The first provincial swimming competition in Ireland since the start of the pandemic took place over the weekend in Belfast.

The Ulster Short Course Championship 2021 was hosted by Swim Ulster at the new eight-lane Lisnasharragh Leisure Centre over three days, with heats in the morning and finals in the evening.

Enniskillen swimmer Ellie McCartney – who now swims for the Ards SC – returned with three Ulster Senior titles, two Silver medals, two Bronze medals, and – astonishingly – her first Irish Senior record along with her teammates in one of the relays.

On day one, Ellie swam two individual events and a relay for Ards.

The morning session saw her finish as the top seed in both the 200m Breaststroke and 200m Individual Medley, and swimming the second leg of the 4 x 50m Female Team Relay.

The Ards team finished top with Gold in a time of 1:44.72 – a new Ulster and Irish Senior record.

When the swimmers returned for the finals, Ellie smashed her 200m Breaststroke personal best from three years ago by more than three seconds to finish in 2:29.42, to retain the cup she has held since 2017.

The 16-year-old then posted another fantastic PB by almost four seconds to win the 200m IM in a time of 2:17.94, and be awarded another Swim Ulster cup.

The following morning saw Ellie swim two more individual events: 100m Breaststroke, and 100m IM.

The morning session also contained the 4 x 50m Mixed Medley relay, where the Ards team finished third to take Bronze, with Ellie swimming the Breaststroke Leg.

Later that day, Ellie achieved another PB in an exciting 100m Breaststroke final to win Gold, and her third Ulster Senior title in a time of 1:11.30.

Four minutes later, the delighted swimmer was back in the pool contesting the 100m IM final, and swam to second place for a Silver medal.

On the final day, Ellie swam the 50m Breaststroke and 100m Freestyle, achieving fantastic PBs in both events, including breaking the one-minute barrier for the first time in 100m Freestyle.

When she returned for the finals, Ellie secured another 50m Breaststroke PB of 32.75 to collect another Silver medal.

Some 20 minutes later, she swam 58.13 in the 100m Freestyle to finish fifth-fastest in the event.

The teen swimmer is looking forward to the Irish Short-Course Championships next month in Dublin.