After rubbing shoulders with her idols at the national selection trials earlier this year, the Year 11 Daramalan College student proved her dedication is paying off, winning six events at last week's ACT Schools swimming championships at the Australian Institute of Sport.

The 16-year-old took out the 50 metres butterfly (30.03 seconds), 50m breaststroke (36.17s), 100m breaststroke (1:19.12), 50m freestyle (28.77s), 100m freestyle (1:03.21s) and 200m individual medley (2:30.71s) in the girls 15-16 years division, while also finishing second in the 50m backstroke and 100m butterfly. Those victories have booked Kosev a place at the national schools championships to be held in Sydney in July.

Kosev competed in the heats of the 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke and 50m butterfly at the Olympic selection trials in Adelaide in March, competing alongside the likes of Jones and Leiston Pickett.

Pickett went on to win the 50m and 100m breaststroke titles while Jones finished runner-up in the 100m breaststroke to qualify for her fourth Olympic Games.

''It was a really amazing experience, just incredible to be around them and to be in the same race as them,'' Kosev said.

''[It was great] to see what it's like to race at that elite level.

''It's good to be able to compare yourself to someone who has been at such a high level for such a long time. It's a good indicator and really motivational as well.''

That's exactly what she needs to deal with her hectic training schedule. Under the guidance of Ginninderra Swimming Club coach Cameron Gledhill, Kosev does between seven and nine sessions per week in the pool, often starting at 6am. She also fits in a couple of gym sessions a week in order to reach her goal of qualifying for the 2016 Olympic Games.

''It's definitely something you have to get used to and you have to be committed to in order to succeed,'' Kosev said of the early starts.

Peeter Mirlieb, Andrew Catchpole, Courtney Taylor, Andrea Forshaw, Stephanie Wise, Breana Gilroy, Bethany Colquhoun, Dominik Turner and Skinny Gavel also dominated their respective divisions.