Swimming to set the tone

With less than eight days to go until the Paris Olympics begin, Canada’s 28 swimmers are busy landing from Normandy. Like in Tokyo three years earlier, the group will seek to set the tone for the entire Canadian delegation in the French capital. Both women and men.

“The momentum we gained through our early performances [à Tokyo] “It was definitely crucial,” agreed Maggie Mac Neil, Olympic 100m butterfly champion, during a virtual conference with Canadian swimming leaders on Wednesday afternoon, on the sidelines of the preparatory camp in Caen.

In 2021, Mac Neil was part of the 4x100m freestyle relay that climbed to third place in the first session of the finals, held in the morning to accommodate the American audience. Just like in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, that bronze start set the stage for a six-medal haul in the pool, a target that is still relevant according to high performance director John Atkinson.

“This has been one of our most successful Games, not only for swimming, but for the country as a whole,” Mac Neil said. “I’m pleased that swimming is the first event again because it gives us an opportunity to set the tone for ourselves, but also for the Games as a whole.”

Individually, the Ontario swimmer had seized the opportunity and caused a surprise the next day by snatching gold in lane 7 of the 100 m butterfly. The nearsighted swimmer had squinted and took a long second before realizing her feat. The funny scene was the subject of many internet memes that she was still receiving at the beginning of the year.

Since last year, Mac Neil has been wearing prescription swimming goggles that have “changed [sa] life” in training. However, she will not have them in competition in Paris since her sponsor does not manufacture them.

Three years later, Mac Neil will face formidable opposition in her quest to become the first woman to win the 100m butterfly for a second consecutive time. Youngster Gretchen Walsh, who set a world record at the U.S. Trials a month ago, will start as the favorite. Four other butterflyers will enter the Olympics with faster entry times than her, a situation the 2023 world runner-up believes she can take advantage of.

“Obviously, the expectations at the Olympics, even just by the name, have a special connotation. But I have always given my best when I am not obsessed with the result and when I enjoy the moment and the process.”

More depth

Arriving Saturday in the Calvados prefecture, the 28 Olympic swimmers – 16 women and 12 men – will take a final dip in the water(-de-vie) of the Eugène-Maës Nautical Stadium before heading for the City of Light on Monday.

Four co-captains were elected by their peers to ensure the unity of the group whose members are scattered across Canada, the United States and even Europe, which was much less the case during the pandemic. Mary-Sophie Harvey is part of the quartet, a different status for the one who used to be the baby of the squad.

“Our most important role will be to lighten the mood by organizing evening activities, games, to unify the team more,” explained the 24-year-old Quebecer. “For many people, this will be their first team, their first Olympic Games. It’s about making sure that we form a small family, that we’re ready and that we encourage each other when we get to the Games.”

In an ideal world, there won’t be many Canadian swimmers in the stands at Paris La Défense Arena where the swimming events will take place on the night. That would mean they’d be busy preparing and warming up backstage for the semifinals and finals, Atkinson noted.

“The depth of the team is probably stronger than what we had at previous Games,” assessed the high performance director. “We have several athletes who know why they are here and why they are part of this Olympic team to represent Canada. We won six medals in Rio and six medals in Tokyo. We have to aim for that level, or even better, for the Paris Games.”

While seven-time Olympic medallist Penny Oleksiak is this time confined to relays, the experienced Kylie Masse will try to recreate the magic of Rio and Tokyo. The backstroker could become the first Canadian swimmer to reach an individual podium at three Olympics, a challenge the co-captain prefers not to think about before diving in.

“It’s obviously an incredible achievement that I dream of and aspire to, but at the moment I’m just focusing on my preparation, which is going well,” said the player who is training in Spain with former national head coach Ben Titley. “I’m looking forward to doing my best and seeing how it goes.”

“Ambitious goals” for men

Fourth in Tokyo in the 4 x 100 m relay with the old Brent Hayden, now retired, the men are firmly intent on contributing to the momentum of their colleagues.

“We have a long history of success in relays over the years and continuing to build on that is something that makes me really excited for the future,” said Jeremy Bagshaw.

The medical graduate, elected co-captain at his first Olympic Games at the age of 32, has high hopes for the 4 x 200 m relay.

“I hope this can be the catalyst for the men’s team to experience similar progression to the women’s team in 2016 and build on that.”

His colleague Josh Liendo, a member of the historic Tokyo relay, agrees, having won three individual medals at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships. The 21-year-old Torontonian, also a co-captain, is not afraid to proclaim his ambitions.

“We’re not afraid to aim high,” said the man who trains with multiple Olympic champion Caeleb Dressel in Florida.

“We’ve seen the success of the women and, obviously, we want to reach that level, win medals, make it to the finals and be serious competitors in all the races. We just want to continue to progress. We don’t set ourselves modest goals, we set ourselves ambitious goals.”

With all that said, Summer McIntosh’s name wasn’t mentioned once during the 40-minute media availability. Of course, she wasn’t part of it. The 17-year-old superstar will have her own meeting with reporters Thursday morning (EST), and she could send the medal count to a record high, even if nothing is won.