It was a successful 2023 for Enniskillen swimmer, Ellie McCartney and she hopes the progress she has made in the last 12 months continues in 2024.

Her exploits in the swimming pool all over the world saw her take to the podium on numerous occasions.

From Serbia to Trinidad and Tobago and all in between, Ellie showed why she is one of the brightest prospects in Swim Ireland’s arsenal.

Having started her swimming journey in the Lakeland Forum, it is now the University of Limerick (UL) where she hones her skills as part of the Swim Ireland National Centre set-up.

It was the natural progression for Ellie who had been based in Bangor at the National Centre (Ulster) and represented Ards Swimming Club where she enjoyed plenty of success.

Speaking of the move to Limerick, Ellie said: “It’s a bit of a change in the training plan and then instead of balancing A- Levels, I’m balancing a degree so it’s a bit different, a bit more flexible.

“Whenever I’m away at competitions or things the deadlines are a bit more flexible than they were at school.

“Within [the Swimming] centres they give you the most amount of training time and facilities for gym, strength and conditioning and they have physios and nutritionists on site.

“So I think they’re the best option if you’re training in Ireland, which is why I went from one to another.

“Unfortunately in Bangor, there’s no university there. So I didn’t really have the option to stay there unless I was travelling to Belfast every day but in Limerick, it’s all on campus.”

Ellie, who is studying Sport and Exercise Science, is part of a scholarship programme with UL, a university that has a huge focus on sport.

She currently houses with other swimmers and she believes it helps being part of a group all on the same path.

“I definitely thrive in at the moment. I think I’d struggle if I was doing it by myself.

“It helps being surrounded by everyone who is doing the same thing and you know you all help each other and because we’re all in the same house, if someone has slept in you go up and knock on their door and drag them out of bed.

“There’s no shortcuts being taken. You hold each other accountable.”

With 5.30am starts, being dragged out of bed may be needed on plenty of occasions. But that is the life for Ellie and the other swimmers who are maximising their potential: “It’s about 20 hours a week in the pool. The alarm goes off at 5.30am every morning, and then you have to be at the pool at 6am where you do half an hour of dry land.

“And then you get into the water and train for two hours and then head back to the house where you get your breakfast and then head to class or wherever you need to be.

“Then you’re back in the water for 4pm for another two hours,” explained Ellie who added: “Then it’s three times a week in the gym after the pool session on top of that.”

It is this type of application that has seen Ellie have one of the most successful years of her swimming career in 2023.

“It started in Serbia, at the European Junior Championships where I managed, to get bronze for Ireland.”

This was in the 200m individual Medley and was her first international medal.

“I think I was the fifth ever person to do so, which was pretty exciting. To get Ireland on the medal table was nice.”

This type of form continued for Ellie in Trinidad and Tobago at the Commonwealth Youth Games where she picked up two gold medals, in the 200m Individual Medley and 200m Breaststroke, and a bronze in the 100m Breaststroke.

She admitted after the games she was surprised with her success which helped Team NI to finish fifth in the medal table.

In the Individual Medley, she was part of a Team NI 1-2 finish with Grace Davison, which made a bit of history for Team NI.

“Last year whenever I was based in Bangor, we did train together a couple times a week so we were always racing each other in the pool and then to go over there and be in a competition and be one and two was pretty fun.

“Northern Ireland is such a small region in that competition because we’re competing against the likes of Canada and Australia which are huge compared to Northern Ireland.

“So to be one and two on the podium was pretty unique.”

Add into that having her family supporting her and it made it even more special. With the support from back home as well, Ellie said it was “lovely to see”.

European Short Course

At the end of 2023, Ellie continued to showcase her talent and determination at her first International Senior Short Course Meet at the European Championships in Romania.

In the 50m Breaststroke, McCartney demonstrated her speed and skill by completing the race in an impressive time of 32.05 seconds, earning her a 25th-place finish among top European swimmers. She continued her excellent performance in the 100m Breaststroke, setting a personal best time of 1:07.50, which secured her 26th place in Europe.

In the 200m Individual Medley (IM), clocking a remarkable time of 2:11.99. Her impressive swim secured her a spot in the semi-finals and broke the 11-year-old Ulster Senior record by 0.4 seconds. McCartney’s determination continued as she competed in the semi-finals, achieving another Ulster Senior record with a time of 2:11.72. This accomplishment earned her a place in her first European Senior final.

The final took place the following evening, where McCartney faced a strong field of competitors, including her teammate and Tokyo Olympian, Ellen Walshe. Despite being one of the youngest finalists, Ellie McCartney swam another outstanding race, ultimately finishing as the eighth fastest in Europe. Her performance in her first senior international final was an incredible testament to the swimmer.

It is all the more remarkable when it takes into account she was meant to be using it as part of her development.

“I was using this as a training bloc. There wasn’t much of a rest going into the competition and then coming off of competing in Romania and straight into competing in Dublin [for the Irish Winter Championships]. And so it’s all about learning and travelling with the senior team. I had Ellen Walshe in my final. It was nice to have another Irish face. It’s not often you get two Irish people in a final. So it [was] definitely about learning things from her and other older members of the team itself.”

And the success seen by the Ireland team in Romania was looked at after the competition as Ellie explained: “We spoke about this at the end of the European Championships. We had a team meeting and I think our performance director was just in awe. It’s easily been Ireland’s most successful swimming year.

“Last time we went to the European Short Course as a team, there was only a handful of finals and semi-finals.

“And then this time we had a world record and then multiple medals and multiple finalists.

“So I think Ireland’s swimming has never been at the standard it has been before. So it’s an exciting thing to be a part of.”

The year was not over yet for Ellie, who picked up more medals and broke the Ulster Senior record in the 200m Individual Medley.

If 2023 was Ellie’s best year yet, she is hoping 2024 can get even better.

She is straight into training before heading to the Flanders Cup in Belgium as she expects to compete every month.

The Olympics in Paris may be a bit too early on her radar but 2028 is a possibility: “You don’t know what’s going to happen between now and then. I think everybody would like to go to the Olympics.

“But other than that it’s just taking it year by year and seeing what happens and seeing how close you can get it eventually.”

And with plenty of competition and Swim Ireland being in such a strong place, Ellie is determined to continue to be part of that success.

“It’s something the swimmers thrive on seeing each other’s success. It helps to see a small nation do so well.”