Robbie set for Rome as Ireland squad named
Swim Ireland has named their teams for five summer 2022 international swim meets - with Athlone's Robbie Powell selected for the LEN European Championships in Rome.
The European Championships will begin on August 11 and Powell is part of a team of 18 athletes who will race over seven days in what is one of the world’s most inspiring arenas, the Sette Colli Stadium.
Powell swims with the National Centre in Dublin where he is coached by Steven Beckerleg.
Tokyo Olympic finalist Mona McSharry (the talented Sligo swimmer has links to the local area) will spearhead the team. More recently, McSharry was a medallist at the FINA World Championships in the 25m pool in Abu Dhabi at the end of 2021.
Another Irish medallist at the Abu Dhabi World Championships, Ellen Walshe, will also turn her attentions to the 50m pool and look to further her impressive rise in the sport since relocating to the USA last September.
Eight of the nine Irish Olympians from Tokyo 2021 will race in Rome, with Steven Beckerleg taking on the role of head coach for the male athletes within the team, whilst John Szaranek will undertake the equivalent head coach role for the female athletes. National Performance Director Jon Rudd will be Ireland’s team leader for the championships.
Two more teams are to be announced in the weeks ahead as all now prepare to navigate a busy summer of swimming and diving, with some additional events taking place this summer due to Covid-enforced postponements from 2021.
The aspiring stars of the future will focus on the LEN European Junior Championships in Otopeni, Romania, with seven athletes making the cut for this competition.
The 2022 FINA World Junior Championships in August were recently moved from Kazan, Russia to Lima, Peru, with a revised competition date that subsequently spanned into September. The three athletes that met Swim Ireland’s original Selection Policy for this competition (Molly Mayne, Liam Custer, and Grace Hodgins) will instead be provided with senior international caps on this occasion, adding youth and vigour to the team in Rome.
The reformatting of the FINA World Championships (50m) from May to June resulted in the majority of pre-selected athletes opting not to attend the competition, but Ireland will be represented by Olympian Daniel Wiffen and sprint-specialist Calum Bain in Budapest.
For the first time in a long time, international open water swimming is back on the table for Ireland with two athletes competing at the LEN European Junior Open Water Championships in Setubal, Portugal.
2022 LEN European Championships (50m, Rome, Italy): Victoria Catterson, National Centre (Ulster); Eoin Corby, National Centre (Limerick), Ireland; Niamh Coyne, National Centre (Dublin); Liam Custer, Sarasota Sharks SC, USA; Conor Ferguson, National Centre (Ulster); Darragh Greene, National Centre (Dublin); Danielle Hill, Larne SC; Grace Hodgins, Trojan SC; Brendan Hyland, Nunawading SC, Australia; Molly Mayne, Hamilton Aquatics SC, UAE; Max McCusker, Arizona State University, USA; Finn McGeever, National Centre (Limerick); Jack McMillan, University of Stirling, Scotland; Mona McSharry, University of Tennessee, USA; Robert Powell, National Centre (Dublin); Shane Ryan, National Centre (Dublin); Jordan Sloan, National Centre (Ulster); Ellen Walshe, University of Tennessee, USA.
2022 FINA World Championships (50m, Budapest, Hungary): Calum Bain, University of Stirling, Scotland; Daniel Wiffen, Loughborough University, England.
2022 LEN European Junior Championships (Otopeni, Romania): Evan Bailey, New Ross SC; Liam Custer, Sarasota Sharks SC, USA; Grace Davison Ards SC; Grace Hodgins, Trojan SC; Thomas Leggett, Larne SC; Molly Mayne, Hamilton Aquatics SC, UAE; Ellie McCartney, National Centre (Ulster).
2022 LEN European Junior Open Water Championship (Setubal, Portugal): Hazel Bentley, Asgard SC & Wicklow SC; Sean Donnellan, Glenalbyn SC.
Open Water Swimming – 2022 LEN Open Water Cup: Hazel Bentley, Asgard SC & Wicklow SC, Ireland.