TORONTO – The World Aquatics Swimming World Cup is set for a thrilling finish as the world’s top swimmers head to Toronto Thursday through Saturday for the final stop of the three-leg series. After fast swimming and standout Canadian performances in Carmel, Ind. and Westmont, Ill., all eyes turn to the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre for the series finale.
The short-course (25-m) circuit features Olympic and world champions from around the globe competing for medals, prize money, and overall titles.
Morning heats begin at 10 a.m. ET, with finals at 6:00 p.m. ET. Fans can watch all sessions on cbcsports.ca or on CBC Gem.
In Westmont, Australia’s Mollie O’Callaghan became the first woman to break the 1:50 barrier in the 200-m freestyle touching in 1:49.77. Five-time Olympic champion Kaylee McKeown of Australia set a new standard in the 200-m backstroke going 1:57.87, and Kate Douglass of Team USA established a world record in the 100-m freestyle touching at 50.19. Meanwhile, her teammate Regan Smith tied her own 100-m backstroke world record at 54.02. At the opening stop in Carmel, fellow American Gretchen Walsh broke the 50-m butterfly record in 23.72.
Canadian swimmers also impressed in the opener, led by two-time Olympic medallist Ilya Kharun (Montreal) who collected four top-three performances — winning the 50-m and 200-m butterfly, taking second in the 100-m butterfly in Canadian record time, and third in the 50-m freestyle. Finlay Knox (Okotoks, Alta./HPC-Vancouver) added a third-place finish in the 100-m individual medley.
A week later, athletes were back to racing for their second stop in Westmont where Kharun continued to shave time off records. He claimed four more Top 3s — this time winning the 50-m freestyle, 200-m and 50-m butterfly, and finishing second in the 100-m butterfly. His 100-m fly time of 49.00 and 50-m freestyle mark of 20.72 were both in Canadian record time, while his 1:48.46 in the 200-m butterfly broke the US Open and World Cup record.
Mary-Sophie Harvey (Trois-Rivières, Que./CAMO), swam to her first top-three finish, finishing second in the 400-m individual medley. She also broke the national record in a fourth-place 1,500-m freestyle finish with a time of 15:49.06.
“The 1,500 I haven’t done since 2013, so it’s been 12 years, and I was very worried about it but I actually surprised myself, so we’ll take it,” explained the two-time Olympian. “Going into the next stop, my whole family is coming so I’m going to put myself in the best position to give good races and also show them all the hard work we’ve been doing. Because it’s not just me, they’ve been supporting me for so many years. I’m very excited for them to be there but to also see how I can improve. That’s the beauty of World Cups, every single week we are trying to improve and better ourselves.”
Josh Liendo (Toronto, Ont.) finished second in the 50-m freestyle and third in the 100-m butterfly, while Knox added a second-place finish in the 200-m individual medley.
After two stops the Americans lead the overall women’s standings with Walsh in first with 118.1 points. Douglass, who is the defending overall World Cup champion, stands at 118.0 and Smith is third with 114.4. Harvey has climbed into 15th overall with 82.5 points, moving up from 18th after the first stop as the top Canadian female performer. On the men’s side, Hubert Kos of Hungary leads with 116.4 points, while Kharun has surged into second overall with 113.1 points after tying for fourth from the first stop, putting himself firmly in contention for the overall series title. Casas rounds out the top three with 112.3 points.
The home crowd at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre can expect world-class matchups, featuring Olympic and world champions from around the globe. Among the international stars set to compete are Thomas Ceccon (Italy), Kos, Noe Ponti (Switzerland), and Canada’s Liendo, a world and Olympic medallist looking to reach the podium on home soil.
On the women’s side, five-time Olympic champion O’Callaghan headlines a field that includes two-time Olympic champion Douglass. The backstroke events are stacked with competitors including Canadian legend Kylie Masse (LaSalle, Ont.) facing world record-holders and Olympic champions, Smith and McKeown.
Other Canadian international including Taylor Ruck (Kelowna, B.C.), Knox and Harvey will look to close out the series with strong performances in front of a home crowd, alongside Kharun.
Full schedule and results: https://www.worldaquatics.com/competitions/4971/world-aquatics-swimming-world-cup-2025