Top class swimming action returns to Galway this weekend when Leisureland hosts the National Short Course Swimming Championships 2010.
The competition takes place over four days, starting today, and features some of the country’s fastest swimmers.
Some of Ireland’s elite and high-performance swimmers will be in action, including Beijing Olympian Aisling Cooney, who competes next week in the European Short Course Championships. She will compete in a number of events, ncluding her specialty, the 100m backstroke.
Karl Burdis and Niamh O’Sullivan, who swam in the World Championships alongside Aisling Cooney, will also be looking for impressive times.
Castlebar swimmer Nicholas Quinn, who competed at the European Youth Olympics, and Bethany Carson, who returned recently from the Commonwealth Games, are among the elite swimmers. Shani Stallard and Carson also swam in this year’s Junior Europeans.
A large entry also is expected from all clubs from the four provinces of Ireland.
The programme of events commences today at 3.30pm with the 50m events in back and breaststroke followed by the long distance events of 800m and 1500m freestyle for women and men. Those finals are scheduled for 5.30pm.
For the following three days the morning session commences at 10am, with each day’s finals and semi finals commencing at 4.30pm.
Admission to the pool in Leisureland is free, and spectators can access the warm-ups prior to each session from 8.30am each morning and at 3.30pm each evening, except Thursday evening when the warm up commences at 2pm.
