Eight Griffith students will swim on home turf at next month’s Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Two of those students — Emma McKeon and Georgia Bohl — are also members of the Griffith University high performance swim squad which has five swimmers going to the Optus Aquatic Centre.

It brings to eleven the total Griffith contingent that will represent Australia at the home Games.

“This is a genuinely remarkable achievement for Griffith sport on both fronts. It’s wonderful to have so many students in the Australian team at an Australian Games on our doorstep,” Duncan Free OAM, Director of Griffith Sports College, said.

“And to have five swimmers from our high-performance swim squad making the national team is also testament to the coaching and training facilities we have here on the Gold Coast campus.”

Unique stories of achievement

Duncan Free congratulated all of the Griffith swimmers who will compete at the Games, and highlighted the achievements of Griffith club coach Michael Bohl in guiding five swimmers to the Games.

“Each of these swimmers has a unique story of achievement. For example, it’s great to see Zac Stubblety-Cook emerge to qualify for his first Commonwealth Games, and I’m particularly delighted to see Leiston Pickett perform so well in qualifying after her Rio disappointment from two years ago.”

Public Health student Emma McKeon will defend her 200m freestyle title next month, when her brother David will also swim alongside Grant Irvine and Madeline Groves as part of Michael Bohl’s high performance Griffith club team.

The Griffith students who have qualified are:

  • Jess Ashwood (Bachelor of Criminology and Criminal Justice)
  • Georgia Bohl (Bachelor of Public Health)
  • Shayna Jack (Bachelor of Business)
  • Cameron McEvoy (Bachelor of Science, Advanced Honours)
  • Emma McKeon (Bachelor of Public Health)
  • Kiah Melverton (Bachelor of Exercise Science)
  • Leiston Pickett (Bachelor of Commerce)
  • Zac Stubblety-Cook (Bachelor of Biomedical Science)

Commonwealth Games Australia announced a 70-strong swimming team for the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games following the four-dayAustralian Swimming Trialsat theOptus Aquatic Centre. The team is made up of 49 able-bodied swimmers and 21 Para-sport athletes, including 40 Queensland swimmers.