Swimming

In nail-biting final, Kylie Masse takes silver in 100-metre backstroke at Tokyo Games

Christopher.Sorensen — Tue, 27 Jul 2021 14:18:21 +0000

In nail-biting final, Kylie Masse takes silver in 100-metre backstroke at Tokyo Games

Christopher.Sorensen Tue, 07/27/2021 - 10:18

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Kylie Masse, a U of T and Varsity Blues alumna, won the silver medal in the 100-metre backstroke on Monday night (photo by Attila Kisbenedek/AFP via Getty Images)

Jill Clark

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Our Community

Alumni

Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education

Olympics

Swimming

Varsity Blues

University of Toronto alumna Kylie Masse won the silver medal in the women's 100-metre backstroke on Monday night at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

The 25-year-old from LaSalle, Ont., touched the wall in 57.72 seconds – three-tenths of a second behind Australia’s Kaylee McKeown – to finish second and earn her second straight Olympic medal in her signature event.

Masse, who swam for the Varsity Blues, tied for the bronze at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.

“I'm really happy,” Masse told CBC after the event. “To get on the podium in this incredibly talented and deep field, I knew it was going to be a challenge – so I'm really happy to have gotten silver.”

Masse, who graduated from U of T's Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education earlier this year, kicked off the Games with an Olympic-record swim of 58.17 seconds in heats on Sunday morning. In a sign of the competitiveness of the field, Masse’s record time was then broken twice – by American Regan Smith (57.96) and McKeown (57.88).

In the semifinals, Masse went on to touch the wall in 58.09, ranking her second coming into Monday's final event.

“It's always an honour to represent your country and this year especially when no one is able to be here,” she said. “I can feel the love and support from home and I couldn't be happier to bring a medal home and contribute to Canada's success here.”

Read about Kylie Masse’s road to the Tokyo Olympic Games

Varsity Blues head swimming coach Byron MacDonald, who is also in Tokyo as a CBC commentator, said he was impressed with Masse's performance.

“After all the challenges during this pandemic year, she rises to the challenge once again,” he said in an email. "Sport is about performance on demand and Kylie always answers the bell. What a record of getting to the podium these past six years. This silver is icing on a very impressive cake! We are so very fortunate to have had Kylie Masse on campus these past years. She is one of the greatest Canadian athletes ever, and an outstanding leader and compassionate friend to all who know her.”

Masse will also swim in the 200-metre backstroke and could make an appearance on Canada's women's and mixed medley relay teams later this week.

During her time with the Varsity Blues, the two-time world champion went undefeated at five consecutive Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championships by never losing an individual or relay race. The five-time OUA female swimmer of the year, five-time OUA first team all-star and the 2015 OUA female rookie of the year also twice won the Dr. Jeno Tihanyi award for individual medley excellence and earned major grand slams in all three backstroke events.

On the national stage, Masse earned the grand slam award for four career victories in the backstroke events and was named the U Sports female swimmer of the year from 2016 to 2019. She was named the BLG award winner as the U Sports female athlete of the year across all sports in 2015-16 .and was named U of T's T-Holders’ female athlete of the year three times between 2015 and 2018.

Masse's international highlights while competing for the Blues include a bronze-medal finish in the 100 backstroke at the 2016 Olympic Games, as well as breaking the world record en route to a gold-medal finish at the 2017 FINA world championships.

The making of a champion: U of T's Kylie Masse sets her sights on Tokyo 2020

geoff.vendeville — Tue, 10 Sep 2019 14:16:30 +0000

The making of a champion: U of T's Kylie Masse sets her sights on Tokyo 2020

geoff.vendeville Tue, 09/10/2019 - 10:16

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Kylie Masse came to U of T ranked 201st in the 100-metre backstroke, now her best event, and went on to clinch an Olympic bronze medal and set a world record with consistency that's "beyond compare" (photo by Nick Iwanyshyn)

Geoffrey Vendeville

Topic

Our Community

Athletic Centre

Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education

Undergraduate Students

Varsity

Wearing tinted goggles, a black Speedo suit and faux pearl earrings, Kylie Masse takes her starting position on the block as cheers echo throughout the University of Toronto’s cavernous Athletic Centre.

