Davenport has changed coach three times since the Beijing Olympics

Derbyshire's Ross Davenport has stormed to the 200m freestyle title at the British Championships in Sheffield.

The 24-year-old set a lifetime best in 1:46.50, only three 100ths of a second off the national record, to book his place at July's World Championships.

"I don't like those sorts of races, they're not the sort you want to be in," Davenport told BBC Radio Derby.

"From a selfish point of view, you want to be in races you know you're going to win easily and that wasn't one."

He added: "I hate close races, but fortunately, by the end it wasn't as close as it could have been.

"It was an exciting race, there was quite a lot of pressure on it."

After disappointing at the Beijing Olympics, Davenport has changed coach three times in the last six months as he has sought an upturn in fortunes.

He was delighted to earn his place at the World Championships in Rome in the summer.

"I am pleased because I won the final, won gold and booked my ticket to Rome, and also because I got a personal best," he said.

"They have been hard to come by and to knock half a second off was really pleasing."

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