SYCERIKA MCMAHON WAS untouchable on day one of the national short course championships in Lisburn today as she collected five Irish titles.
The 17-year-old set a new Irish senior record in the 200 metre individual medley with a time of 2:12.35 taking her well clear of home-town favourite Bethany Carson and Dublin’s Shani Stallard.
McMahon also took home gold from the 100 metre breast stroke (1:08.30), 200 metre butterfly (2:13.71) and 100 metre Freestyle (56.07), but only after cruising to first place in the 800 metres freestyle.
However, the runner up in the mid-distance race also earned some warranted attention. While the Olympian finished in 8:50.86, 11-year-old Antoinette Neamt came in just under five seconds later (8:55.62) to claim silver.
Neamt, from Tallaght, is a product of the NAC’s high performance unit and is a member of Swim Ireland’s national youth squad.
The women’s 50 metre backstroke final was won by Aisling Cooney, who represented Ireland in Beijing 2008, with a time of 29.49.
In the men’s events, Brendan Gibbons twice set a new Irish junior record in the 400 metre freestyle. First in the heats ((3:55.14) before swimming for silver in the final with a time of 3:54.21, half a second behind gold medallist Andrew Meegan (3:53.78).
The 200 metre backstroke was won by 17-year-old Jack Cobain (2:03.50) who went on to take silver in the 100 metre butterfly, just .02 of a second behind Galway’s David O’Sullivan (55.93).
The men’s 50 metre freestyle was won by Botond Solymossy (23.05) a third of a second ahead of Matthew Coward and David Prendergast.
