Olympian and Canadian record holder Katerine Savard is joining a new club as she looks to take the next step on the road to the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
The 20-year-old from Pont-Rouge, Que., has joined CAMO Natation in Montreal, where she will work with coach Claude St-Jean. Savard had previously been swimming with Club de natation CSQ in Quebec City under coach Marc-Andre Pelletier.
“I’ve had many good years in CSQ with Mark. I felt like I needed a change and CAMO and Claude are a perfect fit for me to improve looking forward to Rio,” Savard said. “It was a hard decision but Claude is a good coach. He has brought a lot of swimmers to the international level and I felt like we had a good connection.”
Savard lowered Canadian records multiple times in a breakthrough 2013, including a new national mark in the 100-m butterfly (57.31) at the FINA World Championships in Barcelona, where she finished fifth.
“Katerine and the program worked really well together,” said Pelletier. “This is a new chapter for Katerine and we wish her well.”
St-Jean has worked with high-profile swimmers such as national team veteran and fellow butterflyer Audrey Lacroix, and 1996 Olympic silver medallist Marianne Limpert.
Savard has joined 19 other CAMO swimmers at a training camp in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, where her teammates include national team open water swimmer Philippe Guertin.
“She’s already doing great work,” St-Jean said. “We’re very happy she’s with us and I know our whole CAMO team will be behind her to help her succeed in Rio. We want to continue the good work she’s done with Marc-Andre, who’s a good friend of mine.”
Swimming Canada will continue to work closely with Savard, as well as to support Pelletier, who was a valuable member of the world championships staff.
“Katerine has achieved world-class performances during her time with Club de natation CSQ in Quebec City working with her coach Marc-Andre Pelletier, and it has been a great partnership,” said Swimming Canada High Performance Director John Atkinson. “We at Swimming Canada look forward to continuing to work with Katerine and Claude in the buildup to the trials for the 2014 Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific Championships, and onward to Rio in 2016.”
Press release courtesy of Swim Canada.
I think Katerine Savard is the Best and I like her ways as a swimmer