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| Penny
OLEKSIAK |
| Sport |
Swimming |
| NOC |
Canada
|
| Gender | Women |
| Born | 13 Jun 2000
in Scarborough, CAN |
| Height | 1.86 m |
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General Interest |
Awards and honours |
In 2016 she was named CBC Sports' Athlete of the Year and received the Lou Marsh Trophy, awarded by a panel of journalists, as Canada's Athlete of the Year. That year she was also named Female Breakout Swimmer of the Year and Female Canadian Swimmer of the Year in swimming website SwimSwam's Swammy Awards, and Female Swimmer of the Year by Swimming Canada. (sportsnet.ca, 13 Dec 2016; cbc.ca, 15 Dec 2016; swimswam.com, 26 Dec 2016)
She was named flag bearer for Canada at the closing ceremony of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. (swimswam.com, 14 Sep 2016) |
Nicknames |
Pen (torontolife.com, 18 Dec 2018) |
Injuries |
In 2017 she was injured in training when a medicine ball struck her head. At the time she was also recovering from a lingering shoulder injury. Neither injury prevented her from competing in the world championships that year. (cbc.ca, 15 Jul 2019) |
Most influential person in career |
Her parents. (torontolife.com, 18 Dec 2018) |
Milestones |
She became the first athlete representing Canada in any sport to win seven medals at the Olympic Games, after she claimed three medals [one silver and two bronze] at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (SportsDeskOnline, 22 Sep 2021)
At the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro she became the first Canadian athlete from any sport to win four medals at a single summer Olympic Games, and the first female Canadian swimmer to win four career Olympic medals, equalling male Canadian swimmer Victor Davis who won four from 1984 to 1988. (SportsDeskOnline, 17 Feb 2020)
At the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro she became the youngest Canadian athlete from any sport to win a gold medal at the Olympic Games when she triumphed in the 100m freestyle at age 16 years and 59 days. (SportsDeskOnline, 17 Feb 2020)
When she and teammate Taylor Ruck won bronze as part of the Canadian women's 4x100m freestyle relay team at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, they became the first athletes born in the 21st century to win an Olympic medal for any nation. (SportsDeskOnline, 12 May 2021) |
Sport Specific Information |
Training Regime |
She trains at the High Performance Centre in Toronto, ON, Canada. |
General Interest |
Sporting philosophy / motto |
"It's not about who has the biggest muscles or best speed, it's about who wants it more." (swimmingworldmagazine.com, 06 Dec 2020) |
Further Personal Information |
Residence |
Toronto, ON, CAN |
General Interest |
Hobbies |
Reading, cycling, playing with her dog, listening to music, spending time with friends, watching movies, fashion, interior design. (swimmingworldmagazine.com, 06 Dec 2020; torontosun.com, 27 Apr 2020; torontolife.com, 18 Dec 2018) |
Famous relatives |
Her brother Jamie has played as a defenceman for the Dallas Stars and the Pittsburgh Penguins in the National Hockey League [NHL], while her sister Hayley has rowed at Northeastern University in Boston, MA, United States of America. Her mother Alison was a competitive swimmer in Scotland. (torontolife.com, 18 Dec 2018; cbc.ca, 06 Apr 2016; beachmetro.com, 08 Sep 2015) |
Sport Specific Information |
Why this sport? |
"My mum told me I had to pick something to do because, 'We're not dealing with you having a crazy amount of energy at home'. I just chose swimming and I was terrible at it. I remember my mum trying to teach me and my sister how to do butterfly in the lake. I was awful. My mum took me to a bunch of competitive swim clubs and they kept asking me to do different strokes. I barely knew what breaststroke was, I didn't know what the kick was like. I was so confused. One day I just had a coach take me in and, from then on, I loved swimming and I kept working to try and be the best that I could be at it." |
Name of coach |
Ben Titley [national], GBR; John Atkinson [national] |
When and where did you begin this sport? |
She learned to swim at age nine. |
Further Personal Information |
Occupation |
Athlete |
Languages |
English |
General Interest |
Other information |
TAKING A BREAK