Three, two, one. Masse moves reflexively, like a machine getting into gear. She dives, resurfaces and surges forward into her lane for the 200-metre butterfly. “TORONTO” is spelled out in block letters under the pool’s surface.

Having reached her fifth and final year of varsity eligibility this past season, the home meet against Western University earlier this year would be one of Masse’s last at the university. Over that period, Masse went from relative obscurity to winning a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and capturing a world record in the 100-metre backstroke.

“Winning the bronze, I never thought that was even possible,” Masse tells U of T News. “I never imagined myself on the [Olympic] podium that early on in my career … It really showed me what I was capable of and how much more I could still do.”

Now, Masse has her sights on the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, where she’s looking to reach the podium once again. She's already begun preparing in earnest – only this time around she’s facing the heightened expectations that come with being a veteran of the sport. If that weren't enough, she’s also wrapping up her U of T degree in kinesiology, with an eye to pursuing a career in health care after graduation.

Fortunately, Masse is better suited than most to handle the pressure.

Byron MacDonald, U of T’s varsity swim coach, has seen other U of T athletes reach the Olympics in his 42 years with the team. But he says Masse’s steady, low-key approach has yielded results that are rare in an unpredictable sport where the line between success and failure is measured in hundredths of a second.

“The fact that this girl gets to the top of the podium, let alone the podium, almost every single time she races – the consistency she shows is beyond compare.”

Masse’s relentless ways were on full display this summer in Gwangju, South Korea, where she defended her world title in the 100-metre backstroke – her best event – against the world’s top swimmers, including Olivia Smoliga, the American record-holder in the 50-metre backstroke, and Kathleen Baker, the Salem, N.C.-born swimmer who robbed Masse of her world record last year.

With the swimming world watching, Masse again exploded off her block and kept pace with the leaders. Only an arm’s length separated the leading swimmers as they came within touching distance to the wall. The commentator spoke in broken rhythm. “Masse in front,” he said. “Smoliga, Smoliga has responded… Smoliga, Masse, it’s going to be tight… who gets there? Masse gets there!”

Yet, despite the gutsy performance in South Korea, Masse needs no reminding of how quickly fortunes can change in swimming. And with Tokyo 2020 fast approaching, even tougher tests lie ahead. Not only does Masse now swim with a target painted on her V-shaped frame, she must increasingly cope with a new crop of hungry, young competitors looking to make a big splash on the world stage – just as Masse herself once did.

Kylie Masse (centre) poses with her gold medal at the 2019 World Championships in Gwangju, South Korea in July. New Zealand's Erika Jane Fairweather (left) took silver, while U.S. swimmer Olivia Smoliga captured bronze (photo by Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images)

Humble beginnings

Raised in LaSalle, Ont., Masse can’t remember when she first started swimming. It was probably around age three. She says she was “a little bit of a klutz” and “not exactly anyone’s prediction of an Olympian.” Although she comes from an active family, she says school was just as important.

“It was all about balance,” Masse says. “Sport was a huge thing, but so was school and there was an equal amount of hard work dedicated to both.”

From ages eight to 18, Masse swam with the Windsor Essex Swim Team. Her former coach, Andrei Semenov, says Masse didn’t have a competitive swimmer’s build when she was younger. “She was tiny, tiny, tiny,” Semenov says, adding Masse stood below many of her teammates’ shoulders.

But what Masse lacked physically, she more than made up for with leadership and attitude.

“She always swam for the team,” Semenov says, “not just for Kylie Masse.”

Prior to university, Masse ranked 201^st in the world in the 100-metre backstroke, which would later become her signature event. Though it was still early days, Masse showed enough promise in her high school years to appear on the radar of varsity scouts in both Canada and the United States.

Kylie Masse (centre) learned the fundamentals of the sport on the Windsor Essex Swim Team when she was young. “She was tiny, tiny, tiny,” says her then-coach Andrei Semenov (photo courtesy of Andrei Semenov)

Masse had already been weighing offers from several schools when MacDonald, the U of T swim coach, came calling. But between high school classes, swimming practice and recruitment trips, Masse wasn’t sure she had time for yet another campus tour. But MacDonald persisted, asking her to come and train with the team on one of the only free days in her calendar: a Thanksgiving Monday.

