Chung Sung-Jun/ISU, FIBA, Leah Hennel/COC
Team Canada fans will have several contests to keep an eye on this weekend.
The World Swimming Championships continue in Doha, Qatar, with qualification for Paris 2024 at stake for some athletes and teams. The Canadian women's basketball team also has its sights set on Paris 2024 as it competes for an Olympic berth at the Olympic qualifying tournament in Sopron, Hungary.
Team Canada short track speed skaters will compete in the penultimate ISU World Cup of the season in Dresden, Germany. Many athletes will be working at home as World Cups in cross-country skiing, freestyle jumping and snowboarding take place in Canada this weekend.
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Water sports: diving, swimming, artistic swimming, water polo
The World Swimming Championships continue in Doha, Qatar. This weekend the pool swimming competitions begin, while the final diving and artistic swimming competitions take place and the water polo tournament continues.
Dive: After securing an Olympic qualification quota for Canada Paris 2024 in the men's 10-meter synchronized event on Thursday, Nathan Zsombor-Murray and Rylan Wiens will return to the platform on Friday to compete in qualifying for the men's 10-meter dash. The semi-final and final of the 10-meter individual competition will take place on Saturday. Wiens can secure a second Olympic qualification quota for Canada in the 10-meter dash; Zsombor-Murray secured a quota place for the country at the World Cup last year.
Bathe : Swimming competitions begin Sunday and several Canadians will be in the pool. On the women's side, Ella Jansen will compete in the 400m freestyle, Katerine Savard in the 100m butterfly and Ashley McMillan and Sydney Pickrem in the 200m individual medley.
For the men, Lorne Wigginton will swim the 400m freestyle, James Dergousoff will swim the 100m breaststroke and Finlay Knox will swim the 50m butterfly.
The women's and men's 4x100m freestyle relays are scheduled for Sunday.
READ: Swim, swim again: Three veteran Team Canada swimmers discuss their views on sport and life
Artistic swimming: On Friday, the Canadian women will be in action in the team free program, the final of three programs that will determine their qualification for Paris 2024. Canada placed fourth in the freestyle program and sixth in the technical program. The top five teams that have not yet qualified will receive their Olympic quota spot.
READ: Breathe and have fun: Canadian artistic swimmers ready for World Swimming Championships
Water Polo: The Canadian women's water polo team will face New Zealand on Saturday. Canada finished second in Group D in the round robin and advanced to the round of 16. The World Cup is Team Canada's last chance to qualify for Paris 2024. There are two quota places available for the Olympic tournament.
READ: Canada's women's water polo team prepares for final Olympic qualifying opportunity at World Swimming Championships
basketball
The Canadian women's basketball team is ready to fight for its ticket to Paris 2024 at the Olympic qualifying tournament in Sopron, Hungary. It is one of four Olympic qualifying tournaments taking place from February 8th to 11th. A total of 16 teams will take part in these four tournaments, including already qualified teams from the USA and France, leaving ten quota places for Olympic tournaments still at stake.
Canada opened the tournament on Thursday with a 67-55 victory over hosts Hungary. Canada, ranked fifth in the world, plays No. 4 Spain on Friday, followed by No. 9 Japan on Sunday. Three of these teams will secure a spot in the Olympics.
Team Canada opened the tournament on Thursday with a 67-55 victory over Hungary. Canada, ranked fifth in the world, faces fourth-placed Spain on Friday and ninth-placed Japan on Sunday. Three of these teams will secure a spot at the Olympics.
READ: Canada women's basketball team opens Olympic qualifying tournament with win over Hungary
Short track speed skating
The ISU Short Track Speed Skating World Cup resumes this weekend after a short break since the last stop in mid-December. The fifth of six stops of the season will take place in Dresden, where 12 Canadian athletes will be in action.
With the final leg of the World Championships on the horizon, some Team Canada athletes are in the thick of the fight to win Crystal Globes. In the general men's ranking Steven Dubois is currently in first place, just two priority points ahead of his South Korean rival Ji Won Park. For his part, William Dandjinou, who won his first individual World Cup medal at the beginning of the season in Montreal, is in third place in the overall World Cup standings, which clearly illustrates the 22-year-old figure skater's upswing in recent months.
In the overall ranking of the various disciplines, Jordan Pierre-Gilles is in first place in the 500 m thanks to his three gold medals this season, Dubois is in second place in the 1000 m, while Dandjinou in the 1500 m -Run took second place. The Canadians are currently in second place in the men's 5000 m relay. This weekend the men's team is completed by Pascal Dion, Félix Roussel and Philippe Daudelin.
On the women's side, Kim Boutin, who took a break to pursue her special education studies, returns to the circuit after missing this fall's international competitions. In Dresden she will meet her teammates Danaé Blais, Courtney Sarault, Claudia Gagnon, Florence Brunelle and Renee Steenge. The women's 3000 m relay takes third place in the overall World Cup rankings.
Qualification for all events takes place on Friday. On Saturday the women's and men's finals over 1500 m, 1000 m and the mixed relay are on the program, while on Sunday the finals over 500 m, 1000 m and the women's and men's relay will be presented.
World Cup events in Canada
Acrobatic jump : Freestyle jumping events will be presented this weekend as part of the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup in Lac-Beauport.
Alexandre Duchaine, gold medalist last weekend in Deer Valley, will look to continue his momentum. Marion Thénault, who had to forego a World Championships in December because she was recovering from a serious fall in training, will be looking to find her feet after her twelfth place finish last weekend.
Several other Canadian athletes will want to use this leg of the World Cup at home to leave their mark, including Émile Nadeau, Lewis Irving, Victor Primeau and Miha Fontaine in the men's events and Flavie Aumond and Charlie Fontaine in the women's events.
A first event for each genre will be held on Saturday, followed by an identical program on Sunday.
Cross-country skiing: A FIS cross-country skiing World Cup stop is taking place in Canmore, Alberta until Tuesday.
Among the Canadian cross-country skiers who will be in action is Antoine Cyr, who impressed at the beginning of January with 12th place in the overall ranking of the prestigious FIS Ski Tour. Beijing 2022 Olympic athletes Olivier Léveillé, Katherine Stewart-Jones and Olivia Bouffard-Nesbitt, as well as rising international talents Xavier McKeever, Julien Locke and Katie Weaver, will also compete on Canadian soil against the world's best for the occasion.
The women's and men's 15 km mass start freestyle competitions will take place on Friday. The freestyle sprint events are scheduled for Saturday. On Sunday the 20km mass start events will take place in the classic style, while the competition will conclude on Tuesday with the sprint events in the classic style.
Snowboarding: Team Canada snowboarders are ready to put on quite a show for Canadian fans this weekend when the FIS Halfpipe Snowboard World Cup, also known as the Snow Rodeo, takes place at the Olympic Park in Calgary, Alberta. Taking part will be Liam Gill, Ryan Vo, Lucas Briggs, Elizabeth Hosking, Brooke D'Hondt, Felicity Geremia, Jenna Walker and Lily-Ann Ulmer; With the exception of Hosking, all of these athletes are based in Calgary.
The qualification takes place on Friday, followed by the final on Saturday.
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