2025 Canadian Trials: Day 3 Prelims Live Recap

2025 CANADIAN SWIMMING TRIALS

• Saturday, June 7 – Thursday, June 12, 2025
• Victoria, British Columbia
• Victoria Saanich Commonwealth Place
• LCM (50 meters)
• World Championship Selection Criteria
• Meet Central
• Psych Sheets
• Live Results
• Storylines To Watch
• Recaps
  • Prelims: Day 1 | Day 2
  • Finals: Day 1 | Day 2

Day 3 Prelims Heat Sheet

Good morning, and welcome to the 2025 Canadian Swimming Trials Day 3 Prelims Live Recap. If this is your first time to the site, then congratulations, and I am glad you have picked my article to enjoy. If you have been here before, then you know what an exhilarating and tantalizing thrill the last two days have been.

Summer McIntosh, over the past two days, has throwdown the fastest time ever in the 400 free, and just last night, swam the 3rd fastest 800 free time ever, events in which she is not the defending Olympic. Just imagine what she is capable of doing in those events. Got any ideas? Good because we don’t need to wait long to find out, as McIntosh is the top seed in this prelim session’s 200 IM.

However, that’s jumping the gun a little. Throughout the morning, there will be multi-class Para events scattered around the 50 free, 100 breast, and 200 IM selection events for Singapore. While MC events have other factors other than time, we will still do our best to report on the results.

The Women’s 50 free sees Penny Oleksiak and Taylor Ruck atop the field separated by just .02, with Oleksiak’s 25.06 getting the edge. Sarah Fournier, Delia Lloyd, and Ainsley Lloyd join the duo with entry times under 25.50 but with a World Aquatics ‘A’ cut of 24.86, its not just a battle to make the final, but to also drop enough time to make the standard.

The Canadian men are a little better situation as both Joshua Liendo (21.48) and Yuri Kisil (22.01) are comfortably (ish) under the standard of 22.05. Liendo last night qualified for the Singapore team by his 2nd place finish in the 100 Fly. Fellow Olympic medalist Ilya Kharun got the better of him, so Liendo may be looking to reassert his dominance as Canada’s best sprinter tonight. Kharun, is also in the field as he and Ali Sayed are tied as the 4th seed at 22.42.

The 100 breaststroke sees more than just individual qualification on the line as Team Canada will be looking to add breaststroker to their butterfly and backstroke legs from the previous nights. Alexanne LePage leads the way for the women and sits just .01 off the standard. It won’t be easy as 2nd place finisher (in a Singapore-worthy time) in the 200 breaststroke Sophie Angus is just .08 back. Angus, who swam this event in Paris, dropped 2.5 seconds in the 200 to set a new PB, so could be very dangerous.

The men’s situation is a little more dire as Finlay Knox, who took on the breaststroke relay duties last summer, is Canada’s top seed, but his 1:00.66 is well off the 59.75 time needed for an individual berth. Knox has other events, like the 200 IM where he is better suited to make the team individually, but the three medalists in the 200, Oliver Dawson, Justice Migneault, and Apollo Hess, are starting to run out of time.

Knox is scheduled to return to the pool three events later to tackle the event in which he is the defending World Champion, having taken the gold medal last year in Doha. Seeded at 1:56.07, I wouldn’t expect fireworks from the prelims swim, but the fight behind will be intense as Tristan Jankovics and Lorne Wigginton are within a finger’s length of bettering the qualifying time (Jankovics is exactly on the 1:59.05).

Before Knox dives back, Olympic gold medalist and Canadian record holder Summer McIntosh will tackle the 200 IM. The 18-year-old entered a 2:06.56, less than half a second off the WR. With the way she crushed the 400 free time, expect anything tonight, but first, she needs to navigate the prelims, where Mary-Sophie Harvey, who also has two wins this week to her name, is the #2 seed.

Para Women’s 50 Butterfly

Danielle Dorris, an S7, swam 34.23 to open up racing, scoring 1015 points. This is a very strong showing, but not a PB, as Dorris is entered with a time of 32.99.

Para Men’s 50 Butterfly

Sebastian Massabie, a swimmer in the S5 category, joined Summer McIntosh in resetting the record book as the Pacific Sea Wolf swimmer stopped the clock in 36.59, dropping a new National record and improving his personal best. His swim clocked in 811 points.

