NAIROBI, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan swimmers Sylvia Brunlehner, Issa Mohammed and Steve Maina will have a second attempt to win medals at the Commonwealth Games after they failed at their first outing in 2014.
The three swimmers will be joined by Emily Muteti and Maria Brunlehner, who are making their first showing at the games, which will be held at Gold Coast, in Australia from April 4-15.
"We have selected swimmers with the highest global swimming organization FINA points. It is based on merit. These are active swimmers who have been consistent in their competitions," Kenya Swimming Federation official Reginald Okumu said on Monday in Nairobi.
Kenya had 14 swimmers at the 2014 games in Glasgow led by Olympian and former world record holder Jason Dunford. They all failed to progress beyond the round of 16.
However, Okumu remains confident the team will do well this time around. "We hope to secure Kenya medals in Gold Coast. We have a strong team [that] has done well on the global circuit and with best preparations we hope to do well," he said.
Kenya's Mohammed has been based in the United States while the Brunlehner sisters Maria and Sylvia, have been pitching camp in Germany.
Maria is the top Kenyan swimmer in the FINA rankings with 758 points followed by Muteti with 750 and Sylvia with 730 points. Mohammed has 711 points followed by Kimani who has 668. Rebecca Kamau (women) and Rosafo Danilo (men) were placed on the reserve bench and may be called should Kenya's swimming slots be increased.
Kenya won 25 medals in the last games with all but two medals coming outside track and field. Weightlifting and the Paralympic Games secured a bronze each while athletics had 10 gold, 10 silver and three bronze medals.
Meanwhile, Kenya has selected 40 other swimmers to compete at the Cana Zone IV Championships slated for March 21 to 23 in Lilongwe, Malawi.
