Jazz Carlin insists the hard work is far from over despite being named British Swimming Athlete of the Year for 2014.
The 24-year-old has enjoyed a 12 months to remember, including climbing the medal rostrum at Commonwealth, European and World level.
During the summer she became the first Welsh woman to win Commonwealth Games gold in the pool in 40 years when she claimed victory in the 800m freestyle in Glasgow while also taking silver in the 400m freestyle.
An impressive outing at the European Championships in Berlin then followed as she took double gold in the 400m and 800m freestyle, while she concluded her year with silver in the latter at the World Short Course Championships in Doha earlier this month.
And despite a stellar year for British swimmers, Carlin was the standout winner among the public, gathering 78% of the votes – although she has her eyes on further success in the coming years.
“It’s a real honour to have been voted British Swimming Athlete of the Year,” said Carlin who missed out on selection for London 2012. “Thank you to everyone that has voted for me.
“This year has been amazing but I am working hard for 2015 now and have my sights set on an Olympic spot in 2016.”
Head Coach Bill Furniss said: “Congratulations to Jazz on winning our first Athlete of the Year poll. She’s had a great year and worked hard.
“She performed well at the Commonwealth Games and then swam even better at the European Championships just a couple of weeks later.
“To take on the likes of world medallist Lauren Boyle at the Commonwealths and the likes of Mireira Belmonte at the Europeans was great to see.
“She showed real character in her victories and in Berlin not only did she race well but she paced her 800 perfectly.”
© Sportsbeat 2014