Jessica picked for Great Britain

MAKING A SPLASH: Jessica Lloyd, a Year 10 pupil at Saddleworth School, will swim for Great Britain in July.

Can early starter Finnish the job?

TEENAGER Jessica Lloyd has been chosen to represent Great Britain’s swimming team at the European Junior Championships in Helsinki, Finland, in July.

The dedicated 14-year-old competes for Saddleworth Amateur Swimming Club and trains with the City of Manchester Aquatics team.

Jessica (pictured right, taking a breather) trains eight times a week, getting up at 4.15am on two school days.

She competes in the championships from July 14 to 18, and is no stranger to national recognition.

Last September, the Saddleworth School pupil represented England Central in the UK school games, bagging gold in the 100m freestyle and contributing to the gold-winning freestyle relay team’s endeavours.

This time she is competing in the 4x100m freestyle relay, and possibly two individual freestyle events.

Mum Ann said: “Jessica is very modest and doesn’t talk about her swimming much, but we are so proud of her achievements.

“Representing England was fantastic but this is a step up to an even higher level, so I think she will be nervous.

“She is one of the youngest girls in the group, which means she will still be young enough to go to the championships again next year, if selected.

“Jessica is used to the 4.15am starts these days, and Saturdays are a treat - she isn’t up until 5.15am!”

You can read all about Jessica’s progress in Helsinki on this site