After initially committing to Dave Salo’s program at USC, young Canadian talent Markus Thormeyer has since backed out and changed his commitment to the University of British Columbia.
Standing at six-foot-six, 18-year-old Thormeyer is an incredibly powerful sprint freestyler and backstroker. Certainly a name to watch out for soon as Canada prepares its young rising stars during the Olympic year, Thormeyer will be staying in-country for college.
The UBC Thunderbirds recently garnered second place finishes for both their men and women at the 2016 CIS Championships. Thormeyer will be hugely impactful for the program– he led off Canada’s 4×100 free relay at the 2015 Pan Am Games in prelims (which went on to win bronze) and was a member of the gold-winning Canadian mixed 4×100 free relay at the 2015 World Junior Championships in Singapore. He also finished 7th in the 100 back at those Pan Am Games.
Thormeyer’s Best Times (LCM)
- 50 free 22.77
- 100 free 49.59
- 200 free 1:50.28
- 50 back 26.43
- 100 back 55.03
- 200 back 2:00.83
- 100 fly 55.20
“Well, I chose UBC because it is the best swimming program in Canada – they have the most CIS championship titles and the HCP, which is affiliated with the varsity team, is one of the top training centres in the country,” Thormeyer said. “Training with the team for the past few months, and getting to know Tom [Johnson, head coach at the HCP] and everyone else, I couldn’t leave them.”
This is also a big move in Canada’s favor. After Santo Condorelli‘s switch to represent Canada in international competition, and with names like Emily Overholt and Chantal van Landeghem charging on to the national stage, Thormeyer’s decision to stay in Canada speaks to the kind of momentum they’re building as a swimming country. UBC Head Coach Stephen Price is ecstatic about Thormeyer’s decision.
“Anytime a guy like that, who is so highly regarded in the NCAA, decides to stay home and swim for a program here is fantastic,” said Price. “We have a pretty great men’s team, and have already done some pretty solid recruiting for next year, but Markus coming here takes it to a whole other level. It’s definitely a great addition – he’s one of the best juniors to come along in Canada in some time, and I think he’s going to surprise people this April at the Olympic Trials. On top of his talent, though, Markus is a quality individual and an outstanding student.”
Thormeyer will compete at the upcoming Canadian National Championships from April 5-10, which will serve as a qualification event for their Olympic Team.
And zakala 😉
I see why those two stayed together
Swimming Canada will be thankful for his choice, but they are also losing a lot of talent to schools down south.
After a move like this, I don’t know if Metro Boomin’ trusts this guy