JAY Lelliott has been having a ball on both sides of the Atlantic, even if he did miss out on the chance of competing against his idol and Olympic legend Michael Phelps.

Meets in Austin, Texas and Belgium over the last few weeks saw Portland ace Lelliott blow away the cobwebs with a couple of new personal bests.

Lelliott, who turns 21 next Monday, loved his time in the USA, though it could have been that little bit more memorable.

He was due to swim in the same race as hero Phelps, the most decorated Olympian ever with 18 gold medals, before the American pulled out.

“I didn’t quite get to race him in the 200m fly,” said Lelliott. “We were both in the 200m freestyle but he was in the A race and I was in the B race.

“He was my idol growing up which meant it was a massive shame that it didn’t happen.

“It would have been my dream to take on Michael Phelps but there’s not much I could do about it.

“The 200m fly is not one of my major events so I’m not too sure it will ever happen now.”

That aside, Lelliott still got to go up against a number of big names in Austin, at what was the Dorset ace’s first long-course event of the season.

Racing six events in Texas, Lelliott set lifetime bests in the 100m freestyle and 200m backstroke.

In Belgium, Lelliott swam 21 seconds quicker in the 1,500m free than he had in the States.

His time in that discipline was 0.4 seconds faster than the 
mark he posted when qualifying for the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

“I haven’t been 100 per cent lately so I’m happy to swim the times I have been,” he added. “And I’m really happy with the way things are going.

“I know what I need to work on and I’ve got a game plan in my head which I’m going to run through with my coach.”

The aim for Lelliott this year, like it is for Phelps, is to qualify for the Olympics in Rio.

If selected, Phelps would be appearing in his fifth Games since making his debut as a 15-year-old in Sydney.

To date he has picked up a record 22 medals, four more than Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina, and 10 more than the next best swimmer, fellow American Jenny Thompson.