ACHIEVING her aims at this month’s British Summer Championships would make 2018 one of Ellie Turner’s top years in the pool so far.

But, while the Carnegie Swimming Club star has her eye on making some finals at Ponds Forge, she’s determined not to put herself under too much pressure at a competition that will bring the country’s best age group swimmers together.

Ellie, 15, will travel to Sheffield on July 24 to take part in the event for a third time, having won 200 metres and 400m individual medley bronze medals 12 months ago in the women’s 13/14 years age category.

The medals have continued to arrive for the Woodmill High School pupil throughout this year, which has included five gold at the Scottish National Age Group Championships, three gold and a silver at the East District Open Championships, and a landmark silver in the 200m backstroke in her first British junior final at the Edinburgh International Swim Meet in March.

A member of the Scotland Youth Squad, Ellie was also selected to compete in the Geneva International Challenge in January – her second competition abroad – and hopes to cap a fine season when she competes in six events at the long course meet.

When asked whether meeting her targets at the British would mean this has been her best year so far, Ellie said: “Probably.

“This year has been a lot better than last year so I just want to see how everything goes.

“I’ve got six events – all the backstrokes, both IMs (individual medley) and the 50m butterfly – and I want to try and make some finals. I’m confident about some of them but I’ll just have to see when I get there.

“There are a lot more people who you don’t know, and that you don’t know what they’re going to be like, so it’s a bit different.

“I want to get better and improve. I just want to keep swimming well and swim well at the British and see how I do there; I don’t want to put any long-term goals on me or put too much pressure on myself.”

Other achievements have included winning a gold and a silver in both the Scottish Schools Swimming Championships and the Scottish Schools Relay Championships, while she has met the target times for inclusion in next year’s Scotland Youth Squad.

When asked for a season’s highlight so far, she added: “Probably the Scottish nationals because it’s a long competition and having to make sure you keep going between all five days, which I did this year.

“In January, I went to Geneva with the youth squad and it was good going to a different country and competing.

“You don’t know anyone and everything seems to be different, like the racing’s different and the pool’s different, but it’s good to go and see what it’s like.”

The British Summer Championships will be held from July 24-29.