British Swimming criticised over Youth Games absence 03/06/2010 |
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The British Olympic Association (BOA) says it is “disappointed” that British Swimming will not send a single swimmer to the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore this summer.
The event is the brainchild of International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge and will see young athletes between the ages of 14 and 18 competing in all 26 Olympic sports.
But the Daily Telegraph reports that British swimmers will not be among the expected 3,500 athletes taking part following a decision by senior British coaches to concentrate on other events in the pool this summer.
The news is a blow to the BOA, who had hoped to field a full-strength British team to show its support for the IOC ahead of the 2012 Olympics in London.
Andy Hunt, the BOA chief executive, said: "While we understand that occasionally the circumstances or timing of an Olympic event may prove difficult for a sport to fulfil, it is of course disappointing for Team GB if athletes from a particular sport are not able to participate."
A British Swimming spokesman blamed the decision on the packed international calendar, with the European Championships in Budapest in August and the Commonwealth Games in Delhi in October.
"We have to look at our resources both in terms of coaches and athletes," added the spokesman.
"It's an extremely crowded calendar and our priorities for 2010 are the European Juniors and European Seniors, both in the pool and open water, as well as the World Open Water Championships and the Commonwealth Games towards the end of the year."
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