Joined by another swimming prospect from Quebec, Masse arrived at U of T to find a closed campus and a deserted pool – hardly ideal circumstances for a winning sales pitch. So, MacDonald improvised and invited the two swimmers to his family’s home for a turkey dinner.

“I did feel kind of bad actually,” Masse recalls, “but it was super special that he brought us to his house.”

The meeting clearly left an impression, though it probably weighed less heavily in Masse’s ultimate decision than the range of resources offered at Canada’s largest university and the school’s location – less than a day’s drive away from Masse’s hometown.

“I came here and just felt that I would be able to achieve my goals and dreams,” she recalls.

Masse’s path to the Olympic Games was far from linear. She suffered a devastating disappointment in her second year at U of T when she failed to qualify for the Pan American Games in Toronto. Masse went into the last leg of trials as the top seed, but soon lost her focus.

“I just got caught up in the race, thinking about what else was happening, or what could happen or what couldn’t happen if I didn’t make the team,” she says.

“It definitely was kind of a wake-up call and that’s been part of the journey.”

Such early setbacks can sometimes derail an athlete’s career. But Masse bounced back. Just a few months later at the 2016 International University Sports Federation (FISU) World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea, she swam the 100-metre backstroke in what was then a personal best time of 59.97 seconds, clinching the gold medal and coming in just 14 hundredths of a second off the record for that competition.

The swimming community suddenly took notice of the new 19-year-old on the block; Brittany MacLean, a Team Canada freestyle swimmer, even congratulated Masse on Twitter.

“I was so in awe that [MacLean] knew who I was or saw the result,” Masse says. “That kind of got me thinking, ‘If I keep working, maybe this could be my event.’”

Masse’s U of T varsity teammate Eli Wall says her success at those games opened people’s eyes to her potential.

“She herself and everyone else realized that she was the real deal,” he says. “I mean, she was virtually nowhere on the world stage the year before that, and she went on to win a gold medal at these big international university games.

“That gave her a lot of momentum going into Rio.”

Masse would not disappoint.

A winning bet

Masse had more on the line than just a medal in Brazil. She and her coaches made a deal after she had reached the final: If she could top MacDonald’s sixth-place finish at the 1972 Games in Munich, she would get a pair of tickets to see hip-hop superstar Drake in Toronto.

“That was our little running joke,” Masse says.

On finals day, MacDonald watched from the press box above the bleachers, where he was commentating for CBC. Linda Kiefer, the assistant head coach of the Varsity Blues swim team, had a poolside view of the action as one of Team Canada’s coaches.

At the race’s halfway mark, Masse turned and touched the wall after the three leaders, making her a longshot for the podium. But she accelerated in the final stretch and touched the wall alongside China’s Fu Yuanhui, sharing third place in a photo finish.

Kylie Masse of Canada celebrates third place in the women's 100-metre backstroke at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (photo by Ian MacNicol via Getty Images)

“Post-race I was inundated with interviews,” Masse later wrote in a personal essay for CBC. “There were questions about the sport itself, questions that I had never really put into words before.”

Her coaches, meanwhile, made good on their bet. Masse went to see Drake at the Air Canada Centre in the fall with her friend Penny Oleksiak, who, at 17, became Canada’s youngest Olympic champion with a break-out performance and five-medal haul.

But neither the Olympic medal nor what followed – the TV interviews and Speedo sponsorship – appear to have gone to Masse’s head. Instead of displaying her bronze medal, Masse keeps it tucked away in her sock drawer.

Her coaches say that’s par for the course for Masse, who doesn’t like to draw much attention to herself or boast of her achievements. Asked for an anecdote that reveals something of Masse’s personality, Kiefer tells the story of when she encouraged Masse to introduce herself to Gregorio Paltrinieri, an Italian distance freestyle champion. Masse balked, reasoning that he wouldn’t know who she was – after all, he’s an Olympian.