Women’s 50 Freestyle

• World Record: 23.61 – Sarah Sjostrom, SWE (2023)
• Canadian Record: 24.26 – Taylor Ruck, (2018)
• 2024 Olympic Trials Champion: Penny Oleksiak – 25.06
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 24.86
• Canadian World Juniors Standard: 26.02

Top 8

1. Penny Oleksiak (TSC) – 25.11
2. Taylor Ruck (KAJ) – 25.26
3. Sarah Fournier (CNQ) – 25.39
4. Leah Tigert (TSC) – 25.79
5. Kamryn Cannings (UCSC) – 25.83
6. Mia West (MANTA) – 25.90
7. Delia Lloyd (ESWIM) – 25.97
8. Brooklyn Douthwright (CNBO) – 26.03

After a few minute’s delay between heats 1 and 2, things started operating smoothly again.

The first circle seeded saw the field crack the 26-second barrier for the first time as two swimmers dipped under the mark. Last summer’s 4th place finisher, Sarah Fournier, pulled away from the field on the back half to stop the clock in 25.37.  Mia West, the 10th seed, joined Fournier under that mark as she got a hand on the wall in 25.90.

Taylor Ruck one upped Fournier in the penultimate heat. The Canadian record holder, Ruck, the #2 seed, touched in 25.26 to overtake the leaderboard. Ruck was by far and clear the winner as the next fastest competitor was Brooklyn Douthwright, who finished in 26.03. The Tennessee Volunteer is better suited for longer freestyle events but still managed to grab a spot in the A-final as her 26.03 placed 9th overall, but Sylvia Statkevicius, who represents Lithuania, is intelligible for the top final.

Penny Oleksiak quickly took over the top time as her 25.11 replaced Ruck atop the leaderboard, and she will take lane 4 tonight. Oleksiak won the 50 last year ahead of Ruck in 25.06 (her seed time) but failed to crack the Olympic Qualifying Time. With the World Aquatics cut .16 slower, Oleksiak and Ruck have better chances but will still need to drop a good chunk of time to make the roster in this event. Finishing in 2nd and 3rd behind Oleksiak in the 10th and final heat were Leah Tigert and Kamryn Cannings. Each dropped time to make the final as Tigert sliced .06 to stop the clock in 25.79, while Cannings had a very impressive swim out of lane 1, going 25.83, after entering with a time of 26.25.

Men’s 50 Freestyle

• World Record: 20.91 – Cesar Cielo, BRA (2009)
• Canadian Record: 21.48 – Josh Liendo, (2024)
• 2024 Olympic Trials Champion: Josh Liendo – 21.48
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 22.05
• Canadian World Juniors Standard: 23.18

Top 8

1. Ruslan Gaziev (UNCAN/OSU) – 22.21
2. Ilya Kharun (UNCAN) – 22.31
3. Joshua Liendo (NYAC) – 22.49
4. Yuri Kisil (CASC/HPCVN) – 22.69
5. Albert Bouley (CREST) / Luke Stewart-Beinder – 23.00
7. Patrick Hussey (PCSC) – 23.01
8. Antoine Sauve (CAMO) – 23.02

The prelims of the men’s 50 free saw an upending of the expected order as the 8th seed Ruslan Gaziev will occupy lane 4 tonight in the final as his prelims result of 22.21 bests the field by .10. Gaziev, a Tokyo Olympian, is returning to competition after he was suspended for 18 months for whereabouts failures.

4th seed Ilya Kharun, who won the 100 fly last night, will take lane 5 tonight as he sliced .11 of his PB from last month to stop the clock in 22.31. One spot behind him is Josh Liendo. The Florida Gator was well off his seed time of 21.48, as he touched in 22.49. Liendo, who placed 4th in the Olympic final, just .02 away from medalling, should be much faster this evening as he looks to add an event to his 2nd place finish in the 100 fly.

Youngster Albert Bouley had a great swim, going from 23.25 to just getting on the cusp of joining the sub-23 club as he stopped the clock in 23.00, tying with Luke Stewart-Beinder for 7th overall, but as both Nikoli Blackman and Ali Sayed, who went 22.80 and 22.87 respectively, represent other nations they are unable to swim in the top final.

