When Penny Oleksiak missed out on qualifying individually for the Olympics in the 200-metre freestyle event at the Canadian swimming trials last month, she told the media “my story is not done yet.”
Two days after the 200 freestyle disappointment she narrowly missed qualifying individually for the 100 freestyle — the event she captured gold at the 2016 Rio Games.
At that time Oleksiak could have never predicted her next chapter would take her to Europe just weeks ahead of the Paris Olympics, but that’s exactly what’s now taking place.
Canada’s most decorated Olympian is determined to qualify for the women’s 100 freestyle event at the Paris Games —and has now made plans to make one last push to do so in Europe later this month.
CBC Sports has learned the seven-time Olympic medallist is going to compete in the annual Sette Colli International Meet in Rome the weekend of June 21-23. That is the final weekend of Olympic qualification. Spots are allocated based on time ranking.
Oleksiak will be accompanied by Swimming Canada staff as she looks to swim under the Olympic qualifying standard and qualify individually for the event in Paris.
WATCH | Oleksiak finishes 1st in women’s 100mfreestyle:
CBC Sports’ Devin Heroux and Brittany MacLean recap Day 5 of the Canadian swim trials and outline what to look forward to on Day 6.
Oleksiak named to 3rd Olympics
The 23-year-old from Toronto has already been named to the Canadian team as part of the 4×100 relay team. She won the 100 freestyle event during the trials at the Pan Am Sports Centre in the middle of May, however, her time of 53.66 seconds was an agonizing .05 short of the qualifying standard.
“I really want that individual spot, so I’m going to do everything I can to secure it,” Oleksiak told CBC Sports after just missing the mark at trials.
Oleksiak will have to swim below a time of 53.61 at the world aquatics sanctioned event in Rome to earn one of the final spots in the event.
“We always work with our swimmers and their coaches to support their bespoke plans. Penny has already qualified to be a relay swimmer for Paris 2024 and we look forward to her being a strong team member once again,” John Atkinson, Swimming Canada high-performance director, said.
“This is a solid plan for Penny. She will be well supported by coach Greg Arkhurst, a member of our Paris 2024 coaching staff, as well as other Swimming Canada support staff.”
Oleksiak is the Canadian record holder in the 100 freestyle, posting a time of 52.59 seconds at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. But since then, Oleksiak has been plagued by injuries, including a second knee surgery she had four months ago.
The Canadian took her training south to California last fall with the hopes of returning to form ahead of trials and the Olympics. She joined a pro swimming club in the Los Angeles area where she’s switched up her training program.
Oleksiak has been trending in the right direction over the last number of months. At the Canadian Open in April, Oleksiak, who hadn’t competed in Canada for nearly two years, came in fourth in the 100 freestyle in a time of 54.43.
A month after that she trimmed that time down to 53.66. It was her best finish since the 2022 world championships in Budapest.
Now Oleksiak, who turns 24 next week, has two weeks to try and trim .05 seconds off of her time. Should she be able to do that in Rome, Oleksiak will be competing in the 100 freestyle event at the Paris Games.
Oleksiak shot to superstardom at the 2016 Rio Olympics when she won four medals, including gold in the 100 freestyle. At the Games in Tokyo she followed that up by winning three more medals.