Five Woodford Green with Essex Ladies athletes have been included in an initial squad ahead of this year’s European Athletics Championships.

UK Athletics have announced a group of 109 from which the Aviva Great Britain and Northern Ireland Team will be selected for the competition in Helsinki.

The squad will be reduced in size after this weekend’s Aviva 2012 Trials, but Richard Alleyne, Mark Dry, Jeanette Kwakye, Shana Cox and Tiffany Porter have all been selected.

Alleyne could go in the 110m hurdles while Dry will hope to compete in the hammer throw.

Kwakye is one of five athletes selected for the 100m, Cox could run in the 400m and Porter is in contention for the 100m hurdles.

Following this weekend’s trials, any athletes who have gained automatic qualification for Team GB at London 2012 will be de-selected in order to focus on their Olympic preparations.

Conversely, field athletes will be allowed to compete in Finland if they feel the additional opportunity will benefit their build up to this summer.

This is the first year the European Championships will be held in the same year as the Olympics.

The final squad for the event will be announced on Monday with the competition running from Wednesday, June 27 through to Sunday, July 1.