Arena, one of the world’s leading brands in aquatic sports, is pleased to announce the signing of a new sponsorship deal with Canadian butterfly swimmer Katerine Savard. The 21-year-old from Pont-Rouge, Quebec, is the reigning Commonwealth 100 butterfly champion.
Katerine Savard, Arena Athlete
Katerine started learning to swim at a very early age, and despite not liking the water initially, she was winning regional medals by the time she was 10. Continued success saw her break her first provincial record in 2008, make the Canadian national junior team in 2009, and the senior team in 2010. Her first national record followed in 2011.
In her first senior appearance at a major international event, Katerine made the 50 and 100 butterfly finals at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, and participated later in the year at the World SC Championships in Dubai. At the 2011 World Championships in Shanghai, she made the 100 butterfly semi-final, a feat she repeated at the 2012 Olympic games in London. In 2013 she won her first major international medal as she claimed the 100 butterfly title in record time at the Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia.
2014 has seen more podium finishes as Katerine’s growth continues. At July’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, she won the 100 butterfly title, got through to the finals of both 50 and 200 butterfly, and picked up a bronze medal with the Candian 4×100 medley relay team. A month later on Australia’s Gold Coast, she and the Canadian team repeated their bronze medal effort at the Pan Pacific Championships, where she also made the 100 and 200 butterfly finals. Katerine finished off the year with 50 and 100 butterfly semi-final apperances at the World Short Course Championships in Doha.
“It is awesome to be part of such an elite team,” said Katerine. “It is a great honor to know that Arena believes in me. I feel great in those products knowing that they make the difference.”
“Katerine is a bright young star in a very competitive event, so it’s with great pleasure that we welcome her to our team of elite athletes,” said Pierre Vermette, Director of Sales and Marketing of F3 Distribution Inc.. (Official distributor of arena in Canada ) “Our relationship with Canadian swimming goes back to the very origins of arena, and so it’s great not only to see the talent still coming through, but to have them in our corner. We’ve been watching Katerine’s continued progress, and her inspiring performances in 2014 have shown us that she has real potential to challenge at the highest levels. She is a great role model to the new generation of Canadian swimmers and we are looking forward to working with her towards Kazan and Rio.”
Swimming News is courtesy of F3 Distribution Inc. and Arena International.