“So are you,” Kiefer reminded her.

Swimming, school and superstition

It can be difficult for U of T students to keep their head above water – never mind juggling up to nine swimming practices per week, three gym sessions, two physiotherapy appointments, out-of-town tournaments and media requests.

A typical day for Masse begins around 5:30 a.m. and finishes at 9:30 p.m, homework permitting. When she’s not swimming, she’s doing what most other students do: studying for finals and racing across campus to get to her elective, an introductory Spanish class. While she’s had her share of late nights hitting the books, Masse can claim at least one victory beyond the pool: She’s managed to avoid pulling an all-nighter in Robarts library.

Of course, being an Olympian comes with a few perks, particularly if you’re a kinesiology student like Masse. In one class on the Olympics and Paralympics – focusing on their achievements, prospects, problems – Masse and her peers were told to write a profile of an Olympian. So, Masse began her research by firing off a text message to Oleksiak and ended up with an A-plus.

Varsity swim coaches MacDonald and Kiefer know how hard it can be for swimmers to balance the demands of the sport with school and everything else life throws at them. Their coaching partnership has lasted almost three decades, longer than many marriages. Somewhere along the line they developed a key insight: a happy swimmer is a fast swimmer.

Masse, in particular, is so naturally upbeat that her coaches know there’s something amiss if she turns up for practice without a smile. “If you’ve ever watched her, she has fun,” Kiefer says. “If she comes on deck and she’s not dancing or bopping or singing, it’s like ‘Uh oh.’”

Masse (centre) in one of her last home meets with U of T's varsity team against Western University (photo by Nick Iwanyshyn)

Kiefer pays attention to every detail about her swimmers, even if they might seem trivial. After she noticed Masse wearing faux pearl earrings to races, she assumed they were good luck charms and kept a back-up pair in case Masse’s jewelry ever went missing at an inopportune time. After all, superstition comes in many shapes and sizes in swimming. Michael Phelps reportedly swings his arms on the starting block the same way before each race. Another American Olympic medalist, Mel Stewart, told Swim World Magazine that he sticks to the same menu before each meet: green tea and spaghetti with red sauce.

But, as it turned out, Masse simply wore the earrings because she liked how they look – although she’s been wearing them less frequently lately because she doesn’t want them to get stuck in her cap during a race or lose them in the water.

Still, Kiefer says she keeps a surplus of faux pearl earrings on hand – “just in case.”

Hungry for more

At just 21 years old, Masse was already on top of the world.

At the world aquatic championships in Budapest, she made history by swimming the 100-metre backstroke in 58.10, snapping a world record that had stood for eight years.

Her immediate reaction was disbelief. “I touched the wall and looked back and had to make sure I was looking at the right name and the right time,” she told reporters in a conference call after the race.

“I was just super excited. In the moment I don't even know what I was thinking but excitement and joy."

Her status as world-record holder was relatively short-lived. Just 368 days later, Team USA’s Kathleen Baker – the same swimmer who edged Masse for silver at Rio in 2016 – smashed Masse’s record with a time of 58 seconds flat at the American national championships. To add insult to injury, Baker captured the record in an outdoor pool, where times are thought to be slower. “I watched a lot of Shark Week,” Baker later said in a news release, “so I was channeling my inner shark there.”

MacDonald said it was a tough summer for Masse, who, in a short time, went from unlikely challenger to defending champion. She had “a bull’s eye on her back as the world-record holder,” her coach says.

Whereas Masse once raced in the pool’s outer lanes, reserved for the lower seeds, now she swims in the middle lanes side-by-side with the world’s best – and where everyone is watching. Yet, unlike the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto, where she lost focus and failed to qualify, Masse no longer crumbles under pressure.

Masse was following the American championships – and Baker’s “inner shark” performance – from Japan, where she was at a staging camp for the Pan Pacific Swimming Championships.

“Obviously I was a bit disappointed,” she recalls. “But I think it just gave me more motivation and lit a fire under me, like, ‘I want it back.’”

