Pentathlon Meet Team Recap - October 17-19th, 2025
This last weekend (October 17-19), a group of 13 Orca swimmers competed at the Annual Triple Pentathlon Swim Meet in Penticton. Included in this group were 4 recent Regional 1 qualifiers (Sophie, Astrid, Jason, and Carissa) who were all competing in their first ever non-jamboree meet. This is a huge deal!
While the first swim meet of the year is often full of nerves, a few mistakes, and truthfully just stands as a starting point for the rest of the season, all 13 Orcas acquitted themselves very well, with each even achieving best times. Though there were plenty of memorable swims, we have picked out a few highlights from each swimmer to share below:
Astrid: As one of our first-time swimmers, Astrid began the meet with some nerves but quickly swam away from them as she blew away the entry time set by her coach in the 100 Breaststroke by over 19 seconds! This placed her as an impressive 3rd for 10&Unders in her very first swim! Astrid also valiantly took on three 200m races and impressed her coaches with her consistency in those. Well done Astrid!
Emily: Although not feeling her best and having to end her weekend early, Emily swam 7 individual races over the first session and a half, besting her times in both the 100 Backstroke and 100 Freestyle. In the 100 Freestyle, Emily broke through the illusive 1:10 barrier for the first time, which is a huge accomplishment. Great work and rest up, Emily!
Madeleine: Madeleine swam 5 races over the weekend and came away with an impressive 100% best times. What a way to start a season! One of Madi’s favourite races is the 50 Butterfly, where she blew away her previous best time and came in at a 36.66. Congratulations, Maddie, you’re awesome!
Isla: After her first race, Isla was disappointed to add 8-tenths of a second, but she rebounded well with a streak of 5 substantial best times in her next 6 events. This even included a really big effort in one of her least favourite events (the 200 IM). On the Sunday of the meet, she swam 5 races, culminating in the 100 IM where she dropped more than 11 seconds off her previous best. Super job, Isla!
Rhys: Although not a recent Regional qualifier, Rhys is new to the world of swim competition as he has chosen to transition to the competitive side this year. After a summer of hard work, training, lots of running, and open water swimming, Rhys jumped in with two feet and signed up for 12 events in his first ever full-sized meet. Rhys obliterated all our guestimates, finishing first in numerous heats and blowing past time marks he wasn’t close to last season. While he had many notable swims, a few highlights were the 200 IM, 200 Backstroke, and 50 Butterfly. We are so proud of you, Rhys, and looking forward to what’s next!
Alicia: After competing in a big Cross Country race the day before, Ali joined us in Penticton for 5 events on Sunday. With tired legs, she was extremely close to several of her bests, before taking off almost a full second in her 50 Freestyle in a speedy 32.75. Great resiliency Alicia!
Sophie: Another one of our first-timers, Sophie completed 5 events and came away with best times in all 5! Sophie stayed committed to several technical notes she had been given by Coach Olivia and pushed herself throughout the events. While Backstroke is not her favourite stroke, she swam a very respectable 48 in her 50, and had no DQs in her first meet. Great attention to detail, Sophie!
Jason: Moving up from Jamborees to 3-day meets is a huge jump, but Jason seemed to make the jump with ease, crushing out two 100m events and three huge 200m ones! This is no easy feat, but the coaches heard no complaints from Jason, who completed all his races with determination and focus. Keep working hard Jason, it’s paying off!
Yaniv: Like Rhys, Yaniv completed 12 events over the weekend, coming home with 10 best times. Yaniv also isn’t one to take the easy road, as he chose to swim all three IMs (100, 200, and 400), as well as the 100 Butterfly. A couple races that really stand out were the 100 Butterfly and the 400 IM, both of which he was racing for the first time and both of which he handily bested the Divisional time in. Yaniv also broke 36 in his 50 Butterfly, which is a huge deal. Can’t wait to see what’s next, Yaniv!
Carissa: Although she said she was nervous, Carissa showed up to the pool all smiles and energy for her first regional meet, trusting the work she’s been doing in practice to pay off. It did! Swimming 4 out of 5 of her events for the very first time, Carissa didn’t shy away and very deliberately followed everything from her 2-handed touch practice in Breaststroke to her pre-determined stroke counts in Backstroke. One particularly impressive race was Carissa’s 100 Freestyle, where she swam a speedy 1:33.55. Keep it up Carissa!
Nicolas: Another swimmer going in and out of the colds we’ve been having, Nicolas joined us for the last day of the meet and immediately proved that rest is just as important as training! Nic came in and not only lead the team in energy and pumping each other up, but also achieved 5-for-5 personal best times. For one of these best times, he dropped a whopping 4.93 seconds off his 50 Breaststroke. We are all looking forward to another great season for you, Nicolas!
Kendra: While she prefers Breaststroke and Freestyle, Kendra has put in some hard work on her Butterfly and Backstroke in recent months, and that has paid off! Kendra swam 12 races and achieved 8 personal bests, including every race that included Butterfly or Backstroke. She also dropped over 8.5 seconds in her 200 Freestyle to break the 3min mark for the first time. Great to see your dedication paying off, Kendra!
Elizabeth: Last but not least, Elizabeth joined us for 2 of the meet days, racing 9 events between them. While her biggest best time came in the 100 IM on Sunday (she dropped almost 6 seconds for a 1:21.45), one of her most impressive swims came in the 100 Freestyle on Friday. Shortly after swimming three other back-to-back events, culminating in a very difficult 100 Butterfly, Elizabeth got on the blocks for the 100 Freestyle and closed out the day with a gutsy personal best time of 1:10.89. Nice job on your first meet, Elizabeth!
What a great way to start off a season! Both of us coaches loved watching the first bit of racing this season and are super pumped to see what all our Orca swimmers can accomplish throughout the rest of the year. We’ve been working on goal sheets with our Reg/Multi/AG groups and are looking forward to supporting the kids as they chase these. Stay tuned for many more exciting meets to come!
As always, thank-you to all the parents and the community who support this club and these swimmers! All these kiddos work hard in and out of the water and have earned their results, but the support teams around them are also so key to their success. We recognize and appreciate this.
Coach Janae