This report was contributed by Mike Thompson, a Canadian swim coach and journalist, who is one of the leading voices in Canadian swimming. Check out his blog at CoachMikeSwim.Blogspot.com, and his weekly Canadian-themed podcast here. You can also follow him on Twitter at @CoachMikeSwim.
The prelim sessions in day 3 of the Canadian Summer Nationals featured a lot of younger swimmers raising to the occasion. 18 year old Sherry Liu controled an overall sluggish prelim group in the womens 400 freestyle while, on the mens side, 15 year old Teddy Kelp of North York, Ontario, impressed with a very significant time drop in the morning (3:58.17) as did Island Swimming’s Peter Brothers (3:59.22). In the final, however, it was the more “seasoned” swimmers that seemed to have the edge.
Lindsay Delmar of Calgary won the womens final in the 400 freestyle in a time of 4:17.40. The more experienced Delmar passed Sherry Liu around the 300m mark and was unbeatable in the last 100m. Liu finished 2nd (4:18.23) while Heather Maitland of Toronto finished 3rd (4:18.73).
Jeremy Bagshaw was victorious in the mens 400 freestyle final with a season best 3:52.16. He was followed closely by Edmonton’s Kier Maitland (3:53.24). It was a significant best time for Maitland, who began working with new Edmonton head coach, Derrick Schoof, this season. Chad Bobrosky of Calgary finished 3rd (3:55.20). Worth noting was 15 year old Teddy Kelp, who continued his time drop to 3:57.08 and 6th place finish.
Noemie Thomas set the standard this morning in 100 butterfly, looking very smooth into the finish with a time of 59.60 and proved to be unbeatable tonight as well as she powered to a best time of 59.12. This is the 3rd fastest time of the year for Canadian Women and ranks well within the top 5 of all time. Noemie certainly is making a name for herself on the heals of Katherine Savard; the current Canadian Record holder and a recent age grouper.
In the mens 100 butterfly, it was 2008 Olympian, Jake Tapp who captured gold ahead of first seed, Coleman Allen and Kourosh Ahani, who finished 2nd to Joe Bartoch at Olympic Trials. Tapp, who was 54.07 in 2011, only tied Coleman Allen’s prelims time of 54.47. A bright spot in the heat was that 5 of the competitors were 18 or younger, which vows well for the future of Canadian men’s sprint butterfly. The Canadian record in this event was set in 2008 by Joe Bartoch and has not been approached since the suit ban in 2009. The record of 52.28 barely clears the FINA A standard of 52.36.
Genevieve Cantin won gold in the womens 200 backstroke (2:11.34) mainly by finishing very strongly (32.59 in the final 50m). Dominique Bouchard of North Bay Ontario, finished 2nd in 2:12.00 and Lauren Lavigna finished 3rd (2:13.24).
In the mens 200 backstroke, the podium was, again, turned into a Swanston family reunion with Jeffery (2:00.45) and Matthew (2:00.85) finishing first and second for the second night in a row. Jeffery, who posted a personal best time of almost 2 seconds, was elated with the victory and the time. “I felt great, it was awesome,” he managed as he made his way to the podium. The Swanston Family is having a great weekend as Matthew won his first National title last night and Jeffery, his tonight. “They’re great friends and great competitors,” commented coach, Alan Swanston. “It was a proud moment for me to share in their victories the last 2 nights.”
Richard Funk, once again, dominated the 50 breaststroke, turning in a personal best and cracking the 28 second barrier in a time of 27.97 and posting the 3rd fastest time in Canadian history, while Marie-Soleil Jean-Lachapelle managed a tight victory in the womens side in a time of 31.99. She was followed very closely by Arizona’s Chelsey Salli (32.04) and Ashley McGregor (32.06).
Live results can be found here: http://results.teamunify.com/cseksc/summernationals2012/ . The event will conclude tomorrow night with the announcement of the Canadian Junior Pan Pac Team.