Kylie Masse Qualifies For Paris With Her Fastest 100 Back Since Tokyo (Day 3 Qualifiers)

2024 CANADIAN OLYMPIC & PARALYMPIC TRIALS

• May 13-19, 2024
• Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre – Toronto, Ontario
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Kylie Masse is back. On day three of the 2024 Canadian Olympic and Paralympic Trials, Masse qualified for her third Olympic Games in the 100 backstroke.

But more than the qualification, what really stands out is her time: she hit a 57.94, building on the 58.27 she posted in prelims which was then the fastest time she’d swum since 2021. The swim is her fastest since the Tokyo Olympics and moves her up to third in the world this season behind Kaylee McKeown and Regan Smith. It’s also the fourth fastest performance of Masse’s career.

Kylie Masse Top 5 100 Backstroke Performances

1. 57.70 — Canadian Olympic Trials, 2021
2. 57.72 — Tokyo Olympics, 2021
3. 57.90 — Tokyo Olympics, 2021
4. 57.94 — Canadian Olympic Trials, 2024
5. 58.09 — Tokyo Olympics, 2021

“Over the last, I think, two years I’ve struggled with getting that confidence,” Masse told CBC post-race. “I think because I had so many obstacles and challenges within the last little while. But I knew I was ready and I was just eager and nervous for the backstroke.”

Masse wasn’t the only swimmer to qualify for Olympic nomination in the 100 backstroke. Ingrid Wilm swam 59.31 for second place, all but certainly qualifying for her first Olympic Games. Wilm won bronze in this event at the 2024 World Championship and was well under the Olympic Qualifying Time of 59.99.

And speaking to Canada’s backstroke depth, third-place Taylor Ruck (59.78) and fourth-place Regan Rathwell (1:00.23) were under the Olympic Qualifying Time and the Olympic Consideration Time, respectively. That’s an encouraging sign for Ruck, who is focusing on the sprint events at Trials this week.

She won’t make the Olympic team in this event because she finished third, but this was her first time breaking 1:00 in two years, which she last did at the 2022 Canadian World Championship Trials .

In case you need it, here’s a reminder of how selection to the 2024 Canadian Olympic team works–

CANADIAN OLYMPIC SELECTION PRIORITIES:

Note: For a full description of each priority category, click on the selection criteria link above. (Updated April 15, 2024)

• Priority One: The first and second placed swimmers in the ‘A’ final who earn the Olympic Qualifying Time (OQT)
• Priority Two – Relay Nominations: The relay time add-up of the top four-placed swimmers in the 100 and 200 freestyles. For the medley relays, the relay add-up will be reached with the times of the top qualifiers from the 100 back, 100 breast, 100 fly, and 100 free. If a swimmer wins multiple 100s, then the times of second-place swimmer in those events will be considered.
• Priority Three: If no swimmer or only one swimmer at the 2024 Canadian Trials earns an OQT in an event, then a swimmer who’s achieved an OQT within the qualifying period and finished top two at Trials will be nominated.
• Priority Four: In an event that does not have any nominations through Priorities 1-3, then an event winner who has achieved on Olympic Consideration Time and swims within 1% of their fastest time in the qualification window at Trials will be provisionally nominated. World Aquatics sent out a memo that Olympic “B” cut swimmers may not qualify because of the athlete quotas. An athlete who hits a “B” cut here but who has an “A” cut from another Olympic qualifying meet in the qualification period, though, wouldn’t be subject to those World Aquatics limits.
• Priority Five: The selection committee has the discretion to nominate eligible swimmers to improve relays at the advice of the High Performance Director

Masse and Wilm were the only two swimmers to qualify under Priority 1 on Day 3 of Trials.

Alex Axon, Patrick Hussey, Lorne Wigginton, and Jeremy Bagshaw all fall under Priority 2 courtesy of their top four finishes in the 200 freestyle. None swam under the Olympic Qualifying Time (1:46.26)–which is notably faster than the Canadian record–but are qualified to be nominated to the 4×200 freestyle relay. As there are only a certain number of relay-only spots, the four will need to wait until the official team announcement later in the week.

Their swims are a reflection of Canada’s growth in the men’s 200 freestyle. At the 2021 Trials, Peter Brothers won the event in 1:49.07–that would have finished seventh tonight. Axon doubled up after winning the 400 freestyle earlier in the meet, coming from third at the final wall to win in a personal best 1:47.56.

If nominated, this would be all four swimmers first Olympic teams. A lifetime achievement for all four, it would be a testament to Jeremy Bagshaw‘s tenacity–he has been on the national team for over a decade but had yet to make an Olympic team.

Editor’s note: Swimming Canada updated the selection criteria on April 15. The priorities below reflect the updated criteria.

PRIORITY 1 SWIMS THRU DAY 1 (OLYMPIC A CUTS, TOP 2):

• Summer McIntosh — women’s 400 freestyle (3:59.06)
• Maggie MacNeil — women’s 100 butterfly (56.61)
• Mary-Sophie Harvey — women’s 100 butterfly (57.32)
• Tristan Jankovics – men’s 400 IM (4:11.74)
• Summer McIntosh – women’s 200 freestyle (1:53.69)
• Mary-Sophie Harvey – women’s 200 freestyle (1:55.44)
• Blake Tierney — men’s 100 backstroke (53.48)
• Javier Acevedo — men’s 100 backstroke (53.55)
• Kylie Masse — women’s 100 backstroke (57.94)
• Ingrid Wilm — women’s 100 backstroke (59.31)

PRIORITY 2 SWIMS THRU DAY 2 (FREE RELAY TOP 4S and Medley Relay Top 1s):

• Julie Brousseau — women’s 200 freestyle (1:57.60) *also an Olympic ‘B’ cut
• Emma O’Croinin — women’s 200 freestyle (1:57.86)
• Finlay Knox — men’s 100 breast (1:00.66)
• Sophie Angus — women’s 100 breast (1:06.96) *also has an Olympic “A” cut from a prior meet
• Alex Axon — men’s 200 freestyle (1:47.56)
• Patrick Hussey — men’s 200 freestyle (1:47.78)
• Lorne Wigginton — men’s 200 freestyle (1:47.93)
• Jeremy Bagshaw — men’s 200 freestyle (1:48.49)

PRIORITY 3 SWIMS THRU DAY 2: (OLYMPIC “A” CUTS AT OTHER MEETS + TOP 2 AT TRIALS):

• None

PRIORITY 4 SWIMS THRU DAY 2: (OLYMPIC “B” TIMES + Event Winner – UNLIKELY TO BE INVITED):

• None

PRIORITY 5 SWIMS THRU DAY 2 (EXTRA RELAY SWIMMERS):

• To be announced

SWIMMERS WITH OLYMPIC A/B CUTS WHO DIDN’T PLACE HIGH ENOUGH:

A cuts:

• Rebecca Smith – women’s 100 fly (57.89) (3rd place finisher)
• Taylor Ruck — women’s 100 backstroke (59.78) (3rd place finisher)

B cuts:

• Julie Brousseau — women’s 400 freestyle (4:08.12) (Winner under the A cut)
• Lorne Wigginton — men’s 400 IM (4:13.60) (Winner under the A cut)
• Aiden Norman — men’s 100 backstroke (53.99) (3rd place finisher)
• Kelsey Wog — women’s 100 breaststroke (1:07.00) (Winner has an A cut/chosen for relay, Wog doesn’t have an A cut in the qualifying period)
• Regan Rathwell — women’s 100 backstroke (1:00.23) (4th place finisher)