Women’s 100 Breaststroke

• World Record: 1:04.13 – Lilly King, USA (2017)
• Canadian Record: 1:05.74 – Annamay Pierse, (2009)
• 2024 Olympic Trials Champion: Sophie Angus – 1:06.96
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 1:06.57
• Canadian World Juniors Standard: 1:10:35

Top 8

1. Alexanne LePage (UCSC) – 1:07.50
2. Sophie Angus (HPCON) – 1:07.78
3. Shona Braton (WES) – 1:09.14
4. Madyson Hartway (UNCAN) – 1:09.54
5. Eloise Allen (UBCT) – 1:10.54
6. Shima Taghavi (HYACK) – 1:10.99
7. Tessa Cieplucha (MAC) – 1:11.21
8. Shanelle Beaudoin (SAMAK) – 1:11.98

The top two seeded Canadians really set themselves up for a strong duel tonight as both Sophie Angus and Alexanne LePage were the lone two under 1:09. Angus, the only entrant in this event in Paris, where she placed 18th overall, led the first of the circle seeded heats by a wide margin and touched well clear of the field in a time of 1:07.78.

In the next heat, Alexanne LePage did very much the same as she blasted out to an early lead and never looked back, crashing into the wall in 1:07.50, not only taking over the top time from Angus but also going faster than her 5th place finishing time from trials last year, when she stopped the clock in 1:07.59.

Finishing 4th overall, but the 3rd fastest Canadian after Italy’s Anita Bottazzo won the least heat in 1:09.01, Shona Braton will occupy lane 3 tonight. Braton may have been keeping her cards close to her chest as she was well off her seed time of 1:07.64, as recorded a time of 1:09.14.

The only swimmer to improve upon their seed time this morning was the 7th-fastest qualifier, Tessa Cieplucha. The former Tennessee Volunteer finished 5th last year in the 400 IM at Trials and 16th in this event (1:11.35), improved upon that time as she stopped the clock in 1:11.21.

Men’s 100 Breaststroke

• World Record: 56.88 – Adam Peaty, GBR (2019)
• Canadian Record: 59.85 – Scott Dickens, (2012)
• 2024 Olympic Trials Champion: Finlay Knox – 1:00.66
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 59.75
• Canadian World Juniors Standard: 1:02.42

Top 8

1. Finlay Knox (MAVS) – 1:00.68
2. Oliver Dawson (GPP) – 1:00.92
3. Justice Migneault (UBCT) – 1:02.20
4. Apollo Hess (HPCON) – 1:03.04
5. Luca Chiandussi (WEST) – 1:03.25
6. Noah Chang (RSWIM) – 1:03.44
7. Nicholas Duncan (UCSC) – 1:03.49
8. Evan Vellescig (HYACK) – 1:03.78

Finlay Knox threw down a strong swim, especially considering he has the 200 IM later in the session, as he won head 9 in a time of 1:00.68. The champion at last year’s trials was just .02 off that time, his PB, this morning, so he could be in striking range of breaking that vaunted sub-60 barrier.

So, too, could Oliver Dawson. The winner of the 200 breaststroke on night one, Dawson, who was born in 2008, dropped a new personal best of 1:00.92 to win the last heat ahead of visiting Aleksas Savickas. His results are a strong improvement upon his entry time of 1:01.47, and he currently sits .23 away from the Canadian Age Group record of Gabe Mastromatteo set back in 2019 at 1:00.69.

Dawson’s fellow 200 breaststroke medalist qualified in the same order behind him as Justice Migneault touched in 1:02.20 and Apollo Hess about a second back at 1:03.04. Both times are slower than their seeds, but one should expect to be faster tonight, as Hess was entered with a time of 1:00.99 and likely conserved energy this morning.

Swimming outside of the circle-seeded heats but earning a spot tonight in the final was Evan Vellescig. The HYACK swimmer and Simon Fraser commit was seeded 34th overall at 1:04.97 but dropped over a second to swim the 8th fastest time by a Canadian this morning, recording a new best-of 1:03.78.

Para Women’s 100 Freestyle

World Record holder in the S10 classification, Aurelie Rivard posted a mark of 1:02.53, scoring 955 points. Rivard, who announced that she would not be competing at the Para-Worlds this summer, instead focusing on her pursuit of a law degree was followed by fellow S10 athlete Arianna Hunsicker, who is 7 years her junior. Hunsicker scored 931 points as she stopped the clock in 1:13.71.

Para Men’s 100 Freestyle

Reid Maxwell didn’t swim the fastest time, as his 1:00.82 was just 3rd overall. Still, the S8 Canadian record holder will be the top entrant into tonight’s final as it scored 966 points, placing him ahead of both Jagdev Gill and Ken Stroud, both S10 swimmers who went 55.01 and 59.59 to score 926 and 812 points respectively.

