Duo face a waiting game

OLYMPICS - WATER POLO:

OLYMPIC hopefuls Ella Chadderton and Joe O’Regan face an agonising two-month wait to hear whether they will represent Great Britain in London 2012.

The water polo squads will not be announced until June 24, just weeks before the main event.

But the wait gives the duo one more chance to shine before final selection.

The duo could compete in the Test event against Australia and Canada at the Aquatics Centre during the first weekend of May.

Ella (19) from Royton began playing the sport more than a decade ago at her local pool, where she was already an avid swimmer. She has represented her country several times at junior and senior level.

In the 2008 Junior European Championships in Hungary she was the highest-scoring GB player.

Training in Manchester with the national squad includes up to four hours a day of ball skills, practice matches, drills and shooting.

O’Regan (21), who also started at Royton Water Polo Club, appeared in the national side in last month’s narrow defeat to Russia in the FINA World League clash in Manchester.

He now lives in Hungary, where he plays for club side Pecs, and has set his sights on the ultimate homecoming — a call-up for the Olympic team.

His lively display in the showdown with Russia is thought to have boosted his chances of inclusion this summer. It capped a superb 12 months for O’Regan, who has become an ever-present in the squad since his first call-up in 2011.