TORONTO – Sydney Pickrem showed she had gas left in the tank by setting a Canadian record in the women’s 200-metre individual medley on Sunday’s final day of the 2019 Canadian Swimming Trials.

Pickrem earned her third victory of the trials in two minutes, 8.71 seconds. That shaved .36 off the record she set last August.

“To see a 2:08 on the board feels pretty good,” she said. “I love the 200 IM. It’s always been my favourite event. To know every time I get a best time it’s a Canadian record is pretty cool.”

Kelsey Wog (University of Manitoba Bisons) was second in 2:10.72.

Mackenzie Padington, of Campbell River, B.C., also won her third race of the week by finishing the 800-metre freestyle in 8:36.38.

The times were under the standard needed for the women to swim the events at this summer’s FINA World Championships. The three had previously clinched spots on the Canadian team travelling to Gwangju, Korea.

It was a successful week for Pickrem who previously recorded a personal best time in winning the 200-m breaststroke and also won the 400-IM.

After dealing with mononucleosis at the end of last season she is happy to be healthy this year.

“It’s crazy,” she said. “I remember last year just being so tried. Now, I’m excited to go on. I’m writing down all the things that went wrong at trials. I can’t wait to work with my coaches and get ready for the summer.”

The top two finishers under the A standard in each Olympic event earned a place on Team Canada.

Canada will send a 25-member team (13 men, 12 women) consisting of Olympic and world championship medallists to the world championships, being held July 12-28.

Included on the team is Kylie Masse (University of Toronto), the reigning world champion in the 100-m backstroke and an Olympic bronze medallist; Taylor Ruck (High Performance Centre – Ontario) who has a combined 15 Olympic, Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific Championship medals but has never competed at a senior world championships; Penny Oleksiak (High Performance Centre – Ontario) an Olympic champion and world championship bronze medallist; Yuri Kisil (High Performance Centre – Ontario) a three-time world championship bronze medallist; and Markus Thormeyer (High Performance Centre – Vancouver) a world championship and Commonwealth Games medallist.

The team also offers a glimpse of the future with 15-year-old Emma O’Croinin (Edmonton Keyano Swim Club) being the youngest member while 16-year-olds Cole Pratt (Cascade Swim Club) and Gabe Mastromatteo (Kenora Swimming Sharks) is the youngest male.

Several swimmers who made FINA A cuts at the Trials missed out on spots, as only the top two Canadians in each event could qualify. John Atkinson, Swimming Canada’s Director, High Performance, said the team shows the depth of Canadian swimming.

“We continue to evolve as a national team,” said Atkinson. “There is less room for error on the women’s side and the men’s team is showing there is a real youth movement beginning to build which we’ve known has been coming.”

The world championships will set the stage for the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics.

“We will run with exactly the same protocols on the team that we will do in 2020,” said Atkinson.

Martyn Wilby, Senior Coach, Olympic Program, said the world championships will serve as a measuring stick.

“It’s the highest profile swim meet in the summer,” he said. “You are basically seeing how your athletes stack up against the rest of the world.”

The world championships will give Canada a chance to qualify relay teams for Tokyo in the men’s and women’s 4×100-m freestyle, 4x-200 freestyle and 4x-100-medley plus the mixed relays. The top individual medallists at worlds can have their times considered for selection to Tokyo.

Masse was awarded the female swim of the meet, based on 2018 world rankings. Thormeyer (High Performance Centre – Vancouver) was awarded the male swim of the meet.

Live results available here: https://results.swimming.ca/2019_Canadian_Swimming_Trials/

The trials attracted 627 athletes (346 female, 281 male) representing 157 clubs. That includes international competitors from 21 countries.

“Swimming Canada would like to thank all the athletes, coaches, parents, and tireless officials and volunteers for contributing their time and passion to helping these athletes pursue their dreams of representing Canada,” said Swimming Canada CEO Ahmed El-Awadi. “We are proud that every day we are working to make our sport a safe and inclusive environment for all participants. And of course, we couldn’t do any of this without the unwavering support of the Government of Canada and our other partners and sponsors.”

Other winners Sunday:

_ Finlay Knox (Okotoks Mavericks Swimming) won the men’s 200-m individual medley in 2:01.30

_ Peter Brothers (University of Calgary Swim Club) won the men’s 1,500-m in 15.27.16

_ Maggie MacNeil (London Aquatic Club) won the women’s 50-metre freestyle in 25.40 seconds.

_ Yuri Kisil (High Performance Centre – Ontario) won the men’s 50-m freestyle in 22.23 seconds.

FINA World Championships Team / Equipe des Championnats du monde FINA

Men

Women