Jefimova, who was a year and a half younger than all other finalists, finished with a time of 1.07,24. She was followed in a close duel by Russian swimmer Elena Bogomolova, who finished just a hundredth slower than Jefimova. Polish swimmer Karolina Piechowicz was third, 1,69 seconds behind the Estonian.

Jefimova said that while she came out with a gold medal on Sunday, there is still room for improvement. "Honestly, everything could be better and faster in terms of swimming, but getting first place is good and I am happy. But from a swimming perspective, there were many mistakes that could be improved upon," the swimmer told ERR.

Jefimova said she thought she was further away from the Russian in their duel for gold. "I got a little scared at the 50 m turn, because she had moved so far ahead. But after I caught up with her, I did not see her anymore and thought I was pretty far from, but she was actually just a hundredth off."

The Estonian was pleased with her performance at the junior championships and added that sufficient rest time was behind her success.

Speaking to Vikerraadio's Johannes Vedru, Jefimova said the mental pressure was about the same as it was for the adult European championships she participated in in May. "All competitions are the same to me mentally, doesn't matter if they are Estonian championships or the juniors' European championships," the 14-year old gold medalist said.

Jefimova will travel to Tokyo soon to participate in the Olympic Games.