DUBAI, August 23rd, 2013 (WAM)--Over 1000 swimmers, officials and supporting families have touched down in Dubai ahead of the 4th FINA World Junior Championships which start on Monday.

The 753 of the best young swimmers in the world representing 91 nations will compete for glory, and yesterday the 28-strong Australian team jetted in from a pre-event training camp in Doha.

Team Manager Michael Scott said the swimmers have already demonstrated great potential and will gain valuable race experience from this international meet.

"A number of these swimmers have already shown what they are capable of at a national and international level, with over half of this team representing Australia at the Trans Tasman, Junior Pan Pacs or Australian Youth Olympic Festival in the last two years," Scott said.

"This meet will be an important stepping stone for the swimmers looking to gain selection onto senior teams in the near future and the racing experience gained will benefit them as they move forward into the next stages of the journey towards Rio and beyond," Scott said.

The youngest member of the team is 14-year-old Shayna Jack, who has already shown great potential placing fifth behind four London Olympians in the 50m freestyle final at the Australian Championships in May. Jack will be in the hunt for gold in three events, the 50, 100 and 200m freestyle.

Another rising star is distance swimmer Mack Horton who is looking to regain the 1500m crown, as event dominated by Australian swimmers for many years. Mack recorded a sub-15 minute swim in May, knocking five seconds off his personal best time, and looks to be in fine form ahead of this Championship.

The 17-year-old will have a packed schedule, contesting the 200, 400, 800 and 1500m freestyle events over the six day meet.

The World Junior representatives will race in green caps with the gold caps now reserved for swimmers selected onto the major Australian senior team for this year?s world championships in Barcelona and Montreal.

"We are delighted to be welcoming so many people from around the world to Dubai for this event, and are looking forward to seeing some fantastic performances in the pool this week," said Hessa Al Harmoudi , a member of the Organizing Committee.

"With so many strong teams competing we are expecting to see some tough competition as the rising stars of the future emerge" she added.

The Championships will run from 26 ? 31 August, with heats each day from 10am - 12.30pm, and semi finals and finals each night from 6-8pm. Tickets are 20dhs per day or 80dhs for the week, and are available at the door during the event. The Hamdan Sports Complex is on Emirates Road (previously Dubai Bypass Road). ). A free bus service will operate each day from the Mall of the Emirates and Dubai Mall for the morning and evening sessions. All details are on the event facebook page.

Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2013.