Every year swimmers throughout Ireland spend ten months training and competing at club and regional level with the goal of qualifying for the National Division One and Division Two Finals. Enniskillen Lakelanders Swimming Club are proud that in recent years a growing amount of Fermanagh swimmers have seen their efforts in training pay off with qualification to compete against the best in the country.

This year the club has an unprecedented 17 swimmers qualified at the elite level which begins this Thursday, July 11, in Limerick with the National Division Two Finals.

The event run to Fina Olympic standard takes place across four days and six young Lakelanders will be making the long journey with high hopes and high confidence from many months of hard training and competing.

Niamh O’Kane, 16, is the oldest Lakelander competing this weekend and a swimmer who regularly qualifies at national level. Niamh will compete in the 50m and 100 Butterfly, 100 Freestyle and the 200m Individual Medley.

Cora Cassidy, 13, had a brief taste of the Division Two finals in 2018 when she joined the relay team and having now qualified in two events she returns to the Championships where she will compete in the 50m Freestyle and the 200m Backstroke.

15 year old Eimear Magee has had an outstanding season in 2018/19 culminating in her qualification for the finals for the first time. Eimear will swim the 100m and 200m Butterfly and the 200m Freestyle.

Annabel Morrison, 12, having battled injury early in the season, sealed her recovery to qualify at national level for the first time. Annabel takes to the water in her favourite stroke: the Breaststroke for the 100m and 200m races.

Jamie Lannon, 11, has had a barnstorming season and is definitely a local swimmer with a huge future. Jamie’s impressive results at Ulster level means he has every chance to translate this into National success. He is swimming every stroke at various distances, 50m, 100m, 200m and 400m Freestyle, 100m Breaststroke, 100m Backstroke, 100 Butterfly and the 200m Individual Medley.

Fermanagh’s youngest swimmer to attend the Limerick finals is 11 year old Tom Buchanan, a swimmer who’s young age belies a growing talent in the water. Tom competes in the 50m Freestyle.

Lakelanders Chairperson Sara Lannon thanked head coach Aaron Rickhuss for his superb training to get the swimmers to this level and wished every swimmer all success saying:

“At our recent End of Season Gala, we saluted the efforts of our national hopefuls. I’m excited for them and we know they’ll do themselves and the club proud on the national stage,” she said.