Oleksiak is ready for first world finals
Penny Oleksiak believes she’s swimming faster these days. The world championship will tell her if she’s right.
The 17-year-old Olympic champion from Toronto leads a Canadian team deep in female talent into the pool at the world aquatic championships opening Friday in Budapest, Hungary.
Winner of freestyle gold, butterfly silver and the anchor in a pair of relay bronze in Rio last summer, Oleksiak is as curious as anyone to see how high the needle on her speedometer goes in her world championship debut.
“I think I’m really about to find out,” Oleksiak said Thursday on a conference call. “I haven’t got to race a lot this year, but I’m super-excited just to get in the pool again and race in Budapest.
“I don’t think my approach to world championships is any different than it was going into the Olympics. “Obviously I’m still a little bit nervous and not really sure what to expect going into it, but I definitely have a bit more confidence because of last summer and because of the racing that I’ve done this year.”
The biannual world aquatic championships also include diving, synchronized swimming, water polo and open water swimming, so Canada is sending a total of 83 athletes to Budapest.
Canadians won four silver medals in diving and four swimming bronze two years ago in Kazan, Russia.
Diving and synchronized swimming kick off this year’s competition Friday followed by the first open water race Saturday.
The pool portion starts July 23, so Oleksiak and her 25 teammates have a few more days of preparation at their staging camp near Rome.
Oleksiak is encouraged by personal best times in the 50-metre butterfly and freestyle this year.
Canada’s women backed up a six-medal performance in Rio by claiming another seven at the world short-course championship in Windsor, Ont., in December.