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A new wave of Canadian swimmers ready to wash over Rio Olympics

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By Jim Morris

A wave of new swimmers will be wearing the Maple Leaf at this summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. What they lack in experience they compensate for with enthusiasm, both for this year and their potential at future Games.

“It’s showing we can be a real threat in the future,” said Penny Oleksiak, the 16-year-old from Toronto who set two Canadian records at the Canadian Olympic and Para-swimming Trials in April. “We’re still developing. It just shows we can only get better.”

Of the 30 swimmers who earned spots on the team heading to Rio, 22 will be competing in their first Olympics. There are also four swimmers participating in their first senior A team event.

Javier Acevedo, an 18-year-old from Toronto, said making the Olympic team is a dream come true.

“It’s crazy,” said Acevedo, who will swim the 100-m backstroke. “At first you feel shock – did I just do that? Then you start realizing it and you feel confident.

“I’m an Olympian now. I need to work towards Rio.”

Taylor Ruck, a 16-year-old from Kelowna, B.C., said having other rookies on the team will help her deal with the stress of a first Games.

“It makes it a little less scary,” said Ruck, who qualified for the 4×200-m free relay. “To know that other people are going through the same experiences it makes it a little bit easier.”

Acevedo sees the 2016 Games as the first step on a long journey.

“What I want to achieve during these Olympics is be that kind of guy who is a foreseeable team leader or team captain in the future,” he said.

“That’s what Swimming Canada is trying to do, build these younger crop of swimmers, trying to build them for the future. When Penny and I become 26 or 27 we will still be swimming and leading this team.”

Ben Titley, Swimming Canada’s Olympic head coach, said the rookies must realize just making the team isn’t enough. He wants to see them produce better times in Rio than what they did at the Trials in Toronto.

“The big challenge for us is to sell to these young people the mantra that Trials are just that,” he said. “It’s a stepping stone to get to the next level.

“The next level is important. No one is going to care what your times were at Trials when the Olympic Games end.”

Markus Thormeyer, an 18-year-old from Delta. B.C., said preparing for his first Olympics is different is a totally new dynamic. Thormeyer trains at the High Performance Centre–Vancouver with veteran coach Tom Johnson, who is part of this year’s Olympic coaching staff.

“This is all kind of new,” said Thormeyer. “I’m confident I’m doing what I need to do, which is listening to Tom’s direction. He has so much experience.”

Ryan Cochrane, the two-time Olympic medallist who will be competing at his third Games, said the young swimmers bring a jolt of adrenaline to the Canadian team.

“I think it’s awesome we can have younger athletes that had breakout performances at Trials against people they maybe idolized,” said Cochrane. “If you can do that at 15, think what you can do at 20, especially with more experience.

“I hope they don’t underestimate how difficult the Olympics can be, but that bravado can carry you through a lot of adversity. Why not have the goals someone 10 years older might have? I think they are able to do that.”

Ruck said veterans like Cochrane, Hilary Caldwell and Audrey Lacroix will bring stability to the team.

“It makes it seem a lot more real having all these veterans,” she said. “All the experience will help shed light on this new experience.”

Titley believes the seeds of experience planted in Rio will help harvest medals at later Olympics.

“That’s exciting for the future,” he said. “I think the very best ones will take it as not just a learning experience. Why not try to swim as fast as we can here and use that as a springboard into the next four years.”

The team will be gathering in Toronto tonight for a week-long staging camp before leaving for Rio on July 29.

Pool swimming will take place from August 6-13, and open water swimming from August 15-16.

Our Olympic rookies appear to be making themselves very comfortable on their new team. Perhaps a little TOO comfortable for the veterans to handle…