Artistic swimming lit up the pool on Thursday as athletes competed in Solo Free and Duet Free preliminaries at the 2025 Canada Summer Games. The routines finalized the ‘A’ and ‘B’ flights for the finals later this week, with each province’s top-scoring routine earning a spot in the medal-deciding ‘A’ flight.
The Solo Free prelims saw stunning performances from Quebec, Alberta, Ontario, and Saskatchewan — as they all pushed for a spot in the finals. Ontario’s Madison Murphy wowed the audience with a captivating routine, landing her in 3rd for the event with 192.7900 points.
“I put it all out there in the pool. I think I’m in a good position for tomorrow and now it’s just making the little improvements and it’ll go well,” said Murphy.
Her combined score of 401.5950 points places her in the ‘A’ flight for Ontario.
Alberta’s Jasmine Peloquin took second with 199.9938 points in the routine, giving her a total score of 411.4005 points, also putting her in the ‘A’ finals.
Quebec’s Andrea Escobar stunned again with an impressive performance resulting in 208.7450 points, for a combined score of 431.8658 points. Escobar’s combined score places her just above her teammate Lily Bernier, who had gotten 192.2363 points in the free routine for a total score of 414.4005 points.
Not far behind Bernier was Saskatchewan’s Morgan Vaughan who was thrilled to see her results after a strong swim.
“I’ve been doing this routine for a long time so I was really ready for it,” said Morgan. “It was more than I even hoped for.”
The energy only continued to build going into the duet free preliminaries, and the pairs didn’t disappoint.
Quebec’s Lily Bernier and Andrea Escobar continued to shine, earning top marks in duet free. Their seamless connection in the water have kept them at the top of the rankings with a routine score of 251.0188 and combined score of 514.6538 points.
Bernier explained that before their performances, they’re always focused on each other.
“Right before our routine we kept looking at each other, saying ‘let’s go’ over and over. It was really reassuring to know that we were there for one another”.
Jasmine Peloquin and Kyla Williams claimed second for Alberta, earning a spot in the ‘A’ finals with a score of 231.0554 points, totaling 478.9879 points. Peloquin also competed in the solo free preliminaries earlier on Thursday, but said she prefers the duet event.
“It’s such a fun routine, it’s such a fun sport to be doing, especially with someone else,” said Peloquin. “I think we’ll come back stronger for finals, like we always do.”
Saskatchewan’s Joley Friesen and Sienna Kuchuran climbed the rankings with a third-place finish in the duet free prelims. Their routine resulted in an impressive score of 219.6794 points, leading to a combined score of 458.7219 points. If they carry this energy into the finals, they could be a contender for a medal.
Nova Scotia’s Isla Cohen and Olivia Hawrylak couldn’t contain their excitement following their routine.
“We’ve been working so hard the past couple of years,” said Hawrylak. “We really hope we can bring the energy to both finals coming up next.”
Friday’s events begin with the Solo Free finals at 12:45 NDT, starting with the ‘B’ flight and moving to the ‘A’ flight, followed by a medal ceremony. The highly anticipated Acrobatic Routine program kicks off at 19:30 NDT, promising another wave of thrilling routines.