A group of 44 athletes has been selected to join the British Para-Swimming Podium and Podium Potential Programme as the sport enters the final stretch for Rio.
The sport has been working through a robust performance review programme with athletes and coaches to decide who will receive direct support from UK Sport through the World Class Performance Programme.
At the IPC Swimming World Championships in Glasgow this summer the sport won a total of 32 medals with 10 golds and achieved a personal best rate of 50%.
Athletes have now returned to training for their final season ahead of the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and are working hard to make sure that they achieve qualification.
National Performance Director Chris Furber explained: “This season is the big one for all of us and we have carefully considered our podium athletes for the Paralympic year. The athletes selected to the podium programme have all demonstrated they have the ability to be able to return medals in Rio and have made positive steps to support the vision of the programme of being best performing at the Paralympic Games.
“The funding criteria that we put in place is based on whether the athlete has demonstrated that they on the right trajectory to reach what we’ve predicted the medal times to be in Rio.
“This year we saw that, as expected, the world of Para-Swimming is moving forwards rapidly. We need to make sure that we are ready for what could be the toughest Paralympics Games ever and in order to be at our top end of funding the athletes need to demonstrate that they are improving to keep up with the rest of the world.
“Now, we are in the process of meeting all the athletes and coaches to ensure they have identified correct process goals and have a strong performance plan in place to be at their best for the Games next year.”
Performance Pathway Manager Craig Nicholson added: “This last year has seen significant improvements in world leading times across classifications. This is something that the selection panel has had to carefully consider during the podium potential selection process to ensure that the athletes being identified have true medal potential in 2016 or 2020.
“I believe the 22 athletes that have been selected for the 2016 season are a strong focussed group and show the potential to reach the podium in 2016 or 2020. As a programme, we are looking forward to working with the athletes and their coaches during this season.”
The Podium athletes are:
Male
Athlete Home Programme/Club Coach
Josef Craig City of Sunderland Danny Thompson
James Crisp City of Sheffield Russ Barber
Jonathan Fox National Performance Centre/City of Manchester AST Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Tom Hamer National Performance Centre/City of Manchester AST Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Oliver Hynd Nova Centurion Glenn Smith
Michael Jones National Performance Centre/Loughborough University Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Sascha Kindred Leominster Emma Patrick
Andrew Mullen National Performance Centre/Ren 96 Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Scott Quin Warrender Baths Kris Gilchrist
Matt Wylie City of Sunderland Danny Thompson
Female
Athlete Home Programme/Club Coach
Jessica-Jane Applegate UEA Norwich Alex Pinniger
Claire Cashmore National Performance Centre/Wyre Forest SC Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Bethany Firth Ards SC Nelson Lindsay
Tully Kearney National Performance Centre/Boldmere SC Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Charlotte Henshaw Nova Centurion Glenn Smith
Harriet Lee National Performance Centre/Northumbria University Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Stephanie Millward Aqua Sulis SC John Dougall
Susie Rodgers Beckenham Tony Beckley
Hannah Russell National Performance Centre/Guildford City Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Eleanor Simmonds National Performance Centre/Boldmere SC Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Stephanie Slater National Performance Centre/Preston SC Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
Alice Tai National Performance Centre/Bournemouth Collegiate School Rob Greenwood/Graeme Smith
The Podium Potential Athletes are:
Male
Athlete Home Programme/Club Coach
Jonathan Booth Borough of Kirklees Mark Lappin
Ben Foulston Nova Glenn Smith
Kahoru Harazawa TBC TBC
William Hardy Gateshead and Whickham Ken Nesworthy
Craig Harris Swindon Dolphins Louise Oliver
Ryan Nicholls Enfield Callum Maher-Doyle
Jaxon Simmons City of Peterborough Ben Negus
Jamie Warriner Preston Samir Ahmed
Lewis White City of Derby Melanie Marshall
Female
Athlete Home Programme/Club Coach
Chloe Davies Swansea Aquatics Billy Pye
Erraid Davies Delting Dolphins Lorraine Gifford
Coral Farrell Warrington Warriors Darren Ashley
Danielle Hartin Basildon Phoenix Matt Dibble
Grace Harvey Hoddesdon Janet Warrington
Beth Johnston B.E.S.T Lauren Jocelyn
Lily MacLeod Richmond Dales Paul Remmonds
Adele Maguire Warrington Warriors Darren Ashley
Jay McCabe Derwentside Chris Dove
Zara Mullooly Woking Vince Ayling/Louise Hargrave
Megan Richter Orion Carl Flynn
Eleanor Robinson Northampton Andy Sharp
Maisie Summers-Newton Northampton Andy Sharp