Ireland’s Ellen Walshe has won a sensational 200m butterfly gold at the European Short Course Championships in Lublin, Poland.

The Templeogue woman produced a storming finish in the last 25 metres to take victory, becoming the first Irishwoman to win a European short course title. She had already claimed silver in the 200m medley, and goes in another final at 7.34pm tonight in the 400m individual medley.

Walshe touched the wall in 2:03.24 ahead of Denmark’s Helena Rosendahl Bach (2:03.55) and the Italian Anita Gastaldi (2:04.07).

Team Ireland have now won seven medals at the meet.

In this morning’s 400m IM heat, Walshe was battling for fourth for the first 200m before moving up to third at 225m.

With only two competitors from each country allowed to go through to the final, the Irish woman would have been aware that staying close to the top might be enough behind the dominant Alba Vazquez Ruiz of Spain.

But Walshe kept pushing and was up to second by the 325m mark, holding that spot and hitting the wall in 4:34:60.

It saw her progress with the fourth fastest time, but the third fastest of the eventual qualifiers owing to the quirk which only allows two swimmers per nation to advance.

Paula Gonzalez Miralles, who finished second in the first heat, didn’t advance being the third fastest of her countrywomen across the two heats.

Vazquez Ruiz, the winner of Walshe’s heat, was the fastest overall with a time of 4:32:56, with Emma Carrasco Cadens, who won the first heat, second fastest overall with a time of 4:34:18.

“I just wanted to get myself back into a comfortable middle lane for tonight,” Walshe said afterwards.

“I knew I had the 400 since I came into the meet, so I knew I was going to have to be ready on day six in the morning to perform.

“I think I did a decent job this morning to get myself in a decent place for tonight.”

Elsewhere today, Ireland did not advance in the Men’s 4x50m medley heat after finishing fourth. It was only the 15th fastest time of the three heats, with the eight fastest going through.

Ireland’s time was 1:35:03, with Germany the fastest qualifier in 1:32:48, and Spain eighth in 1:33.18.

The team consisted of John Shortt, Eoin Corby, Jack Cassin and Evan Bailey.