2026 MCCULLAGH INTERNATIONAL
- Friday, February 20th – Sunday, February 22nd
- Sport Ireland National Aquatic Centre, Dublin, Ireland
- LCM (50m)
- Meet Central
- Day 1 Recap
- Live Results
The 2026 McCullagh International entered day two from the Sport Ireland National Aquatic Centre in Dublin, with a battle taking place for gold in the men’s 200m freestyle.
Olympic medalists Jack McMillan and Duncan Scott duked it out in the final, with the former ultimately getting to the wall first in a time of 1:46.77.
Opening in 52.86 and closing in 53.91, 26-year-old McMillan held off Scott who settled for silver just under half a second behind in 1:47.26. Jack Cassin rounded out the podium in 1:51.45.
Both McMillan and Scott earned victories on night one, with McMillan topping the men’s 800 free podium and Scott taking the 200m fly.
As for this 2free event, McMillan’s effort here checked in as the 6th-swiftest time of his career, one which boasts a personal best of 1:45.28 from last year’s World Championships to be rendered GBR’s 5th-fastest man in history.
Scott’s lifetime best of 1:44.26 from earning silver at the 2020 Olympic Games behind teammate Tom Dean, a performance that made him the #2 GBR man of all time.
McMillan’s solid in-season swim this evening is a nice confidence boost with April’s all-important Aquatics GB Championships on the horizon. That competition represents the sole qualification opportunity for this year’s Commonwealth Games.
The women’s 200m free saw 25-year-old Tempelogue ace Ellen Walshe get the job done, registering the sole time of the field under the 2:00 barrier.
Walshe stopped the clock at 1:59.32 to get to the wall over a second ahead of her competitors.
Grace Davison, last night’s 100m free victor, snagged silver in 2:00.65 and Stirling’s Lucy Hope also landed on the podium in 2:01.74, good enough for bronze.
Walshe was back in the pool for the women’s 100m back where she found success once again. The Olympian produced a time of 1:01.28 to lead the charge.
Lottie Cullen was next to touch in 1:02.05 as Jena Macdougald placed 3rd in 1:03.56.
Additional Notes
- 21-year-old Ellie McCartney produced a time of 2:26.53 to win the women’s 200m breaststroke. She represented one of two swimmers who delved under the 2:30 benchmark. Kara Hanlon hit 2:29.78 followed by Maisie Brown who clocked 2:35.42.
- The women’s 50m fly saw Rosalie Phelan post 27.25 to grab the gold, with a pair of swimmers tying as co-silver medalists. Iceland’s Johanna Gudmundsdottir and Isabel Kidney turned in a simultaneous mark of 27.67.
- Stirling went 1-2 in the men’s edition of the 50m fly, with Benjamin Jeffreys taking the victory in 24.14. We had a tie in this race as well, with 18-year-old Stirling standout Dean Fearn and Dylan Registe sharing runner-up honors in 24.23.
- Finally, 19-year-old John Shortt of the host nation doubled up on his 50m back from last night, taking the win in the 100m tonight. He clinched gold in 54.36 for a healthy advantage over his competitors. Fearn earned another silver, logging 56.05 and Charlie Cassidy‘s time of 56.75 garnered him the bronze medal.
