Olympic finalist Mona McSharry set another national record in the final of the women's 50 metres breaststroke on day three of the Irish Open Swimming Championships at the NAC in Dublin.
Having already won her favoured 100 metres breaststroke also in record time over the weekend, the Tennessee-based swimmer cracked in a time 30.29 seconds for the one length final cutting .27 of a second of her own personal best and her second breaststroke title of the week.
"The 50 is a fun event," the Sligo native said afterwards. "It just helps me feel connected to my stroke at a higher tempo and that’s a good thing,"
"My plan now is to get the Olympic consideration time at the World Championships in the summer and then it’s a year preparation for Paris 2024 after that."
The closest final of the day came in the women’s blue riband, the 100 metres freestyle where Victoria Catterson just got up to beat Olympian Danielle Hill by one hundredth of a second in a dramatic finale to a fantastic race.
Hill led at halfway and looked set for victory, but the Larne swimmer tied up in the last few meters and Catterson came through like an express train to take the gold medal by the smallest of margins.
Sixteen-year-old Grace Davidson was fourth and set an Irish junior record to add to her gold medal in the women’s 400IM, the first race of the evening while Hill did have the consolation of winning the 50 metres butterfly final in 26.96 seconds
Ellen Walsh of Templeogue was expected to win the individual medley gold, but the 22-year-old was disqualified from the heats for an illegal turn.
Walsh then swam a 400IM time-trial after the heats and recorded 4.43.16 seconds, just outside the World Championships qualifying standard.
However, as Walsh has a consideration time for the 100 butterfly, it’s almost certain now that she will swim that event in Japan
In the top men’s race, Max McCusker won his third gold medal of the week winning the 100 butterfly and denying double Olympian Shane Ryan the victory while other winners included Diarmuid Sutton (50 metres breaststroke 29.02 secs) and Nathan Wiffen (800 metres freestyle 8.03.79).
National Centre Limerick's Jack Cassin, who broke the 400 metres IM senior and junior national record on Sunday, set a new junior standard in the 100 metres butterfly final.
Claiming bronze in 54.29, the 18-year-old took .21 off Brendan Hyland’s decade-old record of 54.50.
