Latest news with #ManSask
Winnipeg Free Press
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Bringing the noise
The atmosphere in Pan Am Pool will be no short of electric this weekend, as provincial pride is on the line at the 2025 ManSask Summer Long Course Provincial Championships. It's one of the largest swim meets hosted in Winnipeg in years, with around 460 athletes from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia, who will compete from July 10–13 in timed races based on age groups, before ending the meet on Sunday with a provincial relay where it's a province-versus-province showdown. 'So Canada Life Centre is loud, this place gets ridiculous,' said meet manager Dale Gustafson on the provincial relay. RENEE KARDASH PHOTO The ManSask Summer Long Course Provincial Championships will see 460 athletes from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia compete at Pan Am Pool from July 10-13. To qualify for ManSask, swimmers must meet their AA level qualification times, something many have been preparing for all season, with coaches tailoring the training and swimming programs leading up to the meet. 'These swimmers have all qualified because they have reached that threshold of time standards, so they're a little bit faster,' said Gustafson. 'We've got some pretty fast swimmers that are coming from across Ontario and Western Canada, so that'll be really cool to see this weekend, too.' But it's the final event of the competition that is set to be the highlight, as coaches across the 40 attending teams select their top swimmers to represent their provinces in relays and medley relays. And as the athletes pull on their provincial swim caps, Pan Am Pool will erupt with loud and proud cheers for the young athletes. 'It'll be the highlight, I can assure you of their weekend, for some of them, their season,' said Gustafson. 'It's so rowdy and supportive as the provinces go against each other. It's a wonderful way to finish (their season) off.' The ManSask competition is the final Swim Manitoba event this season in Winnipeg, although some swimmers will continue training leading up to the Canada Summer Games. For those on Team Manitoba headed to St. John's in August, the meet serves as a launchpad, being their last major competition before the Canada Games. 'It's a wonderful way to finish the season,' said Gustafson. 'And for the Manitoba swimmers who qualified to be here at home, for most of them in their home pool, and also to be welcoming and bringing everybody here, it's a wonderful weekend for that.' Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. With ManSask being one of the largest swim events at Pan Am, the organizing committee — formed in March by Swim Manitoba — has been preparing for the meet for nearly eight weeks. 'It takes a ton of work to put this all together, and it's through the good graciousness of all the volunteers that pull this stuff off,' said Gustafson. Preliminary rounds of competition start Thursday morning. 'This gives the kids the opportunity to swim against people they've probably never seen before, to hang out in the stands with teams from across the better half of the country,' said Gustafson. 'It's going to be a fun time.'
Winnipeg Free Press
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Young swimmers look to make a splash at provincials
Young swimmers from across Manitoba and northwestern Ontario are racing against the clock Friday and Saturday at Pan Am Pool as over 260 athletes compete in the 2025 Manitoba Junior Swim Provincials, hoping to advance to the ManSask Championships in July. 57 of those athletes come from the Manitoba Marlins, a club that has grown significantly in recent years, surpassing 250 members with over 150 in competitive programs. For the junior-level swimmers, Marlins head coach Cam Harbeck says they have been working hard all season to obtain qualifying times in different events to earn a spot at this weekend's provincials. The Marlins had 79 athletes qualify for this year's meet, which was a 35 per cent increase from last year. RENEE KARDASH PHOTO Over 260 athletes will compete in the 2025 Manitoba Junior Swim Provincials this Friday and Saturday at Pan Am Pool, hoping to advance to the ManSask Championships in July. 'Our programming is really teaching-based, where we're focusing a lot on how to properly execute races and how to properly learn to swim fast before we actually get to our higher-level competitive groups,' said Harbeck. 'They're learning how to execute races and really go about pursuing higher-level goals and higher-level competitions.' Swimmers from ages eight to 18 who qualified with 'A' time standards will look to achieve 'AA' times to reach the next level of competition at ManSask, which will also be held at Pan Am Pool from July 10 to 13. Meet manager Dale Gustafson says the junior provincials are a 'huge life experience' for the young athletes and their development as swimmers. 'Every opportunity we can give the swimmers to experience racing is a developmental exercise for them,' said Gustafson. 'You're competing against the clock, not really against somebody else, and every time a swimmer gets to jump in the pool and have that opportunity to race against the clock is a good thing, and it's an emotional roller coaster.' The Marlins hope to bring a group of over 20 athletes to the ManSask competition. 'It's a big deal to qualify for the next level,' said Gustafson. 'It's like graduating.' 'I think to watch any athlete, but especially in the pool, when they hit the wall, turn around, look at the screen, and they instantly know where they're at, the emotions are fascinating to watch because you get both sides. There will be tears of joy and tears of complete sorrow and everything in between tomorrow,' he said. As the Marlins continue to grow, Harbeck is leading the way, recently appointed head coach at the end of May, making him the youngest head coach in the province at 26 years old. RENEE KARDASH PHOTO Swimmer Charlie-Rose Dobie is one of 57 Manitoba Marlins competing in the Manitoba Junior Swim Provincials Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. 'We have a very experienced and cohesive competitive staff who are all pulling our club forward together,' said Harbeck. 'We love coming to work every day, and we make sure all of the swimmers in the club know that.' Harbeck says their Mini Marlins pre-competitive program, led by Luc MacNeil and Mackenzie Alexiuk, has been a big part of their recent success and will play a key role in the future of the club. The Marlins' competitive program also continues to shine, with four athletes named to Team Manitoba for the Canada Games in St. John's, N.L., this August. The Manitoba junior provincials kick off tomorrow at 5:35 p.m. with the girls' 800-metre freestyle timed finals. '(The events) are an enormous amount of work, and I cannot stress enough the older brothers and sisters, the grandparents, family friends, the families that come and support their kids on the deck and volunteer for this,' said Gustafson. 'It's simply extraordinary.'
