Mona McSharry enjoying all the moments on the road to Paris

A second Olympic Games is just around the corner for Mona McSharry. An opportunity then to improve on the eighth-place finish in the 100m breaststroke final in Tokyo.

The ticket to Paris was secured last summer after the Sligo competitor smashed her previous Irish record for the event at the World Aquatics Championships in Japan.

McSharry swam a time of 1:05.55 seconds in the heats, with her previous best of 1:06.04 set at the Irish Championships the previous April.

And then a fortnight ago the 23-year-old clipped two seconds off her Irish record in the 200m breaststroke, when competing in Vancouver. She will also tackle the aforementioned event in the French capital, as well as the 400m medley relay.

With all the competitive stuff out of the way, the training continues for McSharry. She'll be back in Ireland on 14 July for a nine-day camp before heading to Paris.

Excitement as to what might transpire at the Aquatic Centre in Saint-Denis is certainly driving McSharry, satisfied that preparations have gone well as she dreams of winning that Olympic medal.

"I'm always trying to do better than I did before," she told RTÉ Sport.

"So for the 200m that’s qualify for a semi and better. And then for the 100m that’s better than eighth place. That’s the goal that I would try and set for myself. I know that once you make it into the final, it’s who can get their hands on the wall first.

"It’s rare that you see best times in finals, it’s usually just about who’s mentally and physically ready to just go for that 100m and doesn’t let the nerves take over. Once I get to the final I’ll just try and get my hands on the wall above as many people as possible and hopefully that’s top three.

"If it’s not, I know I’ve given my best but I’m definitely