Irish Swim Teams Set New National Records, But Miss Final Cut
Both of Team Ireland’s 4x100m medley relay squads set new national records in the heats on the penultimate day of action in the pool. However, both squads missed out on qualifying for their respective finals.
Men’s Relay Performance
The men were led off by Larne’s Conor Ferguson, who after eight years of getting so close to becoming an Olympian, finally did so on the backstroke leg.
“I’ve been waiting a long time for this,” he said afterwards.
“I was a bit disappointed with my own swim but the team swam great and it’s nice to set a new record although I think we could have made that final.”
Ryan produced a superb freestyle leg to touch the wall in seventh, but the Irish team were upgraded to sixth after Spain were disqualified.
“’It was good to get national senior record for the team as a whole,” Ferguson told reporters afterwards.
“I think my lead-off leg just wasn’t good enough, if I’m being honest. I think if I was a bit better we would have been in that final, so I’m disappointed in myself but I’m delighted for the team.”
“The most important thing and the hardest thing was just getting ourselves here, and we definitely did that,” three-time Olympian Ryan added.
“At the big meets we really want to come in and swim faster. We got the record there, and it was an honour to represent Ireland again.”
USA won the heat in 3:31.62, while France went faster in the earlier one in a time of 3:31.36.
Women’s Relay Performance
The women’s quartet of Danielle Hill, bronze medallist from the individual 100m breaststroke Mona McSharry, Ellen Walshe and 16-year-old Grace Davidson also finished in 11th place, setting a new Irish record of 4:00.12 and smashing the previous best of 4:01.75.
Olympic bronze medallist McSharry put Ireland in contention with a stunning breaststroke effort.
Like Ryan, 16-year-old Davidson touched home in seventh — but Ireland were bumped up to sixth after Italy were disqualified — as another record fell.
“I’m super happy, really proud of the girls,” McSharry reflected. “We all got up here on the second last day and performed. It was so much fun and everyone brought really good energy this morning, which was nice.”
“We went out there and gave it absolutely everything we could have possibly dreamed off to get an Irish senior record to finish the week,” said Walsh.
Defending champions Australia won the first heat in 3:54.81, while Canada triumphed Ireland’s in a time of 3:56.10.
A Promise for the Future
The strong performances, despite missing out on finals, offer promising signs for the future of Irish swimming. The team’s commitment to improving and breaking national records shows their dedication to the sport. While the quest for Olympic medals continues, these performances serve as a testament to the talent and potential within Irish swimming, laying the foundation for future success.
- With reporting from Sinead O’Carroll in Paris
