DESPITE a tightening up of qualifying times, the flow of aspirants into the Team 2000 quickly becoming a flood. During the Ulster championships in Belfast last week four more competitors. gained entry to the team.
The newcomers are Mark Craig (Ards), Karen Marshall (Ards), James Hand (Bangor) and Emma Robinson (Coleraine).
Craig, along with John Williamson of Waterford Crystal, has attained consideration times for the European Junior championships and their claims will be duly considered by the selectors this week.
A group, drawn from the Team 2000, have travelled to Hamburg for training that will include testing and stroke analysis. While there, they will sample some of the world's most modern facilities. The decision to embark on such preparation for the European championships is commendable and endorses the view that the IASA are intent on taking the necessary steps to ensure that Team 2000 members are properly groomed for competition at the highest level.
The younger members of the squad are of course, focused on the Junior European championships in Glasgow in July. Andrew Reid made a handsome contribution to the many records set at the Ulster championships at the Grove last week.
The strong Larne competitor set an Irish senior record (also an all-comers' record) with a time of 25.13 seconds for the 50 metres butterfly.
Leinster has a particularly promising young competitor in Conor Morris who made his mark in the recent schools' international in Wales. He is currently the number one under-14 at 100, 200 and 400 metres freestyle. His versatility extends to the 200 and 400 metres IM, the 100 breast-stroke and 100 metres butterfly. He is coached by his father the former Irish international, Tony Morris.
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