Age is no barrier for three swimmers who train daily at the National Pool, despite them being over 60.

Irene prepares to dive.

Speaking to this newspaper before leaving for a swim meet in Italy to compete with other swimmers over the age of 65, the trio – Irene Zahra, 63, Carmen Debattista, 68 and Joseph Ciappara, 66 – said they cherished their time at the pool.

While they have all been training separately for over a year, the three have been working together over the past month in preparation for their trip. The three were chosen by their coach Marthese Fava who spotted them practising in the pool and suggested they teamed up and trained together.

The oldest of the three, Ms Debattista, trains at the pool on a daily basis and has been doing so for the past year. She insists that while she is approaching 70, this has not stopped her from setting new goals and trying to improve her technique.

“I train for over an hour and a half every day, practising my freestyle and breast stroke with my team mates. I always look forward to come here.”

Ms Debattista is usually at the pool as early as 7am and even though she is often surrounded by young people, this did not deter her ambition but she insisted that it helps motivate her further.

“I have always tried to keep myself fit by walking regularly. People sometimes reach an age when they think they cannot do certain activities but that’s not true.

“I started coming here at 67 and it’s been such a great experience so far,” Ms Debattista went on.

Echoing similar views, her team-mate Ms Zahra said that she was a runner for over 12 years but had also recently taken up swimming. She insisted that while she was always an avid swimmer, she had never had any formal training before.

Irene and Joseph doing backstroke.

“As soon as I stopped running, I decided to take up swimming. I’m the sort of person who needs to be on the go or else I get bored. My next goal is to go parachuting.”

She encouraged those her age and older to keep themselves active and not be afraid to try out new sports and physical activities.

Unlike his team-mates, Mr Ciappara has been swimming for over 18 years but says teaming up with the two women has helped him improve his technique. He trains at the pool four times a week and also cycles regularly.

While at the moment the three are focusing on their trip to Italy, they said they plan to continue training together upon their return.