The British bid to host the 2010 IPC World Swimming Championships has advanced to the final shortlist of three, along with Holland and the USA.

The British bid, which would be held at Ponds Forge in Sheffield, will face stiff competition in the form of the 2007 European Swimming Championships hosts Eindhoven and Minneapolis.

Ponds Forge has a good national level disability swimming pedigree, and hosts all the Disability Sports Events (DSE) championships.

The British disability swimming squad is one of the strongest in the world – the British team returned as champions from last year's event in Durban with 24 gold, 14 silver and 14 bronze medals.

British Paralympic Association chief executive, Phil Lane said: "We are delighted that Sheffield is in the running to host the 2010 IPC Swimming World Championships.

"The facilities in Sheffield are of a very high standard and it has been used for both domestic and international swimming championships for a number of years, so it is an ideal venue.

"If the bid is successful it would be a great opportunity for Britain's established Paralympic swimmers to shine in front of a home crowd, as well as serve as an inspiration to Britain's aspiring Paralympians ahead of the London 2012 Games."

Photograph: the event would be held at Sheffield's Ponds Forge pool
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