On the second weekend of the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, there will be a change in the pool as the diving competition ends and swimming begins. In water polo, things get down to business right from the start of the elimination round.
It is also a transitional weekend to road cycling, as the men’s Tour de France finishes on the same day that the first stage of the women’s Tour de France begins. There are also a few Canadians on the course at the world’s oldest golf tournament.
Here’s a rundown of the sports and events to watch this weekend so you don’t miss a great Team Canada moment:
dive
The diving competition comes to an end at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships. Caeli McKay delivered Team Canada’s best performance to date when she won bronze in the women’s 10m on Wednesday – her first career medal at the World Aquatics Championships. McKay’s medal is Team Canada’s first at this competition as the swimming competitions begin this weekend.
READ: Caeli McKay jumps on the 10m springboard at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships
Finishing in the top 12 secured McKay an Olympic quota spot for Canada in the women’s 10m for Paris 2024, a feat her teammate Nathan Zsombor-Murray will hopefully repeat if he performs at the same level. He must first pass the preliminary rounds with the goal of qualifying for the semi-finals on Friday and then the final on Sunday.
Pamela Ware dived for a medal in the 3m springboard, she qualified fourth in the semifinals. That performance secured Canada a spot at the Paris 2024 event. Ware placed fourth in the women’s 1m springboard and fifth in the women’s 3m synchronized springboard with partner Mia Vallée last Saturday.
Bathe
Swimming competitions at the World Aquatics Championships begin Saturday night for Canadians watching from home. With the first final round of the swimming competitions taking place on Sunday, Canada will have the first chance to secure podium finishes.
READ: Five stories from Team Canada as they swim at the 2023 World Aquatics Championships
There is great excitement surrounding the women’s 400m freestyle, with preliminary rounds on Saturday and finals on Sunday. Competing in the 400m freestyle will be world record holder Summer McIntosh of Canada, as well as reigning Olympic champion and former world record holder Ariarne Titmus of Australia and Katie Ledecky of the United States, who broke the record three times before Titmus. The finals take place on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.
Other Canadian medal contenders in action on Saturday include butterfly specialists Maggie MacNeil and Josh Liendo, who will compete in the 100m and 50m heats respectively on Saturday. Eric Brown will complement the 400m freestyle after competing in the 10K open water last Saturday.
READ: Joshua Liendo aims for podium again at World Aquatics Championships
Other finals taking place on Sunday include the men’s 400m freestyle and men’s 400m medley, as well as the men’s and women’s 4x100m relay finals. The World Aquatics Championships are a particularly important stop on the road to Paris for Team Canada, as the top three countries in each relay competition in the Olympic program secure their country a spot at the next Games.
Canadians in Action on Saturday (Prelims)
- Summer McIntosh: 400m Freestyle
- Ella Jansen: 400 m freestyle
- Maggie MacNeil: 100m butterfly
- Katerine Savard: 100m butterfly
- Mary-Sophie Harvey: 200m individual medley
- Sydney Pickrem: 200 IM m individual medley
- Eric Brown: 400m freestyle
- James Dergousoff: 100m breaststroke
- Josh Liendo: 50m butterfly
- Ilya Kharun: 50m butterfly
- Collyn Gagne: 400m individual medley
- Lorne Wigginton: 400m individual medley
- Relay: 4 x 100 m women, 4 x 100 m men
Canadians in action on Sunday (prelims)
You can follow the competition live on the website Radio Canada Sports.
water polo
The Canadian women’s team finished second in their group with a record of two wins and one loss. After starting with a 11-10 loss to Hungary, they beat New Zealand 13-11 and Japan 17-12. Next up is their first playoff game as they take on South Africa on Saturday morning with Canadian fans watching from their homes. It’s about getting into the quarterfinals.
The men go 1-1 into their final group stage game on Friday morning against France, who are also 1-1.
golf
The fourth and final major men’s tournament of the year takes place at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club. Two Canadians compete in the British Open: Corey Conners and Nick Taylor.
Conners is making his fourth appearance in golf’s oldest tournament, while Taylor is making his debut there. They will seek to improve on a Canadian-born golfer’s previous best result at the Open – Mackenzie Hughes’ sixth (tie) result of 2021 when he was seven shots adrift of the winner.
On Friday, the respective start times for round two will be early enough for Canadian fans to watch from home. Conners will start at 2:52 p.m. ET, followed by Taylor at 5:20 p.m. ET.
The Royal Liverpool was built in 1869, making it the second oldest coastal golf course in England. RDS will cover all four rounds.
road cycling
It’s a great weekend at the Tour de France. While the men complete their 21-stage Grand Tour in Paris on Sunday, the women begin the first of eight stages of the Tour de France Women. Their race will cover a total of 956km in the southern half of the country, starting in Clermont-Ferrand and ending in Pau on July 30th.
Mike Woods made headlines when he won stage 9 on July 9, becoming the third Canadian to win a Tour de France stage.
Three Canadians are part of the Women’s Tour de France squad for professional team EF Education-TIBCO-SVB: Alison Jackson, Sara Poidevin and Magdeleine Vallieres. They will be strong support riders for the GC team’s target rider, American Veronica Ewers. Jackson will also be eyeing at least one stage win, adding to an already successful year that includes a win at Paris-Roubaix. She will wear the Canadian champion’s jersey after winning the road race at the national championships in late June.
Simone Boilard (St-Michel Auber93) and Gabrielle Pilote Fortin (Cofidis) will also be on the road with their professional teams.
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