Daniel Wiffen selected as the Best Male Swimmer at the World Aquatics Championships

Daniel Wiffen, who won gold in both the 800m and 1500m freestyle events at the World Aquatic Championships has also been named the Best Male Swimmer at the championships in Doha.

Hailing from Magheralin, Co Down, the Irish swimmer has the fifth fastest time ever recorded in the 1500m freestyle. His superb time of 14:34.07 was more than enough for Wiffen to win the gold medal comfortably. The gold medals were the first ever won by an Irish male swimmer.

In the 1500m race, Wiffen took a strong lead over his opponents in the first 150m and held a 20m lead over the course of the race. After the race, Wiffen spoke to Swim Ireland about how delighted he was by the outcome of the race.

"That race was definitely better for me, I pb’d (personal best). I’m so happy, because after hitting that time in April (2023), it could have been a fluke, I went 14:35 at the under 23’s (Dublin, August 2023) in my home town. Obviously coming here, the progression from the 400m to the 800m to the 1500m today, I’m just so happy to come away with a pb and two world titles."

On top of his gold medals, the hugely accomplished swimmer was named Best Male Swimmer at the competition. Being just 22 years old means that Wiffen is only at the start of his top-level swimming career and will be competing for years to come.

The world record for the 1500m freestyle is currently held by Sun Yang with a time of 14:31.02. Wiffen is aiming to break this record.

Wiffen claimed the world record for the 800m freestyle short-course event back in January, at the European Short Course Championships in Romania. In an interview with Hot Press’s Lucy O’Toole, he said: “When I was younger, I just knew what I wanted, and I worked everyday towards it – I put in the work.”

Even when others did not see his potential, Wiffen believed in his own talent.

“If you talked to anyone when I was younger, they’d probably have said that I had no potential," he told Lucy. "The other day, I asked one of the coaches, who has known me since I was 14, ‘Did you ever think I was going to break a world record?’ And he was like, ‘No, I honestly just thought you’d be good nationally'. That was the same, even going through the youth programmes. I don’t think they ever saw anything special in me.”

But special he has proven to be – and then some...

The Best Female Swimmer award went to Claire Curzan, an American swimmer who took home four gold medals, a silver and bronze medal.