Burnell to lead six-strong marathon team at Worlds

Rio 2016 Olympian Jack Burnell will spearhead a six-strong British marathon team at this summer's World Championships in Budapest.

European silver medallist Burnell will contest the Olympic 10km distance, at what will be his third World Championships.

He placed fifth in Kazan two years ago, and will be joined over the same distance by Caleb Hughes.

In the women's 10km, Alice Dearing and Danielle Huskisson will wear the Great Britain cap, with the latter also set to compete in the 5km event.

Tobias Robinson and Tim Shuttleworth - who competed in the 1500m freestyle in Rio -will swim in the men's equivalent, while the relay team will be decided nearer to the competition getting underway in July.

"It's one of the biggest teams we've ever produced for a World Championships which is really encouraging. It's also a strong team which has clear medal chances," said Bernie Dietzig, marathon swimming lead.

"The build up to selection for these athletes has been good. Off the back of a slow start to the season, with not many races available, we've just had an intense period of racing which has seen athletes compete in Abu Dhabi, the US and France.

"It's exciting to see some new faces on the team such as Tobias and Tim. It will be a tough start to their international marathon careers but I'm pretty confident.

"They have a strong distance pedigree and I'm sure this will transfer to the marathon event." Sportsbeat 2017