Danielle Hill claims European gold in 'nice confidence booster' ahead of Paris Olympics

Hill became the first Irish female swimmer to claim a gold medal in a senior European Championships (50m) in 27 years.

She etched her name into the Irish swimming history books with a time of 27.73 in the final to earn her first international medal.

It was also the first European Championship medal in a long-course pool since Shane Ryan’s bronze in 2018.

Northern Ireland swimmer Danielle Hill won gold in the Women's 50m Backstroke at the European Aquatics Championships in Belgrade

The 24-year-old edged out Theodora Drakou of Greece for the gold medal by just 0.14 seconds while Poland’s Adela Piskorska was third.

“That was goosebumps right there,” said Hill. “I think it will take a while to sink but with five weeks out from Paris it is a really nice confidence boost for me.

“It was about ironing out anything that needed to be finalised ahead of Paris, it’s pretty nice.

“I’ve a full team at home who I know are a little bit late going into the session because they were all sitting watching me,” she added.

“Everything that Team Larne has created these past years hasn’t been one or two years, it’s been 12 years of hard work to get to this point.

“Peter (Larne Head Coach) can’t be here but it’s all down to his hard work, he is the man behind all this.”

Hill said she was ‘proud’ to have the opportunity to inspire younger generations of swimmers.

“I’m so proud, it’s probably the main reason I’m involved in swimming,” she continued.

“Money, medals, whatever it is nice, if I can inspire a little kid, male or female, then that will be my job done in this sport.

“The nerves are still there, I don’t really believe what I’ve done but I’ve a 100m backstroke tomorrow, so unfortunately, I’ve got to pack this and see what we can do tomorrow morning.”

Hill headed to the blocks as hot favourite coming through the rounds as top seed in both the heats and semi-final.

As the start signal went off, Hill let go of the backstroke ledges the quickest with a reaction time of 0.51, holding onto the lead throughout as she blazed down the water for one length, getting the better of Drakou in a close finish to lift the European crown.