Throughout history, Canadians have performed extraordinarily well in open water swimming.

Jacques Amyot (1995), Marilyn Bell (1967), Christine Cossette (1982), Robert Cossette (2004), Helge Jensen (1970), Vicki Keith Munro (2003), Régent Lacoursière (1978), Cliff Lumsdon (1969), Cynthia Nicholas (1978), Gilles Potvin (2006), Gus Ryder (1981), Greg Streppel (1996), Patty Thompson (1969), Margaret Park Wisniski (2000), and George Young (1963) have all been inducted in the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame.

This August, two young Canadians did their best to revive the proud history of marathon swimming: Richard Weinberger and Annaleise Carr.

Both generated a lot of media attention…and deservedly so.

22-year-old Weinberger swam to a bronze medal in the Olympic marathon swim in the Serpentine at the Olympic Games in the toughest, deepest field in the sport, positioning him as a force to be reckoned with over the next Olympic quadrennial.

14-year-old Carr became the youngest person to swim across Lake Ontario. Her 26 hour 41 minute effort over the traditional 0.5 km Marilyn Bell route captured the public’s attention.

Not only did she bring attention to the sport, but she also raised over C$135,000 for Camp Trillium. Her passion and personality were just the right boost to keep open water swimming in the news in Canada.



Photo of Annaleise Carr by The Canadian Press.

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