Dec 10,2024
Olympic finalist Ellen Walshe and European Champion Danielle Hill are among five Irish swimmers in action on the opening day of the World Aquatics Swimming Championships (short-course) in Budapest tomorrow.
Almost half of the 13-strong team will be in the water at the Duna Arena in the Hungarian capital, where the 25m-pool championships run until Sunday.
Hill opens the tournament for Ireland in the 100m backstroke (8.50am Irish time), followed by John Shortt (9.05) in the male equivalent event.
Hill is the Irish senior record holder (57.56, 2023) and Shortt the Irish junior record holder in 52.24, a record he set just weeks ago.
Ellen Walshe competes in both the 50m butterfly (9.18) and 200m individual medley (9.56) on day one.
Walshe is a European bronze medallist (2023) in the 200m individual medley and a 2021 World bronze medallist in the 400m individual medley.
Paris Olympian Max McCusker (9.37) swims in the Men’s 50m butterfly while Nathan Wiffen represents Ireland for the first time at a World Championships in the 1500m freestyle.
Wiffen will swim in the 'fastest heat' (17.50) of three in the event. He reached the final over the same distance at the European short-course championships last December, which was won by his twin brother Daniel.
Olympic 800m champion Daniel - and fellow medallist Mona McSharry - are not competing this week.
