VICTORIA – Swimming Canada has announced Canada’s swimming team selected to compete at the FINA World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

A total of 32 swimmers will represent the country in the Hungarian capital, including 18 female and 14 male athletes.

The pool and open water athletes qualified for Team Canada based on their performances at the Bell Canadian Swimming Trials at Saanich Commonwealth Place this week in Victoria.

“I’m really looking forward to the summer,” said Kylie Masse of the High Performance Centre – Ontario, who won all three backstroke events and the 50-m butterfly at Trials.

The world championships are scheduled for June 18-July 3, with pool swimming running the first eight days, followed by open water competition. Masse, the two-time defending world champion in the 100-m backstroke, is also among those nominated to the Commonwealth Games team later this month. She also holds the Commonwealth titles in the 100 and 200 back.

“It will be a challenge with two big international meets but regardless I’m always excited to race and really looking forward to getting the national team together and seeing what we can do,” Masse said.

Masse is one of 17 team members with previous long-course world championships experience. That includes medallists Javier Acevedo, Eric Hedlin, Yuri Kisil, Maggie Mac Neil, Penny Oleksiak, Sydney Pickrem, Taylor Ruck, Kayla Sanchez and Rebecca Smith. The 14 rookies include Olympians Katrina Bellio, Tessa Cieplucha, Ruslan Gaziev, Finlay Knox, and Summer McIntosh, who looks to be a force to be reckoned with after winning four events at Trials (200 and 400-m freestyle, 200-m butterfly and 400-m individual medley.)

“I think it will be awesome, that’s the beauty of sport,” Masse said. “Having fresh new faces mixed with people that have years of experience is so powerful for learning in both directions. I’m really looking forward to welcoming fresh faces and also getting to know my current teammates even more.”

Swimming Canada High Performance Director and National Coach John Atkinson was pleased with the performances he saw at Trials, which included multiple Canadian records.

“Trials are always exciting and seeing the performances through the week shows the athletes are in a great position leading into the summer championships, to work with their coaches to build and improve at the World Championships and Commonwealth Games,” said Atkinson.

A total of 23 swimmers have been nominated to the Commonwealth Games team due to the different selection criteria for the two events. The full Commonwealth Games team will be ratified later this month in partnership with Commonwealth Sport Canada, after the Paralympic program nominees for the team are confirmed.

“With our athletes we have a great blend of experience and new additions to both our World Championships teams for the pool and open water, and this with the Commonwealth Games will now provide a great racing opportunity this summer when improvement and progression can follow,” Atkinson said.

Swimming Canada Senior Coach and HPC-Vancouver Interim Head Coach Martyn Wilby will be head coach of both teams, joined by HPC-Ontario Interim Head Coach Ryan Mallette, Linda Kiefer of University of Toronto Varsity Blues and Greg Arkhurst, head coach of Montreal’s CAMO club, at both events. Rounding out the pool team coaching staff for the FINA World Championships will be Abderrahmane Tissira of Simon Fraser University and Vlastimil Cerny of University of Manitoba Bisons. The Open Water Head Coach at worlds will be Swimming Canada Distance/Open Water Coach Mark Perry, joined by Paul Birmingham of Edmonton Keyano Swim Club and HPC-Vancouver Assistant Coach Mandy Bell. Rob Novak of Etobicoke Swimming will round out the coaching staff at Commonwealth Games, while UBC Thunderbirds Assistant Coach Sierra Moores will attend staging camp as an assistant through the Commonwealth Games Canada Internship.

“In all we will be appointing 11 different coaches to our senior national teams this summer. This is great recognition to the coaches appointed and to their clubs, as well as providing great opportunities for our coaches to develop. This is a key strategy for Swimming Canada and it will continue,” Atkinson said.

While most of the coaches are veterans of one or more senior international events, Atkinson also highlighted senior national team newcomers Novak and Tissira. Both completed the UBC one year Graduate Certificate in High Performance Coaching and Technical Leadership aimed at helping coaches to provide the highest quality of athlete programming. The graduate certificate ladders into a Masters degree at UBC assisting coaches in their professional credentials. As part of this project they undertook mentoring with Swimming Canada. Both have also participated in Swimming Canada’s Select Coaches Group, and Tissira was part of the staff at the 2018 Pan Pacific Championships as an apprentice coach.

“It is really pleasing to see them develop in their coaching and making the FINA World Championships senior team this year in a coaching capacity with their athletes,” Atkinson said.

