Commonwealth Games: Aussies content to pick swimmers for Gold Coast who only reach B standard times
SWIMMING Australia has plumped for hometown domination over tough love after filling its athlete quota for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games despite most failing to meet the “A” standard.
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SWIMMING Australia has plumped for hometown domination over tough love after filling its athlete quota for the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games despite most of those selected failing to meet the “A” standard.
Just 12 swimmers in 15 events recorded “A” qualifiers during the meet to achieve automatic nomination, with selectors opting to take those that had notched “B” qualifying marks and finished inside the top three in their events.
Head coach Jacco Verhaeren said while a world top-eight time would remain a yardstick for the event, a full team was warranted at a home Games.
“We do have the “B” times and they definitely served their purpose,” Verhaeren said.
“We don’t want to leave medal potential and very good swimmers home because they didn’t make the “A” cut.
“That’s why we have that back door of the “B” cut and we even made the decision because it’s a home Games to reward the non-Olympic events, which is, I think, very important.
“We’re competing on home soil, we want a full team, and we want to compete in every event for medals.”
The team includes 49 able-bodied swimmers, 21 para athletes and 10 rookies.
Kaylee McKeown is the youngest member of the able-bodied squad, at 16, with Gold Coaster Elijah Winnington the youngest male at 17. West Australian backstroker Holly Barratt is the oldest at 30.
Twenty-one para-athletes were also named on Saturday night after qualifying before the meet for the most inclusive Games in history.
NSW pair Jasmine Greenwood (13) and Matt Levy (31) are the oldest and youngest para athletes.
Verhaeren said the team included the best people in each event, maximising Australia’s medal chances in five weeks’ time.
“We’re very pleased with the people that qualified, I think we’ve got almost without exception, the best people in their events,” Verhaeren said.
“I think that’s important because if you want to defend titles and make the most out of medals in five weeks’ time, you need your best people in their best events.
“Without a doubt, we have the best people in the best events (for the Gold Coast Games).
“We simply demand from ourselves that we execute our best performance at the major event.”
Originally published as Commonwealth Games: Aussies content to pick swimmers for Gold Coast who only reach B standard times