UC Dino Cup 2022
- October 28 – 30, 2022
- University of Calgary Aquatic Centre
- Calgary, Alberta
- Short Course Meters (SCM)
The University of Calgary defeated the University of British Columbia at the 2022 US Dino Cup, which ran from October 28 – 30 in Calgary, Alberta. The University of Calgary Dinos put up 140 points across the three days of the meet, while UBC scored 110, followed by the University of Lethbridge with 88 and the University of Calgary Swim Club with 21.
This is an important win for Calgary following their third-place finish on the men’s side and second-place for the women at last season’s USports Swimming Championships. At the 2022 Championships, the University of British Columbia men managed to finish first overall, while the University of Toronto picked up the title for the women.
Rebecca Smith walked away as a quintuple champion at the UC Dino Cup, which the University of Calgary hosted from October 28 – 29, 2022. Smith won the 50 freestyle, 100 butterfly, 200 freestyle, and 100 freestyle individually, and the 400 freestyle relay. Smith was up against swimmers from the University of British Columbia and the University of Lethbridge, along with some club swimmers who were taking part.
Smith is in her second season at the University of Calgary and is already a seasoned swimmer on the international stage. Smith has raced for Canada at several competitions around the world including the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the 2017, 2019, and 2022 World Championships, and the 2016 and 2021 Short Course World Championships. Smith is a key member of Canada’s relay squad and has collected 19 relay medals for the nation. She won her first major international individual medal at the 2021 Short Course World Championships when she took silver in the 200 freestyle with a 1:52.24 national record.
Smith started off with a 100 butterfly win on day 1, hitting a 58.24 as the only sub-minute entrant. She out-swam University of Calgary Swim Club swimmer Maxine Clark (14-year-old), who swam a 1:01.06. Smith’s best time in the event is the 56.55 that she swam during the 2020 ISL season, meaning that she was still a few seconds off her PB.
Clark’s time got her within striking distance of the 13-14 Canadian age group record in this event of 59.09, which Danika Huizinga set back in 2014. UBC’s Josie Field rounded out the top three in the butterfly with her 1:01.52, while teammate Brooklyn Wiens was right behind with a 1:01.63.
Smith got a bit closer to her best time in the 50 freestyle when she won the event with a 25.21, trailing her 24.80 from back in 2016 by 0.41. That time comes from the 2016 Short Course World Championships 6 years ago and this is the fastest Smith has been in the event since 2017. Smith’s teammate Eliza Housman was #2 in the 50 with a 26.09 and UBC swimmer Anna Dumont-Belanger followed with a 26.25.
On day 2 Smith collected another 2 wins by hitting a 53.84 in the 100 freestyle and a 1:55.69 in the 200 freestyle. Neither of those times were quicker than Smith’s lifetime bests, which sit at a 52.90 from earlier this year and a 1:52.24 from the 2021 Short Course World Championships, respectively. Smith also helped her teammates Housman, Hannah Bennet, and Avery Movold win the 400 freestyle relay, in which Calgary hit a 3:44.28 to UBC’s 3:46.94 and UCSC’s 3:49.56.
Maxine Clark managed to pick up a win on day 2 when she posted a 2:14.91 in the 200 butterfly, beating her teammate Sydney Stewart (2:17.30) and UBC’s Lora Willar who notched a 2:19.97 for third. Clark’s time in the 200 is 4.51 seconds over Summer McIntosh‘s 2019 13-14 age group record of 2:10.40.
Canadian Olympian Rachel Nicol was also racing at the meet, representing UCSC in the breaststroke events and 100 IM. She won all four of her events at the meet, hitting a 31.46 in the 50 breast, 1:07.29 in the 100, a 2:27.64 in the 200, and a 1:02.96 in the 100 IM. Nicol’s breaststroke PBs are currently 30.26, 1:05.15, and 2:23.94, respectively. Both Smith and Nicol will be representing Canada later this year at the 2022 Short Course World Championships in Melbourne, Australia.
One of the top performers on the men’s side of this meet was University of Lethbridge’s Chris Alexander who was the fastest man in the 50 freestyle (23.22) and 50 backstroke (25.59), the #2 performer in the 100 backstroke (55.41) and #4 in the 50 fly (25.52). Alexander out-touched UBC’s Dmitriy Lin and UCSC’s Paul Dardis in the 50 freestyle as those two hit a 23.38 and 23.41, respectively. The time for Alexander was a new PB.
While he settled for third in the 50, Paul Dardis, age 16, was victorious in the 100 freestyle when he delivered a 50.00. He touched ahead of Addison Butler of the University of Calgary’s 50.78 and Lethbridge swimmer’s 50.83. The time was a new personal best for Dardis, improving upon the 50.46 that he swam earlier in October 2022.
Other event winners throughout the meet included the University of Calgary’s Charlie Skalenda in the men’s 200 and 400 IM (2:03.19/4:27.33), his teammate Thomas McDonald in the 50, 100, and 200 butterflies (24.33/54.64/2:03.86), UCSC’s Ella Varga in the 50 and 100 backstroke (28.81/58.96), and UBC’s Camryn Stannard in the 400 IM (4:56.13).
The three university teams that took part in the UC Dino Cup will be back in action this weekend at the Odlum Brown Colleges Cup, hosted by the University of British Columbia. Those three teams will be joined by the University of Alberta, the University of Manitoba, the University of Victoria, Simon Fraser University, Thompson Rivers University, the University of Regina, and Team BC (an all-star high school team) for the two-day meet starting November 5.