Canadians are absolutely crushing it in the pool. While historically we tend to win most when the water is frozen, our current Canadian swim team is really changing that. Growing up, we used to celebrate when a Canadian made a final, but now we’re storming the podium and coming up with Gold, Silver, and Bronze against swimming powerhouses like Australia and the USA. Our team is currently bringing home the hardware at the Commonwealth Games, with an exciting young team that is intermixed with experience in the form of previous World Record holders and Olympic Gold medallists. Here are a few to highlight on the Canadian Commonwealth swim team!
Summer McIntosh
Perhaps the most exciting young name on the team is Summer McIntosh, who at 15 has won Gold at Worlds in the 200m butterfly and 400m individual medley, and Gold in the 400m and 200m individual medley at the Commonwealth Games. She doesn’t set time goals, because she doesn’t want to limit herself, and is dramatically dropping huge increments from her time from meet-to-meet. It’s Summer season and I am here for it.
Joshua Liendo Edwards
Joshua Liendo Edwards is really surging to the forefront of the world’s best swimmers now, having just taken home Gold in the 100m butterfly at the Commonwealth Games and bronze at Worlds, as well as bronze in the 100m freestyle. He’s just getting started and I’m so looking forward to see how he continues to battle to the top of the field.
Maggie Mac Neil
The 100m butterfly queen. Olympic Champion Maggie Mac Neil nails the dolphin kick like no other. She could be behind at the first 50m, but once she turns at the wall, she torpedos herself forward and often pops out ahead. I don’t know anything about swimming technique, but she seems to stay underwater bit longer than her competitors and it’s always fun to see her suddenly surge ahead in the last 50m. I never count her out.
Kylie Masse
Kylie Masse has been a staple on the Canadian squad for a while now, having previously held the World Record in the 100m backstroke. She is one of our most consistent swimmers and knows how to turn on the jets when it comes down to the wire. I’ve loved watching her and Kaylee McKeown of Australia – the current World Record holder – go head-to-head this season with so many great races that are narrowly contested. Kylie’s early speed often puts her out in front, and it’s up to competitors to have a great turn and finish strong to beat her. It usually comes down to tenths, if not hundredths, of a second.
Team Relays
Perhaps the swimming events I enjoy most are the relays. I love a team vibe, and since we have such depth on both our men and women’s teams now, these make for awesome events. Both the men/women’s medleys and mixed medleys are a hoot. The mixed medleys are particularly interesting depending on the order that the teams place their men and women – and just how good the women are in relation to their male counterparts. Things can change in a heartbeat and it’s so fun to see. Canada recently came back from behind in the last 50m to take silver in the 4×100 mixed medley at the Commonwealth games in impressive fashion. Watch below!
