Swim England Competitive Swimming Hub
Strong medal performances for DiSE athletes at McCullagh International
February 26, 2026Swim England’s DiSE athletes delivered an impressive weekend of performances at the McCullagh International Open Meet 2026. Held at the Sport Ireland National Aquatic Centre in Dublin, Ireland from 20–22 February, the team had three successful days of intense racing.
Competing against a strong international field of clubs and programmes, the DiSE squad finished fourth overall in the combined team standings out of 55 teams with a total of 178 points.
Strong performances in the distance events were a key feature of the weekend. In the 19&Over 1500m Freestyle, Dante Sinnott finished first in his age category in a time of 16:29.07, the third fastest time recorded overall across the meet for the distance. In these heat declared winner events, with the fastest heat recognised as the final, Sinnott added a second podium finish with a third-place result in the 19&Over 800m Freestyle in 8:40.63.
Further success in the 1500m Freestyle came with Benjamin Ross securing second place in the 17–18 age category in 16:27.50, while Daniel Walker added another podium finish in the 19&Over category, placing third with a time of 16:59.66.
Relay events also delivered podium success for the DiSE cohort. The Female 4x100m Medley relay team of Gabrielle Freeman, Maisie Brown, Niamh Savory and Rebecca Coogan placed second in 4:25.39, while the Men’s 4x200m Freestyle relay team of Samuel Williams, Harrison Shaw, Leo Nichols and Elliot Lawton finished third in 8:00.30. Another relay medal came in the Mixed 4x100m Medley relay, where Harrison Shaw, Maisie Brown, Mario Vasconcellos-Blanch and Rebecca Coogan placed third in 4:17.00.
In the individual events, Lexie O’Connor secured a third-place finish in the 400m Individual Medley in 5:04.92, while Maisie Brown added another podium performance with third place in the 200m Breaststroke in 2:35.42.
These performances contributed significantly to Swim England DiSE’s strong overall fourth-place finish at one of Ireland’s premier early-season long-course meets.
Roll of honour (top 10 finishes)
4th place
Roman Levchenko – 200m IM – 2:09.73
Lexie O’Connor – 200m IM – 2:23.28
Jack Pritchard – 19&Over 1500m Freestyle – 17:15.20
Daniel Walker – 19&Over 800m Freestyle – 8:44.39
Benjamin Ross – 17–18 800m Freestyle – 8:42.79
5th place
Niamh Savory – 400m IM – 5:06.93
Niamh Savory – 200m IM – 2:26.63
Jackson Schwiderski – 17–18 800m Freestyle – 8:45.92
6th place
Edun Rowe – 17–18 800m Freestyle – 8:48.55
Jack Pritchard – 19&Over 800m Freestyle – 8:56.36
7th place
Men’s 4x100m Medley Relay (Harrison Shaw, Benjamin Dale-Wood, Mario Vasconcellos-Blanch, Timothy Jones) – 4:02.62
Maisie Brown – 400m IM – 5:09.21
Gabrielle Freeman – 200m Backstroke – 5:15.12
Danielle Siong – 50m Breaststroke – 32.65
8th place
Harrison Shaw – 400m Freestyle – 4:48.41
Olivia O’Mahony – 50m Freestyle – 27.19
Niamh Savory – 200m Breaststroke – 2:42.67
9th place
Olivia O’Mahony – 200m IM – 2:28.21
Gabrielle Freeman – 400m IM – 5:15.12
Lexie O’Connor – 200m Breaststroke – 2:43.91
Benjamin Dale-Wood – 50m Freestyle – 53.26
10th place
Harrison Shaw – 200m IM – 2:16.24
Lilly Davis – 400m IM – 5:15.54
Rebecca Coogan – 200m Freestyle – 2:10.76
