Gibbons arrives in France for European swimming championships

By Kieran Galvin Athlone's Brendan Gibbons was among the ten Irish swimmers who departed for France earlier this week to take part in the European Short Course Swimming Championships. Olympians Barry Murphy (Aer Lingus SC & NAC HPC) and Sycerika McMahon (Leander ASC) lead the Irish team for the championships which will be held in Chartres, France. McMahon and Murphy are joined by Shani Stallard (UCD SC) and European Junior swimmers Cian Duffy (Galway SC), Brendan Gibbons (Athlone SC), Brendan Hyland (Tallaght & NAC HPC), David O'Sullivan (Galway SC), Clodagh Flood (Tallaght & NAC HPC), Sarah Kelly (Coman's SC) and Jane Roberts (Kilkenny SC). Participating in these senior level championships should be a valuable learning experience for 17-year-old Gibbons. Swim Ireland National Performance Director Peter Banks will lead the coaching team. The event, which takes place in L'Odyssée, Chartres, will see 38 European Federations compete across four days of competition from November 22 to 25. McMahon - who won Silver in the 50m Breaststroke at the European Long Course Championships in May of this year - is set to compete in six events over the four days. The championships will be a star studded event with French Olympic Champions Yannic Agnel, Camille Muffat and Florent Manadou all set to compete. Commenting before the Irish team's departure, Banks said: "This is the first outing or our Olympians since the Games, giving them a chance to get back into international competition. The majority of the team is made up of our junior Swimmers; these championships will give them a chance to experience senior level competition for the first time and is an opportunity for them to see what they need to be working towards." The Championships will also act as an introduction for mixed relays for the first time in European Competition. Mixed Relay teams will consist of two male and two female swimmers, Irish swimmers have entered in all relay events. All ten of Ireland's swimmers will be in action on Day 1 of the Championships. Irish team 50m Free M - Barry Murphy 50m Breast W - Sycerika McMahon, Shani Stallard 200m IM M - Cian Duffy 100m Back W - Jane Roberts 100m Fly M - Brendan Hyland, David O'Sullivan 200m Fly W - Clodagh Flood, Sarah Kelly 100m Breast M - Barry Murphy 200m IM W - Sycerika McMahon, Shani Stallard 400m Free M - Brendan Gibbons 100m Free W - Jane Roberts 4x50m Medley M - Ireland 4x50m Free W - Ireland