Danielle Hill (swimmer)

Danielle Hill
Personal information
NationalityIrish, Northern Irish
Born (1999-09-27) 27 September 1999 (age 25)
Belfast, Northern Ireland[1]
Home townNewtownabbey, County Antrim
Sport
SportSwimming
StrokesBackstroke, Freestyle
ClubLarne
Medal record
Women's swimming
Representing  Ireland
European Championships (LC)
Gold medal – first place 2024 Belgrade 50 m backstroke
Silver medal – second place 2024 Belgrade 100 m backstroke

Danielle Hill (born 27 September 1999) is an Irish swimmer from Northern Ireland. She is the 2024 European champion in the 50 metre backstroke. She represented Ireland at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics. She has broken multiple Irish national records.

Career

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On 24 June 2021, Hill set a new Irish national record with a time of 1:00.18 in the 100 metre backstroke, simultaneously posting an Olympic qualifying time for the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics.[1] There, she finished 25th in the 100 metre backstroke heats with a time of 1:00.86.[2] Additionally, she competed in the 50 metre freestyle and finished 33rd in the heats.[3]

At the 2022 Irish Championships, Hill broke her own national record in the 100 metre freestyle with a time of 54.87 to win the gold medal. She also won the 50 metre backstroke, 50 metre freestyle, 50 metre butterfly, 100 metre backstroke, and 200 metre backstroke.[4] She represented Northern Ireland at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and finished seventh in both the 50 metre freestyle and the 50 metre backstroke.[5][6]

Hill became the first Irish swimmer to swim the 100 metre backstroke in under a minute at the 2024 Irish Championships.[7] Additionally, she cleared the qualifying time for the 2024 Summer Olympics.[8] She then won the gold medal in the 50 metre backstroke at the 2024 European Championships, becoming Ireland’s first European long course champion since 1997.[7][9] She also won a silver medal in the 100 metre backstroke behind Poland's Adela Piskorska.[10]

Hill represented Ireland at the 2024 Summer Olympics. In the 50 metre freestyle, she finished 21st in the heats.[11] She qualified for the semifinals in the 100 metre backstroke and finished 16th.[12] She also competed on the 4 × 100 metre medley relay and 4 × 100 metre freestyle relay teams that finished 11th and 16th, repectively.[13][14]

Hill won the 50 metre freestyle and 50 metre backstroke at the 2025 Irish Championships and earned qualifying times for the 2025 World Championships.[15]

Major Results

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Olympic Results
Year 50m

Free

100m

Back

4x100m

Medley Relay

4x100m

Free Relay

2020 33rd 25th
2024 21st 16th 11th 16th
World Championship Results
Year 50m

Free

50m

Back

50m

Fly

100m

Back

100m

Free

4x100m

Free Relay

4x100m

Medley Relay

2021 (25m) 22nd 14th 25th 31st
2023 30th 10th 30th 27th 15th 13th
2024 (25m) 18th 11th 19th 26th
European Championship Results
Year 50m

Back

100m

Back

50m

Free

100m

Free

4x100m

Medley Relay

4x100m

Free Relay

Mixed 4x100m

Medley Relay

2020 11th 12th
2022 14th 21st 22nd 22nd 11th
2024 1st place, gold medalist(s) 2nd place, silver medalist(s)

References

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  1. ^ a b "Danielle Hill". Tokyo 2020. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  2. ^ "Women's 100m Backstroke: Results Summary" (PDF). Tokyo 2020. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  3. ^ "Swimming Women's 50m Freestyle Heats" (PDF). Tokyo 2020. 30 July 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  4. ^ "Danielle Hill: Larne swimmer ends Irish Open meet with six titles". BBC Sport. 21 April 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  5. ^ "Aquatics - Swimming Women's 50m Freestyle Final" (PDF). Birmingham 2022. 31 July 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  6. ^ "Aquatics - Swimming Women's 50m Backstroke Final" (PDF). Birmingham 2022. 3 August 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  7. ^ a b "Danielle Hill". Olympic Federation of Ireland. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  8. ^ "Danielle Hill Fires Off Irish 59.11 100 Back Record, Qualifies For Paris 2024". SwimSwam. 22 May 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  9. ^ "'Really nice confidence booster for Paris' - Hill". BBC Sport. 20 June 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  10. ^ "Danielle Hill wins second medal of European Championships". The Irish Times. 22 June 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
  11. ^ "Swimming Women's 50m Freestyle Heats" (PDF). International Olympic Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 August 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
  12. ^ Penland, Spencer (29 July 2024). "2024 Paris Olympics: Day 3 Finals Live Recap". SwimSwam. Archived from the original on 15 January 2025. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  13. ^ "Swimming Women's 4 x 100m Medley Relay Heats Results" (PDF). International Olympic Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 August 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
  14. ^ "Swimming Women's 4 x 100m Medley Relay Heats Results" (PDF). International Olympic Committee. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 August 2024. Retrieved 18 December 2024.
  15. ^ "Wiffen wins third gold but misses out on record". BBC Sport. 16 April 2025. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
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