Full team lists:

FINA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – POOL

Club	Coach	Last Name/	First Name/
		Nom de famille	Prénom
MAC	Miller, Andrew	Acevedo	Javier
UNCAN	Robinson, Katie	Angus	Sophie
ISC	Szaranek, John	Bagshaw	Jeremy
ESWIM	Novak, Rob	Bellio	Katrina
MAC	Kredich, Matt	Cieplucha	Tessa
UL	Paradis, Patrick	Dergousoff	James
UNCAN	Aitken, Ron	Dunford	Abby
SFA	Tissira, Abderrahamane	Gagne	Collyn
ESWIM	Bowe, Matt	Gaziev	Ruslan
CAMO	Arkhurst, Greg	Harvey	Mary-Sophie
PCSC	Gangloff, Mark	Hussey	Patrick
WS	Mallette, Ryan	Kisil	Yuri
SCAR	Mallette, Ryan	Knox	Finlay
NYAC	Mallette, Ryan	Liendo	Joshua
LAC	Bottom, Mike	MacNeil	Maggie
TSC	Mallette, Ryan	Masse	Kylie
ESWIM	Mallette, Ryan	McIntosh	Summer
UCSC	Blondal, Mike	Nicol	Rachel
TSC	Mallette, Ryan	Oleksiak	Penny
TSC	Mallette, Ryan	Pickrem	Sydney
SCAR	Meehan, Greg	Ruck	Taylor
AAC	Mallette, Ryan	Sanchez	Kayla
CAMO	Arkhurst, Greg	Savard	Katerine
UCSC	Blondal, Mike	Smith	Rebecca
UCSC	Blondal. Mike	Stokes	Richie
CASC	Johnson, Dave	Wilm	Ingrid
UM	Cerny, Vlastimil	Wog	Kelsey

STAFF

John Atkinson – Team Leader

Iain McDonald – Asst Team Leader & IST Lead

Jan Hanan – Team Manager

Martyn Wilby – Head Coach

Ryan Mallette – Team Coach

Greg Arkhurst – Team Coach

Abderrahamane Tissira – Team Coach

Vlastimil Cerny – Team Coach

Linda Kiefer – Team Coach

Tom Vandenbogaerde – Performance Scientist

Johnny Fuller – Physical Performance

Rick Pelletier – Massage Therapy

Suzanne Maroney – Massage Therapy

Ron Mattison – Physiotherapy

Graham Olson – Video Analysis

Dr Steve Keeler – Physician

Nathan White – Media Attache

FINA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – OPEN WATER

Club	Coach	Last Name/	First Name/
		Nom de famille	Prénom
MAC	Baker, Sean	Axon	Alex
ESWIM	Novak, Rob	Bellio	Katrina
PCSC	Gingras, Martin	Brown	Eric
UNCAN	Aitken, Ron	Dunford	Abby
UBCT	Wilby, Martyn	Fan	Hau Li
EKSC	Birmingham, Paul	Finlin	Emma
UVPCS	Clousten, Ryan	Hedlin	Eric

STAFF

John Atkinson – Team Leader

Iain McDonald – Asst Team Leader & IST Lead

Cynthia Pincott – Team Manager

Jan Hanan – Team Manager

Mark Perry – Head Coach

Paul Birmingham- Team Coach

Mandy Bell – Team Coach

Tom Vandenbogaerde – Performance Scientist

Nathan Skirrow – Massage Therapy

Graham Olson – Video Analysis

Dr Rob Brunelle – Physician

Nathan White – Media Attache

COMMONWEALTH GAMES NOMINEES – OLYMPIC PROGRAM*

Club	Coach	Last Name/	First Name/
		Nom de famille	Prénom
MAC	Miller, Andrew	Acevedo	Javier
UNCAN	Robinson, Katie	Angus	Sophie
ISC	Szaranek, John	Bagshaw	Jeremy
ESWIM	Novak, Rob	Bellio	Katrina
PCSC	Gingras, Martin	Brown	Eric
MAC	Kredich, Matt	Cieplucha	Tessa
UL	Paradis, Patrick	Dergousoff	James
SFA	Tissira, Abderrahamane	Gagne	Collyn
ESWIM	Bowe, Matt	Gaziev	Ruslan
CAMO	Arkhurst, Greg	Harvey	Mary-Sophie
PCSC	Gangloff, Mark	Hussey	Patrick
ESWIM	Novak, Rob	Jansen	Ella
WS	Mallette, Ryan	Kisil	Yuri
SCAR	Mallette, Ryan	Knox	Finlay
NYAC	Mallette, Ryan	Liendo	Joshua
LAC	Bottom, Mike	MacNeil	Maggie
TSC	Mallette, Ryan	Masse	Kylie
ESWIM	Mallette, Ryan	McIntosh	Summer
TSC	Mallette, Ryan	Oleksiak	Penny
TSC	Mallette, Ryan	Pickrem	Sydney
AAC	Mallette, Ryan	Sanchez	Kayla
CAMO	Arkhurst, Greg	Savard	Katerine
UCSC	Blondal, Mike	Smith	Rebecca

STAFF

John Atkinson – Team Leader

Iain McDonald – Asst Team Leader & IST Lead

Jan Hanan – Team Manager

Martyn Wilby – Head Coach

Ryan Mallette – Team Coach

Greg Arkhurst – Team Coach

Rob Novak – Team Coach

Linda Kiefer – Team Coach

Sierra Moores – Assistant Coach – Staging – Commonwealth Games Canada Internship Coach

Tom Vandenbogaerde – Performance Scientist

Johnny Fuller – Physical Performance

Remo Bucci – Massage Therapy

Ron Castro – Massage Therapy

Meghan Buttle – Physiotherapy

Graham Olson – Video Analysis

Dr Sara Forsyth (staging only) – Physician

Nathan White (core CWG staff) – Media Attache

*Full team announcement is expected later this month when Paralympic program nominees are ratified