Five of the nine strong team had outstanding performances at the 2013 IPC Swimming World Championships and contributed to the biggest medal haul by a NZ Para-Swimming team ever at such an event, 15 medals in total.
The team is headlined by Paralympic stars Sophie Pascoe and Mary Fisher – multi medal winners and world record holders. They are joined by fellow Paralympian and world record holder Nikita Howarth. Both Pascoe and Howarth will be joining the team after competing at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games. The team also welcomes the return of Paralympian Rebecca Dubber to the international swimming scene after a short break.
The four Paralympians will be joined by 2013 team member Jesse Reynolds. Reynolds will be looking to build on his first international experience at the 2013 IPC Swimming World Championships in August.
Four exciting additions to the team are newcomers Georgia Gray, Tayla Clement, Daniel Gaualofa and Chris Arbuthnott. These Para-Swimmers will all make their international debut and look to build on their national experience.
PNZ Head Swim Performance Coach Jon Shaw says, “We are very excited about this team as we believe we have a great depth of experience and enthusiasm.” He continues, “The size of this team really shows the work that been going on behind the scenes with the NZ Para-Swimming programme and we are looking to this event to provide a great testing ground to see where our performances sit on the international stage. We believe we have a high chance of success following on from recent results at the NZ Open Swimming Championships.”
Full team list includes:
Sophie Pascoe Christchurch
Mary Fisher Wellington
Rebecca Dubber North Shore
Nikita Howarth Cambridge
Jesse Reynolds Hamilton
Georgia Gray London
Tayla Clement Auckland
Daniel Gaualofa Whangarei
Chris Arbuthnott Palmerston North
