West stars are amongst the 36 swimmers nominated by British Swimming for the British team for the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games.
The squad features a mix of youth and experience, with 13-year-old Eleanor Simmonds, nominated for her first Games, while 45-year-old Jim Anderson will be potentially travelling to his fifth Games. Simmonds, who is the youngest member of the squad is joined by other Paralympic debutants, including 14-year-old Elizabeth Simpkin, 19-year-old Kate Grey (Bristol/ Bath), 18-year-old Rachael Latham (Wigan) and 15-year-old Louise Watkin.
Paralympic champions Dave Roberts (Cardiff), Sascha Kindred (Hereford), Nyree Lewis (Hereford), Natalie Jones (Manchester) and Gareth Duke (Cwmbran) have also been nominated to travel to the Beijing Games with the goal of defending their titles and adding to their personal medal hauls. (For a full list of nominated athletes please see below).
British Swimming National Performance Director Tim Reddish said: The team has a good mix of youth and experience, with 45% of the team potentially attending their first Paralympic Games. This is really pleasing because it will prove to be beneficial for all of our athletes, coaches and support staff, Reddish said. The average age of this squad is younger than the one that competed in Athens and this demonstrates that the systems and programmes that British Swimming have in place are working well.