GB swimmers in good shape - Parry

Parry won Olympic bronze in the men's 200m butterfly

Liverpool's Steven Parry has said he believes Britain's Swimmers are in good shape ahead of the Beijing Olympics.

The 31-year-old two-time Olympian told BBC Radio Merseyside he is impressed by the current Great Britain team.

"I'm erring on the side of caution because it is incredibly hard to win Olympic medals.

"But when I saw the Olympic trials I thought 'we can get seven or eight medals here' and then I was telling myself to calm down."

Parry, who won Olympic bronze in Athens, was one of only two British medal winners in the pool and he believes if the current generation exceed 2004's haul they will have done well.

"There's been evolutions in the suits and people become more professional over time, I think if we get more than two [medals] we've done a fantastic job."

But Parry was keen to play down the pressure on Merseyside swimmers Fran Halsall and Michael Rock, who are competing out in China.

Obviously there are strength issues involved, with men reaching their top performance levels between 19 and 25 Steven Parry

"They're young swimmers going to their first Olympic Games, no doubt 2012 will be the best option for them, I don't want to put to much pressure on Fran but she is a prodigious talent, she surprises me every time she swims.

"If she makes the final, she is the most amazing racer so who knows what's possible? For Michael it is harder at an early age to get to the top of the sport.

"Obviously there are strength issues involved, with men reaching their top performance levels between 19 and 25, but he's got a fantastic chance."