Maxine Clark Nears Oleksiak’s 100 Fly 13-14 NAG To Open Canadian Championships

2022 SPEEDO CANADIAN JUNIOR & SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

• July 25 – August 1, 2022
• Montreal, Quebec
• Olympic Park & Olympic Rowing Basin
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central
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Budding University of Calgary Swim Club star Maxine Clark continued her ascent up the Canadian age group rankings on Monday, kicking off the 2022 national championships in Montreal with a blistering swim in the girls’ 100 butterfly.

Clark produced a time of 1:00.18, dropping her previous best and now former Alberta Provincial Record by nearly a second while moving into #2 all-time in the 13-14 age group among Canadians.

The recently-turned 14-year-old set a new Alberta Provincial Record (for 14-year-olds) of 1:01.13 earlier this month at the Edmonton Keyano International meet, and is now just 15 one-hundredths back of the National Age Group Record after getting down to 1:00.18.

She trails only seven-time Olympic medalist Penny Oleksiak, who clocked 1:00.03 at the age of 14 in 2015, just over a year before claiming silver in the 100 fly at the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

Clark, who previously ranked sixth all-time in the 13-14 age group, overtakes some accomplished names with her swim: 2016 Olympians Noemie Thomas and Chantal van Landeghem, and multi-time World Junior champion Jade Hannah.

All-Time Canadian Rankings, Girls’ 13-14 100 Butterfly (LCM)

1. Penny Oleksiak (TSC), 1:00.03 – 2015 Canadian Swimming Trials
2. Maxine Clark (UCSC), 1:00.18 – 2022 Canadian Championships
3. Noemie Thomas (WDSC), 1:00.20 – 2010 Junior Pan Pacs
4. Jade Hannah (HTAC), 1:00.69 – 2016 Canadian Olympic Trials
5. Chantal van Landeghem (MANTA), 1:00.92 – 2009 Australian Youth Olympic Festival

Clark heads into the final in the girls’ 13-14 age group with the top seed by more than three and a half seconds, with Hyack’s Paige Korbely sitting second at 1:03.77. Korbely’s best time sits at 1:03.28, set just over a week ago.

Clark’s UCSC teammate Kamryn Cannings was the only swimmer faster than the 14-year-old in the preliminary heats, as Cannings clocked in at 59.89 for the top seed in the girls’ 15-17 age group.

This is the third time Cannings has broken 1:00 in her career, having done so twice at the Canadian World Trials in April. Her best of 59.74 ranks 11th all-time in the girls’ 15-17 age group.

Putting up the second-fastest time for 15-17 girls was Langley Olympians Swim Club member Leilani Fack, who touched in 1:00.54 to near her best of 1:00.46 set in April. Just 15, Fack trails only Noemie Thomas (59.39) and Jade Hannah (1:00.24) among 15-year-olds in the all-time British Columbia rankings.

Clark’s swim in the 13-14 age group ended up being the faster than the top time in the 18 & over category, as Danielle Hanus led the pack in 1:00.47, followed by Brooklyn Douthwright (1:00.48).

Douthwright’s time knocked nearly a full second off her New Brunswick Provincial Record of 1:01.40 set in June.

OTHER EVENTS

• W 50 BK – 2022 World Championship finalist Ingrid Wilm paced the field in the women’s 50 backstroke, putting up a time of 28.13 to lead GO Kingfish’s Regan Rathwell (28.59). Wilm placed fourth at the World Championships last month in Budapest and set a best time of 27.39 in the semi-finals. The stroke 50-meter events will be raced in an open category rather than the age group format the other events have.
• M 50 BK – A trio of male swimmers were sub-27 in the 50 back heats, led by CAMO’s Loic Courville Fortin in 26.66. The 18-year-old won the event at the Canadian Trials in April in a personal best time of 25.98.
• M 200 IM – UBC’s Brodie Young put up the fastest time in the men’s 19 & over 200 IM, touching in 2:05.85. Swimming unattached, Will Browne, who swims for Cavalier Aquatics/Piedmont Family YMCA in the U.S., blasted a 2:06.75 to lead the boys’ 14-15 200 IM, taking more than three seconds off his previous best of 2:09.85. Erik Linseisen, who is also from the U.S. but is making the move to McGill University, leads the 16-18 age group in 2:07.08.
• M 400 FR – 17-year-old Yu Tong (Adam) Wu leads the boys’ 16-18 400 free in a time of 4:01.39, followed by UCSC’s Lorne Wigginton (4:03.98). Wu, who swims for the Surrey Knights, owns a best time of 3:54.81, which he set en route to finishing fifth at the World Trials in April. Xavier Pimentel of Natation Gatineau (NG) paced the 19+ age group in 4:02.84, while HYACK’s 14-year-old stud Laon Kim posted the top time by three seconds for the 14-15s (4:09.41). Kim’s current best time of 4:09.14, set in late May, ranks him as the fastest Canadian 13-year-old of all-time.
• W 400 IM – Canadian Olympian Bailey Andison posted the top time in the women’s 18 & over 400 IM in 4:49.97, followed closely by Regan Rathwell (4:50.39). Andison was fifth in this event at the World Trials earlier this year in a season-best of 4:44.56, and owns a lifetime best of 4:38.66. Edmonton Keyano’s Emma Finlin leads the 15-17 age group by nearly five seconds in 4:52.97, while Canadian Dolphin Swim Club’s Liu Ziyun topped the 13-14s in 5:09.73.
• M 100 BR – UBC’s Justice Migneault clocked 1:02.41 to lead the men’s 19 & over 100 breast, having set a PB of 1:01.73 at the Canadian Trials in April. Migneault and Gabe Mastromatteo, who advanced third in 1:03.16, tied for second in the final of those trials with matching 1:01.75s. The fifth-fastest qualifier, Brayden Hemeon of the Saskatoon Goldfins, set a new Saskatchewan Provincial Record in 1:03.47, improving on his previous mark of 1:03.54 set earlier this month. Ramac’s Steve Frantskevich leads the 16-18s in 1:03.92, while Oliver Dawson of the Grand Prairie Piranhas dropped his best time down by seven-tenths to pace the 14-15s in 1:07.02.