Swimming in Canada

Touched by three oceans and connected by grand waterways, Canada and water are emotionally and geographically inseparable. When it's frozen, we skate on it. When it's warm enough — and sometimes even when it isn't — we swim in it.

Each year, nearly three million Canadians take swimming lessons and millions more swim in pools, lakes and oceans. You don't start swimming to win a gold medal. You learn to swim because you're Canadian.

The Swimming Canada Brand

The new Swimming Canada brand was inspired by legends and imagery dating back to the London 1908 Olympic Games, when Canada first appeared on the international stage.

In the coming months, the new brand will come to life across all Swimming Canada's touch points, including our websites, events, social media platforms, and Team Canada uniforms.

The new emblem reinterprets a century of Canadian swimming iconography for the next generation using a simple, bold aesthetic, and communicates with greater clarity than ever before. The typography reflects the classic, tall letterforms from 1980s-era Canadian swimming uniforms, while the feature graphic was influenced by technical drawings of an Olympic swimming pool.

Team Canada

Canadian swimmers have set world records, claimed world championships, and earned Olympic and Paralympic medals. In 1912, George Hodgson won Canada's first two Olympic swimming medals and set a world record in the 1,500-m freestyle. Baumann, Davis, Ottenbrite and Tewksbury became Olympic champions – and household names.

Today, the legacy continues with two-time Olympic medallist Ryan Cochrane leading a promising young team. In Paralympic events, Canada is recognized as a world leader, with 19-time medallist Benoit Huot headlining a tradition of dominant swimmers.

Hulse & Durrell

The Swimming Canada rebrand was conducted by the firm of Hulse & Durrell. From technology startups to the Olympic Games, Hulse & Durrell collaborate with values-driven organizations around the world to create remarkable brands, products and experiences.

Partners Ben Hulse and Greg Durrell began working together in 2007 on the Vancouver 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Games design team, and went on to lead an award-winning comprehensive rebrand of the Canadian Olympic Team in 2011.

They are currently providing brand and design leadership for the International Olympic Committee, Anta (China’s largest sportswear producer), Square (mobile payment provider) and several Canadian National Sport Federations.

Visit hulsedurrell.com for more information.

I am very excited about the new brand. It honours the past while setting a bold statement for the team going forward. — Brent Hayden, 2012 Olympic medallist and 2007 world champion