FROM a young age, Ellie McCartney showed signs of being something special in the pool. Affectionately nicknamed ‘Bob’ by her family because of the way she’d bob up and down doing lengths as a youngster, 17-year-old McCartney is most certainly fulfilling her potential.
From her father Terry teaching her to swim at 4 years of age by “throwing me into the deep end and seeing if I would float,” she laughed, to recently being the youngest member of the Irish team at the European Senior Championships in Italy, the Enniskillen girl continues to be one to watch on the international stage.
Last year, at only 16 years old, McCartney made a huge move in a bid to further her swimming aspirations. She moved to Bangor on a full-time basis to join Ards Swimming Club, meaning she had to switch schools too. While it took some readjustment, the benefits have been huge says the former Enniskillen Lakelander swimmer;
“I’m part of the National Performance Centre, so there’s a good relationship with Sport NI and the National Centre. So, I’ll have access to far better facilities than I would back home.
“Every day I’m training in an Olympic size pool, I have access to physios, there’s strength and conditioning coaches. It’s just a lot more opportunity to allow me to maximise my potential, which if I’d stayed at home I would never have known what that could’ve been.”
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