The Etobicoke swimming star earned her berth Tuesday night when she finished first at 4:42:82 in the women's 400-metre individual medley at the CN Swimming Trials Olympic selection meet in Montreal.

"I don't think I've ever been so nervous in my life," said Komarnycky Wednesday afternoon from her Montreal hotel room. "I couldn't even nap in the afternoon. Winning is all I thought about.

"I've been wanting this for years upon years. It all just fell into place. I couldn't believe it."

Komarnycky joined seven other Canadian swimmers to book a ticket to Beijing on the first night of trials, which run through Sunday.

That's nearly half the team of 20 swimmers who represented Canada with a disappointing showing in the 2004 Athens Olympics.

The 18-year-old's win came down to the last five metres of the race as Brantford, Ont.'s Tanya Hunks pulled ahead of the pack in the breaststroke leg, but lost steam and was outlapped by Komarnycky.

The 400-metre IM is Komarnycky's specialty. "I've been working on it for years."

The local teen has been a member of the Etobicoke Swim Club since she first took to the water at age five.

Komarnycky is now a three-time national champion, taking her first Canadian title at age 15.

Joining the Silverthorn Collegiate student as an Olympic rookie is her friend, Victoria, B.C.'s Ryan Cochrane, who smashed the Canadian record at 3:47:92 in the men's 400-metre freestyle event Tuesday night.

Cochrane's time destroyed rival Andrew Hurd's old mark by more than a second and gives him three national records.

Komarnycky earned her Canadian Olympic team slot after rigorous training two and four hours on alternating days. During the past three months, she beat her best 400 IM time by eight seconds.

"I'm so excited," Komarnycky said of heading to Beijing. "I'm going to be so nervous. The Olympics has been my dream ever since I can remember."