Over 600 synchronized swimmers, coaches and judges from across Canada will be at the Centre Aquatique Desjardins at Université Laval’s PEPS, March 16-20, for Synchro Canada’s 2016 Canadian Qualifier Championships.
The 441 athletes will represent 42 clubs from nine provinces during the competition hosted by Quebec City’ synchronized swimming club, Quebec Excellence Synchro, Synchro Québec and Synchro Canada.
Amongst them, 28 synchronized swimmers will represent the host club. A total of 114 athletes from the province of Quebec will be taking part in these Championships
The synchronized swimmers from the 13-15, junior (16-18) and senior age groups will be accompanied by 110 coaches and will perform in front of 40 officials.
Towards the 2016 Canadian Championships
As the name suggests, the Canadian Qualifier Championships are the opportunity for competitors to qualify for the final competitions of the year, the Canadian Championships.
Athletes of the junior and senior age groups will be looking to earn a ticket to the Shiseido Canadian Open Championships, which will be held April 26 – 30 in Calgary, AB. For the athletes of the 13-15 age group, qualification will lead to the Canadian Espoir Championships in Winnipeg, MB, on May 31 – June 5.
Qualifying event for the 2016 Junior National Team
The competition will also be hosting the 2016 Junior National Team trials in which a group of 25 pre-qualified athletes will be looking to qualify for Synchro Canada’s 2016 Junior National Squad scheduled to compete at the FINA Junior World Championships, July 7-10, in Kazan, Russia. Two selection events, on Thursday and Sunday, will be held to determine the final 12-woman team.
A special duet selection event will also take place on Friday morning, after which the duet representing Canada at FINA Junior Worlds will be selected. This will be the conclusion of a year-long process in which Synchro Canada matched athletes from different clubs and held numerous training camps in order to find the best possible match. The pairs vying for a spot will be :
Emily Armstrong (Synchro Canada Regional Training Centre – Toronto, ON) & Paige Hopper (Calgary Aquabelles – Calgary, AB)
Andrée-Anne Côté (Quebec Excellence Synchro – St-Georges, QC) & Halle Pratt (Calgary Aquabelles – Calgary, AB)
Camille Fiola-Dion (Quebec Excellence Synchro – Rimouski, QC) & Sion Ormond (Synchro Canada Regional Training Centre – Aurora, ON)
Tickets are available at the PEPS ticket office, for $12 per day or $32 for an all-event package.
All events from the Championships will be webcast live. Schedules, start lists, results and links to live webcast and live results can be found at www.qualifier2016.ca.
Schedule for Wednesday, March 15
| Time | Age Group | Event |
|---|---|---|
| 8:15am – 2:00pm | 13-15 | Figures |
| 3:30pm – 4:00pm | Senior | Solo Technical |
| 4:30pm – 6:15pm | Junior | Team Preliminaries |