Entries for the 2014 Australian Swimming Championships, which serve as the country’s Commonwealth Games Trials, closed at 11:59 pm on March 17th. With the start list now published it was a surprise to many to see that James Roberts and Eamon Sullivan were included amongst the entrants.
Roberts is set to swim both the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle while Sullivan is entered in the 50 freestyle and 50 butterfly.
An article in the Perth Now reported that Roberts is still struggling with a degenerative back condition, an issue that has prevented the 22 year old from doing any starts.
John Fowlie, Roberts coach, told the paper that he will race, but would not comment on his health concerns, ““We will just play it by ear, I don’t really comment on athletes’ health or injuries but he is entered for the meet,’’ Fowlie said.
The paper also reported that Sullivan had been preparing for a comeback in the 50 freestyle, but that comeback may now be curtailed by having suffered another shoulder injury.
The Australian Championships will run from April 1st-6th in Brisbane. All of the meet information including Commonwealth Games qualifying procedures can be found here.