U SPORTS Team Canada Swimmers to compete in dual meet against England University All-Stars
On the eve of this week’s national university swimming championships, U SPORTS is excited to announce that a team of top Canadian varsity swimmers will head to Great Britain this summer to compete in an international dual meet against the England University All-Star Team.
The dual competition, set for July 3-4, 2025, will feature a U SPORTS Canadian All-Star Team composed of the top two eligible Canadian finishers in each event at this week’s 2025 U SPORTS Swimming Championships. Swimmers who qualify for the FISU World University Games or the World Aquatics Championships will not be eligible for selection. The Championships will serve as the official qualification pathway for the team.
“This international competition provides additional opportunities for our U SPORTS student-athletes to extend their competitive season and gain valuable international experience,” said Matthew Davies, U SPORTS Chief Sport Officer. “It’s an exciting initiative that we hope will become a recurring event on the international university swimming calendar.”
Further details will be announced in the coming weeks, including the team coaching staff, the final team roster and additional event details.
“I am delighted to welcome athletes to the British Universities vs. Canadian Universities Dual Meet this July," said Andi Manley, Director of Swimming Loughborough University. "This event will provide a fantastic opportunity for top student-athletes to compete in a unique high-level event whilst strengthening connections between our two nations. I look forward to witnessing some outstanding performances and showcasing Loughborough’s world-class swimming environment.”
This new opportunity for student-athletes to qualify directly for Team Canada is another exciting subplot of the 2025 U SPORTS Swimming Championships, which begin Thursday at the University of Toronto's Varsity Pool.
This year’s event features a deep field of national team members and rising stars vying for U SPORTS gold and potential international selection.
The Varsity Blues are the defending men’s and women’s team championsand look to use their home pool advantage to their favour.
Despite being in a so-called rebuild, the host Varsity Blues are looking for a four-peat in women’s swimming. Standing in their way are the top-ranked team in the country and Canada West champion UBC Thunderbirds. Led by Olympian and Canada West swimmer of the year Kayla Sanchez, the Birds are looking to earn their first women’s team title since 2020. Sanchez has posted the best time in the 50m freestyle this season with 24.41.
The host Bluesboast a roster of accomplished swimmers, providing the U of T with ample opportunities to contend this week, as demonstrated at the OUA conference championships a month ago. OUA swimmer of the year Nina Mollin could be a difference maker for the U of T again this year. Last March in Montreal, she earned five medals, including four golds,to help Toronto to its 18th U SPORTS title.
The RSEQ hopes to ride on the wings of the McGill Marlets, who won their fifth straight conference title three weeks agoin Montreal. Elizabeth Ling leads the fourth-ranked Marlets into the competition. Ling, the RSEQ swimmer of the year, won conference gold in the 50-metre freestyle (0:25.72), the 50 backstroke (0:28.76) and the 100 back (0:55.77). In addition, she helped the team by competing on three winning relays: the 4x50 free (1:43.75), the 4x100 free (3:48.48) and the 4x100 medley relay (4:09.82).
The top team from the AUS is the Dalhousie Tigers, who have won an incredible 35 straight Atlantic University Sport team titles. The Tigers seek their first national championship, led by Emma Carrier Clarke. Carrier Clarke went undefeated at the AUS championship en route to being named the female swimmer of the meet, winning the 50m, 100m, 200m and 400m freestyle events. She also anchored two gold medal-winning relay teams.
On the men’s side, UBC is seeking to avenge Toronto’s team championship a year ago, which ended the Thunderbirds' six-season reign as U SPORTS champions.
UBC enters this year’s event as the top-ranked team in Canada, led by Olympian and 2024 FINA world champion Finlay Knox. Knox has the top time in U SPORTS in the 200 m medley this season, clocking in at 1:50.90 in the short course. In December, he captured four medals (two silver, two bronze) at the World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) in Budapest, Hungary. During the competition, he set the Canadian record in the 50 breaststroke (26.30) and the 200-metre individual medley (1:50.90).
OUA men’s swimmer of the year Ben Loewen leads the charge for the second-ranked University of Toronto Varsity Blues.The third-year commerce major won four individual gold medals, three of which came in OUA record time, while also helping the Blues to an OUA record victory in the 400-metre medley relay. Loewen set OUA records in the 100 butterfly (52.41), 200 butterfly (1:55.54) and 100 backstroke (52.86) while also winning the 200-metre backstroke title (1:55.40).
The number four McGill Redbirds head to the championships backed by Loïc Courville-Fortin, who won five gold medals, broke an RSEQ conference record and was named the conference male athlete of the meet earlier this winter. He set the RSEQ benchmark in the 200-metre individual medley, posting a time of 1:59.33 while winning the 100-metre backstroke (0:53.27), the 200-metre backstroke (1:57.16), and was on two winning relays: the 4x100 medley relay (3:39.37) and 4x100 freestyle squad (3:22.16).
Fans can follow the 2025 U SPORTS Swimming Championships on CBC Sports digital platforms, including CBC Gem, CBCSports.ca, and CBC Sports' YouTube channel, as well as Radio-Canada's ICI Tou—TV platform. Morning sessions (heats) will be streamed with in-venue PA announcer audio, while the evening session will feature full commentary from U SPORTS Top 8 Academic All-Canadian Ainsley McMurray.