Swimming: Boyle and Pascoe lead team of 16 to Glasgow

Ellen Quirk and Samantha Lucie-Smith of the women's 4x100m relay team celebrate with team mate Laura Quilter after qualifying for the Commonwealth Games. Photo / Simon Watts

Eight of the squad competed in London and most have been to world champs

New Zealand will send a team of 16 swimmers to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this year.

The squad was named last night at the end of the State NZ national championships in Henderson, which doubled as the qualifying event.

The team includes six swimmers who qualified in individual events - four able-bodied and two para-swimmers - and three relay teams: the men's and women's 4x200m freestyle relays and women's 4x100m freestyle relay.

This compares to the 12-strong team for Delhi in 2010, which brought home six medals.

The team is led by triple world championship medallist Lauren Boyle and five-time Paralympic gold medallist Sophie Pascoe.

Boyle qualified in the 200m, 400m and 800m freestyle and as a member of the 4x200m freestyle relay, while Pascoe, who won six IPC world titles last year, will contest the 200m individual medley.

Swimming New Zealand high-performance director Luis Villanueva said the swimmers who had earned selection had produced a standard to be competitive in Glasgow.

"Our qualifying standard was challenging but fair as we look to develop swimmers who can compete at the highest levels on the world stage," Villanueva said.

"The team is built around the nucleus of swimmers who went to the world championships last year, and with further hard work in the next 14 weeks, I believe they all have the capability of being contenders for medals in Glasgow."

The second para-swimmer is Te Awamutu teenager Nikita Howarth. Between them, Pascoe and Howarth won six medals at last year's IPC world championships in Canada.

"I am thrilled that Sophie and Nikita have been selected as part of the team for Glasgow 2014," said Jon Shaw, Paralympics NZ head performance coach for para-swimming.

"The Commonwealth Games provides the opportunity for these two inspirational para-swimmers to compete in a fully inclusive swimming event as they build towards the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games."

The team includes eight who swam at London in 2012 at the Olympics and Paralympics - Boyle, Pascoe, Glenn Snyders, Matt Stanley, Tash Hind, Samantha Lucie-Smith, Steven Kent and Dylan Dunlop-Barrett. Added to this are swimmers who competed in last year's world championship - Emma Robinson, Samantha Lee, Mitchell Donaldson and Howarth.

The newcomers are Howick Pakuranga teenager Corey Main, currently on a scholarship at Florida University, Ewan Jackson (Howick Pakuranga) and, competing in the 4x100m freestyle relay, Laura Quilter (North Shore) and Ellen Quirke (Capital, Wellington).

Flying our flag

New Zealand swimming team for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in July-August:

• Lauren Boyle (Auckland) 200m, 400m, 800m freestyle and 4x200m freestyle relay
• Mitchell Donaldson (North Shore) 4x200m freestyle relay
• Dylan Dunlop-Barrett (Auckland) 4x200m freestyle relay
• Tash Hind (Wellington) 4x200m freestyle relay
• Nikita Howarth (Te Awamutu) para S8 100m freestyle
• Ewan Jackson (Counties Manukau) 4x200m freestyle relay
• Steven Kent (Auckland) 4x200m freestyle relay
• Samantha Lee (Wellington) 4x200m and 4x100m freestyle relays
• Samantha Lucie-Smith (Wellington) 4x200m and 4 x 100m freestyle relays
• Corey Main (Counties Manukau) 100m backstroke
• Sophie Pascoe (Canterbury) para S10 100m individual medley
• Laura Quilter (North Shore) 4x100m freestyle relay
• Ellen Quirke (Wellington) 4x100m freestyle relay
• Emma Robinson (Wellington) 4x200m freestyle relay
• Matt Stanley (Matamata) 400m freestyle, 4x200m freestyle relay
• Glenn Snyders (North Shore) 100m breaststroke, 200m breaststroke