Canadian Trials Moved From Montreal To Toronto Due To Extended Closure, Dates Remain The Same

By Anya Pelshaw on SwimSwam

Swimming Canada has moved 2024 Canadian Trials from Montreal to Toronto due to an extended closure of Montreal’s Olympic Park after a fire occurred in the Montreal Olympic Tower at the end of March.

Last week, Swimming Canada announced that they would be searching for a new location for the meet with hopes of keeping it in the Montreal area with the originally planned dates of May 13-19.

The meet will now be held at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Center with the originally planned dates of May 13-19. Toronto is about a six-hour drive west of Montreal. The pool was been home to the 2015 Pan Am Games as well as the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Trials. Canada’s 2023 World Championship Trials were also held at the pool in Toronto.

“It wasn’t an easy decision and it won’t be perfect but we believe, taking all into consideration, it is the best decision with only five weeks to go before the meet,” said Swimming Canada Acting CEO Suzanne Paulins.

“Although we are disappointed that the Trials will not be held in Montreal or Quebec, we understand the need for an environment that promotes athlete preparation and performance. We support Swimming Canada in this choice. At the same time, this situation highlights the vulnerability of our sport for holding a world-class event in Quebec,” said the Federdation de natation du Quebec (FNQ) Executive Director Francis Ménard. “We are counting on our partners to find a solution to promote the development of swimming.”

Swimming Canada searched for locations in Montreal and originally looked at Pavillon de l’éducation physique et des sports de l’Université Laval (PEPS) roughly 250 km away (a three hour drive) from the Montreal Olympic Park.

The organization reports that athlete input advocated for the meet to be moved to Toronto as the Pan Am Sports Centre is also home to a separate 50 meter warm up/warm down pool. In addition, athletes also cited the pool’s history including swims such as Summer McIntosh‘s World Records from last year’s Trials.

The Toronto location is one of three High-Performance Centers for Swimming Canada. The other two are located in Vancouver and the originally planned Montreal Olympic Park.

See the full Swimming Canada announcement here.

Swimming Canada will return to Montreal in a few years as 2026 Trials are scheduled in Montreal.

SwimSwam: Canadian Trials Moved From Montreal To Toronto Due To Extended Closure, Dates Remain The Same