John Shortt Moves Within Sight Of Irish 100 Back Record As He Secures Worlds Qualification In Dublin
John Shortt secured qualification for the Singapore worlds on day one of the Irish Open Championships in Dublin.
Shortt had a fine day, setting an Irish junior 100 back record of 54.25 in the semis before lowering that to 53.90 in the semis as he rattled Shane Ryan’s national record of 53.73 at which he can have another tilt in Sunday’s final.
The 18-year-old booked himself a spot on the flight to the World Championships which run from 27 July to 3 August.
He said: ‘I’m more surprised is the biggest word I would use, just because the 100 back wouldn’t really be my thing. You know my focus for the year would be the 200m, so to be 53 there I’m more surprised than anything else and just delighted as well because trials last year was a different story on that sort of pressure and all that stuff. So to come into this trials was kind of not no pressure, but just to actually be able to enjoy it and enjoy what I do is the biggest thing that I took away from last year. So, I’m just really happy.”
Having secured a qualification time for Singapore at the Olympic Games in Paris, Hill solidified her place with a time of 1:00.67 in the women’s 100 back semis for top seed in the final.
Ellen Walshe got the job done in the morning where she set championship records in the 200IM (2:11.14) and 200 fly (2:08.66). She swam the QT in Paris last year where she reached the semis. Her time in the fly – the second fastest of her career behind her Irish record of 2:08.42 – was within the A cut for Singapore.
She withdrew from the semis of both events with Ards’ Paris Olympian Grace Davison, who secured European Aquatics Junior Championships qualification in the heats, leading the qualifiers for Sunday’s 200IM final in 2:15.82, while National Centre Ulster’s Alana Burns-Atkin locked in the centre lane for the 200 fly final in 2:18.05.
Evan Bailey broke 1:48 in the 200m freestyle for the second time on Saturday evening, clocking 1:47.26 to lead the qualifiers for Sunday’s Final. Bailey’s National Centre Limerick team-mate Cormac Rynn was the only other swimmer under 1:50 in 1:49.88.
Sunday morning will see Mona McSharry return to race in Ireland for the first time since the European U23 Championships in 2023 with the Olympic bronze medallist competing in the 100m breaststroke. Olympic semi-finalist Tom Fannon will swim the 50m freestyle.
