Team Canada won the bronze medal in the women’s 4×100 metre swimming relay on Sunday at the 2019 World Aquatics Championships in Gwangju, South Korea. The Canadian team was comprised of Maggie Mac Neil of London, Ontario, Canadian Olympic gold medalist Penny Oleksiak of Toronto, Ontario, Canadian Olympic bronze medalist Taylor Ruck of Kelowna, British Columbia and Kayla Sanchez of Scarborough, Ontario.
Canada’s third place time was 3:31.78. They reached the podium by 3.54 seconds over the Netherlands, who finished in fourth place with a time of 3:35.32. Australia won the gold medal with a time of 3:30.21 in a World Aquatics Championship record time and the United States won the silver medal with a time of 3:31.02.
This was the third time that Canada has won a medal in the women’s 4×100 metre relay at the World Aquatics Championship. At the 1975 World Aquatics Championship in Cali, Colombia, the Canadian team of Gail Amundrud of Toronto, Ontario, Jill Quirk of Lethbridge, Alberta, Rebecca Smith of Vancouver, British Columbia and Anne Jardin of Pointe Claire, Quebec won the bronze medal after finishing behind the gold medalists from East Germany and the silver medalists from the United States. Then at the 1979 World Aquatics Championship in West Berlin, Germany, the Canadian team of Amundrud, Nancy Garapick of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Wendy Quirk of Montreal, Quebec and Sue Sloan of Stettler, Alberta won a bronze medal after finishing behind the gold medalists from the United States and silver medalists from East Germany. At the time, East Germany and the United States set a world record in winning the gold medal.
Oleksiak won the gold medal in the women’s 100 metres at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Also at the Olympic Games of 2016, Oleksiak won the silver medal in the women’s 100 metre butterfly, bronze medal in the women’s 4×100 metre freestyle relay and bronze medal in the women’s 4×200 metre freestyle relay. Ruck meanwhile won the Olympic bronze medals in the relays with Oleksiak. The bronze medal for Mac Neil, Oleksiak, Ruck and Sanchez at the World Aquatics Championship will give them confidence as they prepare for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