She competed at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, QLD, Australia, just days after the death of her grandmother. After the Games she took some time away from major competitions so that she could focus on "being a teenager" and take a break from the pressure. She returned to international competitions in mid-2019. "It [taking a break] helped to get myself mentally prepared for another few years of really hard training for the next Olympics [in Tokyo]. Taking a break was worth it." (macleans.ca, 23 Dec 2019; cbc.ca, 15 Jul 2019; torontolife.com, 18 Dec 2018)
DEALING WITH PRESSURE
She says that she learnt to deal with the pressure of success after the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where she won four medals. "I don't really put any pressure on myself and neither do my family or friends. I think there's definitely that little voice in the back of my mind that helps me when I'm doubting myself in certain races where it's just like, 'Okay, you did this at the Olympics and you did this at another meet. You can definitely do it here'. Before Rio I was just excited to go and cheer on Team Canada, but now there's almost this pressure on my shoulders. I've taught myself over the last few years to deal with that pressure and use everything I did in Rio as something to empower me." However, she says that following the 2016 Games, the next two years were difficult reconciling her fame with her everyday life as a teenager. "I guess I did stop enjoying swimming for a bit [after Rio], but it wasn't ever a thought in my mind that I wanted to quit it. I always knew I wanted to keep swimming, but there were definitely days where it was tough to get up and go to the pool." (macleans.ca, 23 Dec 2019; cbc.ca, 15 Jul 2019; torontolife.com, 18 Dec 2018; ctvnews.com, 14 Jan 2020) |
Olympic Games |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 3 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
200m Freestyle |
1:54.70 |
| 4 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
100m Freestyle |
52.59 |
| 2 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
3:32.78 |
| 3 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
4 x 100m Medley Relay |
3:52.60 |
| 4 |
2021 |
Tokyo, JPN |
4 x 200m Freestyle Relay |
7:43.77 |
| 2 |
2016 |
Rio de Janeiro, BRA |
100m Butterfly |
56.46 |
| 1 |
2016 |
Rio de Janeiro, BRA |
100m Freestyle |
52.70 |
| 3 |
2016 |
Rio de Janeiro, BRA |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
3:32.89 |
| 5 |
2016 |
Rio de Janeiro, BRA |
4 x 100m Medley Relay |
|
| 3 |
2016 |
Rio de Janeiro, BRA |
4 x 200m Freestyle Relay |
7:45.39 |
World Championships |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 16 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
200m Freestyle |
DSQ |
| 4 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
100m Freestyle |
52.98 |
| 2 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
3:32.15 |
| 3 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
4 x 100m Medley Relay |
3:55.01 |
| 2 |
2022 |
Budapest, HUN |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
3:20.61 |
| 6 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
50m Butterfly |
25.69 |
| 6 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
200m Freestyle |
1:56.59 |
| Heats |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
100m Freestyle |
DNS |
| 3 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
4 x 200m Freestyle Relay |
7:44.35 |
| 3 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
3:31.78 |
| 3 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
4 x 100m Medley Relay |
3:53.58 |
| 4 |
2019 |
Gwangju, KOR |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
3:22.54 |
| 4 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
100m Butterfly |
56.94 |
| 5 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
50m Butterfly |
25.62 |
| 6 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
100m Freestyle |
52.94 |
| 4 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
4 x 100m Medley Relay |
3:54.86 |
| 3 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
4 x 100m Medley Relay |
3:41.25 |
| 4 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
|
| 3 |
2017 |
Budapest, HUN |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
3:23.55 |
World Championships Short Course |
| Rank |
Year |
Venue |
Event |
Result |
| 3 |
2016 |
Windsor, ON, CAN |
100m Freestyle |
52.01 |
| 1 |
2016 |
Windsor, ON, CAN |
4 x 200m Freestyle Relay |
7:33.89 |
| 8 |
2016 |
Windsor, ON, CAN |
4 x 100m Freestyle Relay |
DSQ |
| 4 |
2016 |
Windsor, ON, CAN |
4 x 50m Medley Relay |
1:46.00 |
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