World Aquatics Championships qualifiers Ellen Walshe, Daniel Wiffen and John Shortt featured on Monday morning as the Irish Open Championships reached the half-way stage at the Sport Ireland National Aquatic Centre.
Walshe, swimming the 100m Butterfly, secured a third qualification time for the World Aquatics Championships in Singapore in July clocking 58.14 to take the top seed for Monday’s Semi-Finals. Walshe had already secured qualification in the 200m Individual Medley and 200m Butterfly on Saturday. National Centre Limerick’s Lucy O’Brien hit the consideration time for the European Aquatics Junior Championships in the event and advances fourth overall in 1:02.43.
Following his 800m Freestyle win on Sunday, Olympic Champion Daniel Wiffen leads the qualifiers for the Open 400m Freestyle Final. Wiffen (3:56.26) and National Centre Limerick’s Cormac Rynn (3:58.86) were the only swimmers under four minutes and will take the centre lanes for Monday evening’s Final. In fourth place, Tadgh O’Brien (National Centre Limerick) was under the European Aquatics Junior Championships time of 4:07.62 in 4:06.58.
Paris Olympian Victoria Catterson was swiftest in the Female 400m Freestyle heats clocking 4:20.05 ahead of Germany’s Sophie Lenze (4:23.25) and 1500m Freestyle National Champion Clare Custer (4:24.15) of Sundays Well.
John Shortt continued his good form and progresses to Monday evening’s 200m Backstroke semi-final as top seed and the only swimmer under the two-minute mark in 1:58.67. Already qualified for the World Aquatics Championships in the 100m Backstroke, the 18-year-old will look to add the 200m to his qualification with a time of 1:58.07. Shortt is the Irish Record holder in the event in 1:57.68.
Shortt’s National Centre Limerick team-mate Maria Godden was the fastest Irish swimmer in the women’s version of the event. Godden clocked 2:17.16 just behind Gabriela Georgieva in 2:16.36. In fourth overall Aer Lingus’ Julia Dziedzic achieved a consideration time for the European Youth Olympic Festival in 2:20.13.
In the 200m Individual Medley, National Centre Ulster’s Adam Colgan leads the Irish qualifiers for semi-finals in 2:08.89. Germany’s Tobia Van Aggelen will be the top seed in 2:08.74.
Monday evening will feature finals in the Open 50m Freestyle, Open and Female 100m Breaststroke, Open 100m Butterfly, Open and Female 400m Freestyle and Semi-Finals in the Open and Female 200m Backstroke, Female 100m Butterfly and Open 200m IM.