Australian swimmers satisfied after morning trials

Australia's swimmers have no fears about contesting morning finals at next year's Beijing Olympics after experimenting with the format.

The Australians have been trialling the format at a grand prix meet in Brisbane last week and say the experience has allayed any major concerns they had.

"I had to get up a bit earlier, eat at a different time and make sure I was at the pool on time and alert," said Leisel Jones, the world record holder and world champion in women's breaststroke.

"I can't see this finals time change impacting on our (Australia's women swimmers) dominance at the Olympics. We will be up for Olympic finals no matter what time of the day they're raced."

Olympic swimming finals have traditionally been held at night but are being switched to the morning for the Beijing Games next year to fit in with US prime-time television.

The decision drew protests from competitors and coaches from around the world who argued that the timetable switch would reduce the chances of world records being broken.

The Australians were among the most outspoken critics but once the decision was made, they began talking with sports scientists and organising trial meets to discover the best ways of maximising performance.

"The morning finals won't take long to get used to," said Jessicah Schipper, world champion and world record holder for 200 metres butterfly.

"The only preparation difference was getting up earlier than usual, about 6 a.m.

"Morning finals won't harm my big race performances, particularly if it's an Olympic final."