WARRINGTON'S Olympic swimming hopes will be involved in the Amateur Swimming Association National Age Group and Youth Championships in the next two weeks.

Eight swimmers from Warriors of Warrington Swimming Club will be in action at the championships, which run from Monday until August 1 in Sheffield, having qualified for a total of 41 individual events - an increase from only 24 two years ago.

Some of the club's young stars, who are coached by Darren Ashley, have already been identified by British Swimming as potential future Olympians and are members of Warrington Borough Council's Nationals squad.

Tim Almond is currently the top ranked 14-year-old in the country in the 100m and 200m breaststroke and Matthew Verdon holds the British 50m and 100m backstroke records in the same age group.

Almond, who has held breaststroke titles in the last three years, has qualified for a total of nine individual events and will also be part of the Warriors individual medley relay team currently ranked second in the country.

Verdon will also compete in the relay as well as 10 individual races, while 13-year-old Martin Holmes and 12-year-old Jordan Barlow complete the individual medley quartet.

Holmes will also compete in two butterfly events, while Barlow will race in six individual races in his first championships - having only started swimming competitively 18 months ago - and is currently ranked as the third fastest 12-year-old in the country in the 100m freestyle.

Daniel Wass, aged 12, will also make his debut in the Age Group Championships in the 200m backstroke, while 18-year-old individual medley specialist Jonathan Gatley will enter six individual events at the Youth Championships.

Gatley will join Loughborough University's swimming squad when he moves there in the autumn to join Andrew Bushall, who has also qualified for the championships.

Michael Tujeshyn, aged 15, makes his championship debut in the 800m freestyle, while 15-year-old freestyle specialist Aisha Thornton is the only girl in Warriors' travelling party and has qualified for seven events - an increase from three last year - including the 1500m.

* Former Warriors swimmer Adam Shaw will compete for Great Britain at the European Youth Olympics in Serbia next week. Shaw is the top ranked 15-year-old swimmer in the country in the 50m, 100m and 200m freestyle but moved from Birchwood to Chorley four years ago.