2024 IRISH OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS & OLYMPIC TRIALS
- Wednesday, May 22nd – Sunday, May 26th
- Sport Ireland National Aquatic Centre, Dublin, Ireland
- LCM (50m)
- Olympic Qualification Policy
- SwimSwam Preview
- Day 1 Recap
- Results (when available)
Day two of the 2024 Irish Olympic Trials concluded from Dublin tonight with another name added to the nation’s roster for Paris.
We reported how National Training Centre Dublin swimmer Tom Fannon fired off a new lifetime best and Irish record of 21.94 to dip under the Olympic Qualification Time of 21.96. That shaved .01 off his previous career-quickest 21.95 registered at last year’s Irish Championships.
On his performance, Fannon told Swim Ireland, ‘I’m over the moon, speechless I can’t lie. I’m so happy that I stuck to the process and the outcome took care of itself. I’m just happy to be on the plane to the Olympics this Summer.’
Another swimmer came painstakingly close to Olympic qualification, as 25-year-old Conor Ferguson missed the cut by just .25 tonight in the men’s 100m back final.
After producing a heats swim of 53.87 yesterday to come within .13 of the 53.74 ‘A’ cut, Ferguson couldn’t replicate that caliber of effort, settling for 54.12 in last night’s semi-final followed by 53.99 in tonight’s main event.
Additional Notes
- Lottie Cullen topped the women’s 100m back final in a time of 1:00.96. Danielle Hill had already qualified for Paris with her earlier mark of 59.11 before she dropped the final. Hill did race the semi-final of the women’s 100m free where she clocked a time of 55.17 as the top seed.
- Nathan Wiffen scored a time of 7:54.69 in his quest for Paris qualification to join already-qualified twin brother Daniel Wiffen. He needed 7:51.65, however, to make the grade.
- Niamh Coyne was the fastest women’s 100m breaststroker in tonight’s semi-final, hitting 1:08.03 as the only one under 1:11.
- The men’s 100m butterfly semi-final saw newly-minted national record holder Max McCusker maintain his pole position in 52.43. That was off his morning effort of 51.90 but he still has tomorrow evening’s final to try for the OQT of 51.67.
- Finn McGeever logged a time of 1:49.36 to take 200m free gold, although Evan Bailey produced the fastest time in the event, a mark of 1:48.49 from yesterday’s heats.
Irish Olympic Qualifiers Through Day 2
- Danielle Hill – women’s 100m back
- Ellen Walshe – women’s 200m IM (2023 World Championships)
- Daniel Wiffen – men’s 400m, 800m free, 1500m free (2024 World Championships)
- Mona McSharry – women’s 100m breast
- Tom Fannon – men’s 50m free
