Stonehaven's Sara Hamilton is one of four Scots named in the British team to take on Europe's elite at the European Junior Championships in Finland this summer (14-18 July).

The swimmers were selected as a result of this year's British Gas Swimming Championships.

"I qualified in the 50 and 100 freestyle," said 15 year old Sara. "I managed to get a PB in my 100 freestyle of 56.97 and finished twelfth overall, which was an improvement because I had gone in lying thirtieth. This was against seniors and I wasn't ranked to make the semis."

Sara had also been selected to compete in last year's European Junior Championships. One of the younger competitors in the event she reached the semi finals in the 50 and 100m freestyle.

Said Gary Paterson, her coach at South Aberdeenshire Swimming: "To make the team at the younger end of the age group is incredibly difficult so for Sara to have done so last year was a real achievement. This year's focus was to make the team again so I am delighted that she has been selected."

Hamilton is a long term member of South Aberdeenshire Swimming, joining Paterson's squad in January 2009. Tenacity combined with an ability to race were the qualities that first impressed him.

"Sara really is a great competitor and she uses that well," said Paterson, whose swimmer, Chris Chasser, had been in the British 4x100m medley team which medalled in the 2006 European Junior Championships.

"She has made great progress and her maturity has brought a focus on her training that has begun to show in her results across the board; not just in her more favoured sprint freestyle 50 and 100, but she is doing well in all the events from 100 fly all the way through her 200 medley and backstroke."

Helping support Hamilton's development is the Grampian Institute of Sport. Part of sportscotland's institute of sport area network, the Grampian Institute focuses on preparing Scotland's best athletes to perform on the world stage by providing high performance expertise to sport and athletes in Scotland.

"We have got Sara on quite a variable cross training programme, where she does seventy percent of her work in the water, thirty percent on dry land," said Paterson.

"The Grampian Institute is incredibly supportive in helping Sara to not only access and get the Strength & Conditioning, which started in earnest last August but also supporting her for other cross training elements such as step aerobics, kick boxing and boxercise.

"The variable programme makes training more stimulating, brings physical benefits and helps Sara maintain that strong motivation and desire towards training and racing. That's how the results are coming."

Hamilton has produced a steady stream of good results this year, which will hopefully continue through the European Junior Championships and beyond.

"Last year she made semi finals in the 50 freestyle so this year ideally it would be great if she could make the final in both the 50 and the 100 freestyle," added Paterson.

"Anyone that gets into the final has an opportunity to race for a medal, so making the final is the aim and then we'll see what happens from there."