Women’s 200 I.M.

• World Record: 2:06.12 – Katinka Hosszu, HUN (2015)
• Canadian Record: 2:06.56 – Summer McIntosh, (2024)
• 2024 Olympic Trials Champion: Summer McIntosh – 2:07.06
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 2:12.83
• Canadian World Juniors Standard: 2:17.58

Top 8

1. Summer McIntosh (UNCAN) – 2:12.13
2. Mary-Sophie Harvey (CAMO) – 2:12.49
3. Sienna Angove (UNCAN/OSU) – 2:15.28
4. Ashley McMillian (GO) – 2:15.45
5. Kamila Blanchard (PCSC) – 2:17.32
6. Leah Tigert (TSC) – 2:17.37
7. Tessa Cieplucha (MAC) – 2:17.63
8. Shannon Meadway (USC) – 2:17.65

Summer McIntosh did not expend much energy as she easily cruised into the finish in the last heat of the women’s 200 IM stopping the clock in 2:12.13. McIntosh took the first 50 out in 27.76 and was trailed by Seo-Yeon Kim by around a second, but the Olympic champion used a 33.13 backstroke split to pull away and secure clean water on both sides of her as she flipped in 1:00.89. McIntosh eased off after the first 100 but still pulled away from the field as her 38.80 gave her a lead of multiple body-lengths. Keeping the legs very light, McIntosh came home in 32.44, gliding into the finish.

In the previous heat, Mary-Sophie Harvey, too, won by a wide margin as her 2:12.49 out-touched Sienna Angove by nearly two and a half seconds. Harvey, who was just .25 ahead at the 100 played to her strengths, the breaststroke and free, and led by 3.8 after the breaststroke, splitting 37.23. Like McIntosh, Harvey noticeably slowed on the last leg, but don’t expect that this evening as Harvey is known for backhalf speed across both the freestyle and IM events.

Sienna Angove was right with Harvey at the 100, as was Ashley McMillian but both don’t have her breaststroke pedigree and started to fade. Angove went to her legs on the last 50 and placed 2nd behind Harvey in 2:15.28.

Both Leah Tigert (6th) and Tessa Cieplucha (7th) qualified for their second final tonight. Earlier in the session, Tigert placed 4th in the 50, and Cieplucha placed 7th in the 100 breaststroke.

Men’s 200 I.M.

• World Record: 1:54.00 – Ryan Lochte, USA (2011)
• Canadian Record: 1:56.07 – Finlay Knox, (2024)
• 2024 Olympic Trials Champion: Finlay Knox – 1:56.07
• World Aquatics ‘A’ Cut: 1:59.05
• Canadian World Juniors Standard: 2:03.75

Top 8

1. Tristan Jankovics (RCAQ/OSU) – 1:59.85
2. Lorne Wigginton (ESWIM) – 2:01.19
3. Collyn Gagne (OS) – 2:01.61
4. Finlay Knox (MAVS/HPCVN) – 2:02.10
5. Laon Kim (UCSC) – 2:03.46
6. Marcus Mak (ISC/SFU): – 2:03.49
7. Owen Ekk (UNCAN) – 2:04.36
8. Francis Brennan (BBST/HPCON) – 2:04.37

After a quick turnaround from the 100 breast, top seed and Canadian record holder Finlay Knox did what was required of him as he safely eased his way into tonight’s final as the 4th seed posted a time of 2:02.10. Knox wasn’t the fastest qualifier into the final last year at Olympic trials, so it won’t be an unusual position for him to not be in lane 4.

Taking the top spot into the final last summer and again this morning is Tristan Jankovics. Last year, he qualified first into the final in 2:00.56, but today he cracked the sub-2 prelims swim as he stopped the clock in 1:59.85, .80 off both his seed time and the World Aquatic’s A time of 1:59.05. The RCAQ swimmer who competes for OSU in the NCAA was pushed a little by Collyn Gagne in his heat, but the next closest swimmer was Lorne Wigginton, who just completed his first year at Michigan.

The top four from last year all advanced, albeit in a different order. New to the final are a trio of youngsters led by Laon Kim. Kim and Owen Ekk, both born in 2008, were 2:03.46 and 2:04.36 to place 5th and 7th, with each dropping around .4 0f a second. Born one year earlier, Francis Brennan, who was 3rd in the Junior final last summer, had the largest drop from seed amongst the finalists, going from 2:06.61 to 2:04.37, to finish 8th overall.