SWIMMING NEWS:GRÁINNE MURPHY, who last weekend dipped below the Olympic A standard for the women's 800 metres freestyle at the Dutch National Swimming meet in Eindhoven, now turns her attention to the European Short Course (25m) championships, which get under way this morning at the seaport town of Szczecin on the Polish/German border.

The 18-year-old Wexford swimmer won bronze in the women’s 400m freestyle and the 400m individual medley at last year’s championships in Eindhoven.

Murphy heads up a team of nine Irish competitors who will be in Poland for the four-day meet. It will not, however, include Barry Murphy, the only other Irish competitor to go under the Olympic A qualifying standard, in the men’s 100m breaststroke.

The Dubliner, based at Ann Arbor in Michigan, USA, where he swims with Club Wolverine, last weekend competed in the American winter national long-course (50m) meet in Atlanta Georgia.

Having swum in the heats of the men’s 100m breaststroke, he pulled out of the rest of the competition saying he was disappointed with his form as he was fighting a respiratory infection and that antibiotics “had him wiped”.

The 26-year-old will be disappointed to miss the event in Poland and in his absence the Irish focus will be firmly on namesake Gráinne, who will compete in the women’s 200m butterfly and 200m individual medley along with Shani Stallard, who also goes in the 200m IM on the opening day of the competition.

Melanie Nocher, who has made a number of finals at European short-course level in recent years, will also see action today in the heats of the 100m backstroke, along with fellow Beijing Olympian Aisling Cooney and Jane Roberts, one of a number of junior Irish competitors taking part to gain international experience.

Other Irish competitors in action on the opening day are Nicholas Quinn and Dan Sweeney (100 breaststroke) along with Bethany Carson, Clare Dawson and Jane Roberts (100 freestyle).