The Canadian artistic swimming team qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics after finishing seventh in the freestyle competition at the World Aquatics Championships on Friday.
The result gave Canada the fifth highest total score in the team acrobatic, technical and freestyle competitions among nations that had not already qualified for the Olympics.
Five Olympic places were available in Doha.
The United States, Spain, Japan and Italy also qualified. China, which swept the events, already had a place as 2022 Asian Games champions.
Audrey Lamothe and Jacqueline Simoneau, both from Montreal, also qualified for the Olympic competition in the women’s duet, after recording a seventh place in the technical program and a fifth place in the free program at the Worlds.
Simoneau won the gold medal in the solo free program and the silver medal in the technical program in Doha. Solo competitions are not included in the 2024 Olympic program.
The Doha World Aquatics Championships are a last-chance qualifier for most aquatic events. The Canadian women’s water polo team will face New Zealand in the round of 16 on Saturday.
Canada must finish among the top two countries not yet on their way to Paris. France, Australia, China, Greece, the Netherlands, South Africa, Spain and the United States took eight of the ten Olympic spots.
Divers have reserved places in Paris for Canada during synchronized events in Doha.
Nathan Zsombor-Murray of Pointe-Claire and Rylan Wiens of Saskatoon finished fifth in the men’s 10-metre event, after winning the bronze medal at the 2022 world championships.
Caeli McKay of Calgary and Kate Miller of Ottawa placed sixth in the women’s synchronized springboard event, qualifying Canada.
Open water swimmer Emma Finlin of Edmonton was informed two days after finishing 24e in the women’s 10 km on Saturday that she had done enough to secure one of the 22 women’s places for the Paris Games.
Canada received an unallocated berth for the Oceania region, which has no athletes competing besides the two Australians already qualified.
Swimming Canada has confirmed that Finlin, who is 18 years old, will compete in the women’s 10 km on August 8, on the Seine. Pool swimming competitions begin on Sunday.
While there are opportunities other than the World Championships to qualify for the Olympics in the individual races, Doha is the last chance for the relays.
The Canadian women have yet to qualify in the 4 x 100m freestyle and 4 x 200m freestyle relays, while the men have yet to qualify in either relay.