Fisu Athlete stories: Anna Hopkin – Swimming – 29th Summer Universiade 2017, Taipei, Chinese Taipei

Taipei – University of Bath student Anna Hopkin celebrated her upcoming 21st birthday in style by winning 50m freestyle gold at the 2017 British Swimming Championships in Sheffield.

Hopkin, who studies Sport & Exercise Science, set a new personal best of 25.07 as she beat Olympic silver-medallist and fellow Sports Training Village-based swimmer Siobhan-Marie O’Connor to the sprint title on Thursday.

“It feels amazing, it’s a really great feeling,” said Hopkin, who is part of Mark Skimming’s training group. “I began to tie up a bit at the end but I got my head down and got to the wall.
“I’m still improving, which is great, and I have a lot to work on. I’m turning 21 on Monday so to do this is the best birthday present.”