ELLEN WALSHE SET four new Irish records on the opening day of action at the World Swimming Championships in Budapest.
The 23-year-old Dubliner lowered marks in her four swims today; the last as she finished fifth in the 200m individual medley final in a time of 2:05.52.
𝗜𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗛 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗
And she does it AGAIN! It's four from four Irish Records for Ellen Walshe!
The Templeogue swimmer knocks another second off her 200m IM time to finish 5th in the 🌍
Walshe also clocked 25.45 in the 50m butterfly semi-final this evening, finishing 14th overall.
The Templeogue swimmer originally broke both records in the space of forty minutes this morning as she progressed, building on a year that saw her become an Olympic finalist in Paris.
Walshe first broke her own 50m butterfly record of 25.90 in 25.65, the previous record having stood since 2022. The time saw Walshe sixth in her heat and fourteenth overall, inside the top sixteen required for the semi-final.
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In the 200m individual medley, only the top eight were progressing to the final from the morning heats. A strong showing from Walshe saw her take almost two seconds off her best time and Irish record finishing in 2:06.50. The former time was a bronze medal winning performance from the 2023 European Championships of 2:08.32. Walshe secured fourth place in her heat and advanced in sixth overall.
“That’s an absolutely stacked heat, it’s great to be a part of it with the girls and we can only build from there, but yeah, it’s a massive step forward from last year and I’m delighted it’s another second off this morning’s swim, which I wasn’t sure if we could find, but it was there, so absolutely delighted,” she said after the 200m individual medley final.
Walshe is back in the pool on Thursday in the 100m individual medley, an event in which she set a new Irish record of 59.30 in November.
Nathan Wiffen (file photo). Andrea Masini / INPHO
Andrea Masini / INPHO / INPHO
Nathan Wiffen, meanwhile, made his debut appearance for Ireland at a World Championships in the fastest heat of the 1500m freestyle.
Wiffen finished ninth overall in a personal best time of 14:32.65, taking six seconds off his previous best.
“I’m pretty happy with that, I’ve had a long summer and then to come back and get a six second pb I’m pretty happy. I think I lost it a bit after the 1,000 (metre) mark, I just felt wrecked to be honest, as I tried to go out quite hard. But pleased with that, a pb, you can’t ask for much more,” he said.
Wiffen returns on Thursday for the 400m freestyle heats.
National Centre Limerick’s John Shortt also got his championships underway with a record-breaking performance this morning. Shortt, who has set Irish records in both the 100m and 200m backstroke already this season, took over a second off the 100m backstroke junior record of 52.34 he set in October, clocking 51.21. The 17-year-old returns on Sunday for his favoured event, the 200m backstroke.
Danielle Hill (file photo). Morgan Treacy / INPHO
Morgan Treacy / INPHO / INPHO
In the women’s 100m backstroke heats, Danielle Hill was just outside the semi-final placings, swimming her third fastest time ever in the event in 57.95 seconds. The Larne swimmer returns to action on Wednesday in the 100m freestyle.
Also in action, Max McCusker was close to his personal best of 22.92, clocking 23.09 in the 50m butterfly heats. McCusker will be back in action on Friday in the 100m butterfly heats.
- Updated 6.25pm, additional reporting from Emma Duffy
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Ellen Walshe sets four new Irish records at World Championships as Nathan Wiffen makes impressive debut
LAST UPDATE | 10 Dec 2024
ELLEN WALSHE SET four new Irish records on the opening day of action at the World Swimming Championships in Budapest.
The 23-year-old Dubliner lowered marks in her four swims today; the last as she finished fifth in the 200m individual medley final in a time of 2:05.52.
Walshe also clocked 25.45 in the 50m butterfly semi-final this evening, finishing 14th overall.
The Templeogue swimmer originally broke both records in the space of forty minutes this morning as she progressed, building on a year that saw her become an Olympic finalist in Paris.
Walshe first broke her own 50m butterfly record of 25.90 in 25.65, the previous record having stood since 2022. The time saw Walshe sixth in her heat and fourteenth overall, inside the top sixteen required for the semi-final.
In the 200m individual medley, only the top eight were progressing to the final from the morning heats. A strong showing from Walshe saw her take almost two seconds off her best time and Irish record finishing in 2:06.50. The former time was a bronze medal winning performance from the 2023 European Championships of 2:08.32. Walshe secured fourth place in her heat and advanced in sixth overall.
“That’s an absolutely stacked heat, it’s great to be a part of it with the girls and we can only build from there, but yeah, it’s a massive step forward from last year and I’m delighted it’s another second off this morning’s swim, which I wasn’t sure if we could find, but it was there, so absolutely delighted,” she said after the 200m individual medley final.
Walshe is back in the pool on Thursday in the 100m individual medley, an event in which she set a new Irish record of 59.30 in November.
Nathan Wiffen, meanwhile, made his debut appearance for Ireland at a World Championships in the fastest heat of the 1500m freestyle.
Wiffen finished ninth overall in a personal best time of 14:32.65, taking six seconds off his previous best.
“I’m pretty happy with that, I’ve had a long summer and then to come back and get a six second pb I’m pretty happy. I think I lost it a bit after the 1,000 (metre) mark, I just felt wrecked to be honest, as I tried to go out quite hard. But pleased with that, a pb, you can’t ask for much more,” he said.
Wiffen returns on Thursday for the 400m freestyle heats.
National Centre Limerick’s John Shortt also got his championships underway with a record-breaking performance this morning. Shortt, who has set Irish records in both the 100m and 200m backstroke already this season, took over a second off the 100m backstroke junior record of 52.34 he set in October, clocking 51.21. The 17-year-old returns on Sunday for his favoured event, the 200m backstroke.
In the women’s 100m backstroke heats, Danielle Hill was just outside the semi-final placings, swimming her third fastest time ever in the event in 57.95 seconds. The Larne swimmer returns to action on Wednesday in the 100m freestyle.
Also in action, Max McCusker was close to his personal best of 22.92, clocking 23.09 in the 50m butterfly heats. McCusker will be back in action on Friday in the 100m butterfly heats.
- Updated 6.25pm, additional reporting from Emma Duffy
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Budapest Swimming World Championships