Calgary's Cassandra Winkelaar tops 13-15 figures at 2015 Canadian Qualifier Championships

Victoria, March 25, 2015 — Cassandra Winkelaar of the Calgary Aquabelles ranked first in figures in the 13-15 age group on Wednesday to open the 2015 Canadian Qualifier Championships in synchronized swimming.

Winkelaar earned 73.6170 points. Emily Armstrong of the Aretaic Synchronized Swimming Club in Toronto was second at 73.4550 and Paige Hopper, also of the Aquabelles, was third at 72.7680.

In 2013, Winkelaar was part of the 13-15 National Team that ranked 5th at the Mediterranean Cup in Alexandropouli, Greece.

In the combo open final, the Calgary Aquabelles won the gold medal interpreting its Divas routine for 78.4333 points. Montreal Synchro was second at 77.5000 and SynchroElite from Quebec City third at 72.1333. The BC Aquasonics team from the home province was a very close fourth.

“We felt super energetic and very unified as a team, said all team members in one voice. We love this routine because it’s fun for us and for the audience at the same time. For the Shiseido Canadian Open Championships in April, we will work on improving by having cleaner transitions, higher highlights and tighter patterns”.

Earlier in the day, the Quebec City team of SynchroElite was first in the Senior Team Technical event with 68.5357 points.

The Canadian Qualifier Championships are the opportunity for athletes of the junior and senior age group to earn a ticket to the Shiseido Canadian Open Championships, which will be held April 28-May 2 in Toronto, ON. The athletes of the 13-15 age group will look to qualify for the Canadian Espoir Championships, held June 3-7 in Saint John, NB.

Over 430 athletes are taking part in the competition, which continues through to Saturday at Saanich Commonwealth Place.

Schedule for Thursday, March 26

8:00am – 1:00pm	JUNIOR Figures
2:15pm– 3:00pm	SENIOR – Solo Technical
3:30pm– 7:30pm	13-15 – Solos
8:00pm– 8:15pm	SENIOR – Duet Technical

About Synchro Canada

Synchro Canada is the national organization governing synchronized swimming in Canada. It represents 10 provincial associations, a territorial association, as well as some 150 clubs and 12,000 members across Canada. A member of FINA, the world’s governing aquatic sports organization, Synchro Canada promotes the quest for excellence by developing the athletes, citizens and ambassadors of the sport of synchronized swimming at every level.

Synchro Canada would like to thank its sponsors:

Program partners: Sport Canada, Own The Podium, the Institut national du sport du Québec

Official Aquatic Supplier: Speedo Canada

Official make up: MAKE UP FOR EVER

Official suppliers: Knox Gelatine, AdUp, National Car Rental

Official hotel: Hilton Hotels Canada

For further information, visit Synchro Canada’s Website at www.synchro.ca or follow Synchro Canada on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

– 30 –

For information:

Stéphane Côté

Synchro Canada

Communications Coordinator