Niamh Coyne said her Youth Olympic Games silver medal is in "the top one" of her achievements" after the Dubliner burst to a podium finish in Buenos Aires.
Coyne finished behind Russian Anastasia Makarova in a time of 1:08.90 in the women's 100m Breaststroke final thanks to a brilliant final 25 metres.
Lithuania’s Kotryna Teterevkova took the bronze medal in 1.08.95, with another Irish competitor, Mona McSharry, just 0.02 of a second behind her in fourth.
Trying to soak up the scale of her feat, Coyne admitted it was a welcome surprise.
"I wasn't expecting to medal out here," she said.
"It's October, a bit of a weird time for swimmers. I was really happy with it. The first 50m I just needed to build and get my turn right. After that, I just had to go for it.
"I couldn't see anyone, even on the turn. I didn't know where I was. I was just like, 'touch the wall, touch the wall and be finished!'.
"I was shocked; shocked and happy. This is in the top one!"
WATCH Swimmer Niamh Coyne has won SILVER in the women’s 100m breaststroke at the Youth Olympic Games in #buenosaires2018 today - super swim in 1.08.90 from the Tallaght Swimming Club member - well done Niamh, and all the team in @swimireland #TeamIreland ☘️🇮🇪🥈 🏊♀️ pic.twitter.com/f2TpleIWjm
— Team Ireland (@TeamIreland) October 10, 2018
