Coming up on her third Olympics, with a whopping seven Olympic medals under her belt, Penny Oleksiak is Canada’s most decorated Olympian of all time. This year the Olympics will look a little different for Oleksiak, who has spent nearly two years away from competition as a result of injury. She will not be competing in individual events but will compete in Paris as a member of the women’s 4 x 100-metre freestyle relay. Oleksiak has demonstrated perseverance on her path to Paris in a bid to aid in Team Canada’s spot on the podium. Here is what you need to know:Â
Hometown: Toronto
Sport: SwimmingÂ
Background: At just 15 years old, Oleksiak won six medals at the World Junior Swimming Championships, foreshadowing her remarkable Olympic debut in Rio 2016. She won four medals overall, which included a record-breaking gold (tie) in women’s 100-metre freestyle, a silver in women’s 100-metre butterfly, and two bronze in women’s 4 x 100-metre freestyle relay and 4 x 200-metre freestyle relay respectively. With these achievements, Oleksiak was selected as Team Canada’s Closing Ceremony flag bearer.
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Following the Olympics, Oleksiak went on to win three silver medals at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in women’s 4×100-metre medley, 4 x 100-metre freestyle, and 4 x 200-metre freestyle relays.
Oleksiak competed in her first World Aquatics Championships in 2017 where she won bronze in mixed 4x 100-metre medley relays. In 2019, she won bronze in women’s 4 x 100-metre freestyle, 4 x 200-metre freestyle, and 4 x 100-metre medley relays, setting Canadian records in all events. In 2022, she won four medals in relays, which included silver in women’s 4 x 100-metre freestyle and mixed 4 x 100-metre freestyle, bronze in women’s 4 x 200-metre freestyle and 4 x 100-metre medley relays.
Soon after, Oleksiak sustained her first major injury, a torn meniscus in her left knee, which resulted in her needing surgery. She returned briefly to competition in May 2023 but made the decision to focus on rehabilitation instead. Oleksiak had moved her training base to south California for a change of pace. In November, she suffered another knee injury, requiring surgery once more. Despite these setbacks, Oleksiak pursued her interests outside of swimming in the meantime.
Oleksiak only had four months to recover from surgery before the Olympic Trials. She didn’t qualify in the women’s 200-metre freestyle. She won the finals in 100-metre freestyle but was 0.05 of a second short of the Olympic qualifying time for the individual event. She will represent Team Canada in the women’s relay.
Career highlights: Tied with Victor Davis as Canada’s most decorated Olympic swimmer, Oleksiak became Canada’s youngest Olympic gold medallist after her debut in the Rio 2016 Olympics.
Penny Oleksiak won Canada’s Athlete of the Year and the Bobbie Rosenfeld Award following her Olympic debut.
With an impressive total of nine career medals, Oleksiak is tied with Kylie Masse as Canada’s most decorated swimmer in history at the long course World Aquatics Championships.
Where it all started: Oleksiak began learning how to swim at age nine as she would often enjoy pool days with her friends in the backyard.
Fun fact: Athleticism appears to run in the family. Oleksiak’s older brother Jamie Oleksiak is an NHL defenceman and her older sister, Hayley Oleksiak, is a former NCAA rower.
Olympic event date: Women’s 4 x 100-metre freestyle relay (Jul. 27).
Social media: Instagram TikTok
We’ll be profiling more athletes ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics; refer here for more coverage.Â