Poppy Maskill / Rebecca Redfern / Faye Rogers / Toni Shaw / Georgia Sheffield / Maisie Summers-Newton / Brock Whiston / Grace Harvey / Suzanna Hext / Louis Lawlor / Scott Quin / Alice Tai / Cameron Vearncombe / Oliver Carter / Scarlett Humphrey / Tully Kearney / Thomas Nevaro-Barber / Matthew Redfern / Siena Oxby
