Swimming SA has announced a full-strength team for the FINA World Short-Course Championships in Manchester from April 9-13, including Olympic relay gold medallists Roland Schoeman, Ryk Neethling and Lyndon Ferns, and national team captain Gerhard Zandberg.

Swimming SA President Jace Naidoo said: 'Swimming will be an important stakeholder in the Olympic team that will take part in the Beijing Olympics and a successful campaign at the World Short Course Championships in Manchester, England, will further help motivate our swimmers in their quest for fast times in this important year on the swimming calendar.'

Swimming SA head coach Dirk Lange added that Manchester would be 'the perfect platform for SA?s swimmers to perform on the international stage and for their times to be judged accordingly. The showpiece event in Manchester is the last major swimming competition before the Olympics and will allow our athletes the opportunity of gelling as a team as will be the case for those who make the line up to compete in Beijing.'

Naidoo took the opportunity to release Swimming SA?s Olympic selection criteria, which states that athletes wishing to be considered for selection for the provisional Olympic team, will need to post Olympic A level qualifying times at the Telkom SA National Championships at Kings Park in Durban from April 1-6. He added: 'Athletes who post B level qualifying times at our national championships in Durban in April may not be entered for the individual events at the Olympics but may be considered for selection to the relay teams.'