AN exciting battle to qualify for next year’s Island Games team is shaping up among Jersey’s most promising female swimmers.

At least eight swimmers are expected to make the mark, with many having done so already, including two sub-60 second 100m freestylers, a Commonwealth Youth Games finalist and a healthy contingent of national level swimmers. But with just two slots on offer for each event, there will be a real battle for places.

Swim team manager Neil Faudemer said: ‘The girls’ group is looking very exciting at the moment. A lot of the girls have already made the required qualification times, so there may indeed be a fight for places. We can only swim two in each event and we’ve already had four or five qualify in the 100m free. But that’s great, because most of the swimmers have qualified in other events as well.’

Jersey’s female freestyle swimmers have historically struggled to crack the 100m one-minute mark, so Faudemer is thrilled with the possibility that he might take a 4x100m girls’ relay team to Åland with an average 1.00 min split.

 Pictured: Iona Richardson has produced a sub-60-second 100m frestyle