Cumbrian swimming star Luke Greenbank broke his own British record as he took silver at the European Short Course Championships.

The Cockermouth swimmer finished a thrilling men’s 200m backstroke final in a time of 1:48:53.

It saw him pipped to gold by just one tenth of a second by Italian Lorenzo Mora.

But Greenbank’s podium place still represented an excellent showing as he lowered the previous British best time of 1:48:65, a mark which had stood for three years.

The 26-year-old Cumbrian was delighted with his performance as he heads towards what could be a defining year with the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris on the horizon.

“It was a very close one tonight but I can’t complain with a PB - I executed the race plan exactly how I wanted to and I’m pretty happy with that,” said Greenbank, speaking to British Swimming after the race in Romania.

“It’s good to be back racing after a little bit of time out, and now I finally feel like I’m coming back to my best for the first time since the Olympic year.

“I’m really enjoying it which is the main thing and this is an excellent starting point heading into 2024.”

Greenbank had been fastest in qualifying for the final in Otapeni, winning both his heat and semi-final.

The Cockermouth star also finished fifth in a strong showing in the European event.

The double Olympic medallist is on good form having also won the men’s 200m backstroke at the recent Rotterdam Qualification meet.

His return to form comes towards the end of a year when he missed out on qualification for the World Championships.

Greenbank, whose formative swimming years were spent at Cockermouth Swimming Club, won a silver and bronze at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and will be aiming for more success in 2024.