Ellen Walshe breaks Michelle Smith De Bruin's 28-year Irish record

Ellen Walshe broke a 28-year-old Irish record with a superb swim in the 400m medley at the Leinster Championships.

Walshe's time of 4:37.94 knocked over a second off the time posted by Michelle Smith de Bruin at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

It’s not Walshe's first time breaking a Smith record, having also beaten her 1994 short course 400m medley record at the 2021 World Championships.

Today's swim was Walshe’s first venture under the 4.40 mark, with her previous best sitting at 4:41.30 from the Mare Nostrum Swim Tour in Barcelona in 2023.

The Templeogue athlete’s time was under the Olympic qualification standard of 4:38.53, but she’ll need to replicate something similar Irish Open and Olympic Trials later this month to make the Paris Games.

Walshe has already qualified the 200m individual medley event in Paris.