IT’S BEEN A week to remember for Irish swimmer Mona McSharry at the Irish Short Course Swimming Championships in Lisburn, Antrim.
On Thursday, the 18-year-old broke her own 50m Freestyle record in the heats with a time of 25.03 seconds, three hundredths of a second off her previous personal best, which she only set a couple of weeks ago.
Sligo native McSharry subsequently took gold in the final with a time of 25.22, while the Marlins swimmer also prevailed in the 200m Individual Medley in 2:12.76.
In addition, the talented Irish swimmer continued to impress today, breaking a 23-year Irish record in the 100m freestyle with a time of 54.65, with the original best time of 54.87 set in 1995.
Not that it stood for long, of course, McSharry came home to claim gold in the final of the 100m freestyle by shaving another three tenths of a second off her earlier time.
The teenager was awarded first place in a time of 53.34 – having broke the 100m freestyle record twice in one afternoon.
There was joy elsewhere at the event for Bangor swimmer Jack McMillan.
The 18-year-old broke Andrew Bree’s 2003 Irish Senior Record (1:58.42) and Brian O’Sullivan’s 2013 Irish Junior Record (2:01.94) in the 200m Individual Medley Final with a time of 1:58.36.
There were two more records set in the 200m Freestyle Relay Finals for Bangor SC and Kilkenny SC.
McMillan, along with Jordan Sloan, Curtis Coulter and David Thompson secured a time of 1:29.84, in the process breaking Ards’ 2015 record.
In the women’s event, Kilkenny’s quartet of Maria Godden, Niamh Ahearne, Lucy Harte and Naomi Trait broke the 3-week-old Ards Irish junior record with a time of 1:48.18, though it wasn’t enough to claim gold in the senior event, as Aer Lingus’ Catriona Finlay, Aisling Haughey, Lisa Cooke and Hannah McMenamin prevailed with a time of 1:46.43.
Elsewhere, Rachel Bethel of Bangor took the 800m title with a time of 8:49.32.
In the 200m Butterfly Final, Limerick’s Cillian Melly triumphed in 1:59.06.
Ennis native Rory McEvoy claimed gold in the men’s 100m Backstroke Final in 53.12, while in the women’s event, Maria Godden (1:02.15) of Kilkenny emerged victorious.
Finally, Cookstown’s Calum Bain was the victor in the Men’s 50m Freestyle Final (22.22).
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