Palestinian swimmer Mary al-Atrash can't wait to make a splash at the Rio Olympics in August, but participation, rather than a podium finish, is probably the best she can hope for. Atrash competes in the 50 metres freestyle but her best time of 29.91 seconds is more than four seconds slower than the Olympic qualifying threshold of 25.28 seconds, in itself almost two seconds behind the world record. Atrash will be one of six Palestinians competing in Rio and the delegation will be the largest Palestine has sent to the Games since its first participation in the Olympics in Atlanta in 1996. Five competitors appeared in London in 2012. "I am so happy, representing Palestine in competitions is a dream for any Palestinian athlete, especially the Olympics," Atrash told Reuters. The 22-year-old university graduate's preparations have been hampered because she does not have an Olympic-sized pool to train in. There are none in the Palestinian territories and she has to settle for a 25-metre pool. REUTERS/Ammar Awad SEARCH "Al-ATRASH AWAD" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "THE WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY Matching text OLYMPICS-RIO/PALESTINIAN SWIMMER