Barely a week after losing her record, she faced her and the Australian heavyweight Emily Seebohm at the Pan Pacific Games in Tokyo. She held off Baker and swept past Seebohm with powerful strokes in the dying seconds, one of Masse’s signature strengths.

Kylie Masse (right) is congratulated by Australia’s Emily Seebohm after winning the gold medal the women's 200-metre backstroke at the 2018 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships in Tokyo, Japan (photo by Kiyoshi Ota via Getty Images)

In hindsight, MacDonald says that losing her record may have ended up being a blessing in disguise for Masse as she prepares for the 2020 Tokyo Games.

“Now she’s hungry,” he says.

Back on campus, Masse handily wins the 200-metre butterfly at the meet against Western, finishing well ahead of the runner up. While such meets are comparatively low stakes, it’s impossible to tell – for a casual observer at least – whether Masse is making a distinction once she’s zooming through the water.

What is clear is that Masse’s preparations for Tokyo 2020 have begun in earnest. She is taking just one or two courses at U of T this year to save her energy and has signed on to a new international swimming league, which aims to give the world’s top swimmers new opportunities outside of the Olympics and other regional and international championships.

When asked if the upcoming Games could be her last, Masse – perhaps not surprisingly – shows little interest in engaging in such introspection when there’s work to be done.

“I’m focusing on the now and I’m going to think about that later,” she says. “I’m going to swim for as long as I enjoy it.”

Honorary degree recipient Mark Tewksbury swam for gold, fought for justice – and had some fun

perry.king — Wed, 19 Jun 2019 17:02:07 +0000

Honorary degree recipient Mark Tewksbury swam for gold, fought for justice – and had some fun

perry.king Wed, 06/19/2019 - 13:02

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Mark Tewksbury is a 13-time national swimming champion and Commonwealth and Olympic medalist (photo by Lisa Sakulensky)

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An Olympic champion. A broadcaster. A human rights advocate. An inductee to multiple halls of fame. Mark Tewksbury has had tremendous success inside and outside of the swimming pool.

“I’ve had such a fun life,” he told the National Post in 2012.

Tewksbury’s many achievements are being recognized on Thursday by the University of Toronto with a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, for “his excellence in sport, as a record-breaking swimmer, athlete advocate, LGBTQ human right advocate and role model.”

As a swimmer, Tewksbury was decorated. A winner of 13 national championships and four Commonwealth Games gold medals, Tewksbury achieved Olympic glory in 1992 by winning the gold medal in the 100-metre backstroke in Barcelona, Spain.

The achievement landed Tewksbury on the cover of Time magazine.

Watch Mark Tewksbury deliver his remarks:

Tewksbury later said he felt empowered at those Games because, privately, he came out as gay to a trusted coach. He told CBC Sports in 2018 the decision made all the difference to his personal integrity while competing. So when Tewksbury retired from competition and shifted his focus to motivational speaking and advocacy, he fought to make a difference for others.That included providing counsel to elite athletes who had not yet come out.

His efforts made waves. In 2008, when France first introduced the first declaration to decriminalize homosexuality at the United Nations, Tewksbury addressed the General Assembly on human rights. In Canada, Tewksbury witnessed changes in the Canadian Olympic Committee Charter to ensure LGBTQ athletes are guaranteed freedom from discrimination, and real discussion at the board level about issues of inclusion.

But Tewksbury’s LGBTQ trail-blazing also came at a personal price.

He made front-page headlines when he publicly identified as gay in 1998 – he was the first Canadian Olympian to come out – but it cost him a six-figure motivational speaking contract. When he spoke out about corruption at the International Olympic Committee in 1998, Tewksbury left the Olympic movement and didn’t return until 2012, when he became chef de mission of the 2012 Canadian Olympic Team.

Since retiring from competitive swimming, Tewksbury has worked to empower swimmers across Canada through the Mark Tewksbury Junior Swim Bursary program, which he established in 1993. He is an active spokesperson for the Children’s Miracle Network, AIDS Walk Canada and the Special Olympics, where he is the chair of its advisory board.

He’s also had his share of fun. In addition to doing colour commentary for CBC Sports, he hosted the first season of How it’s Made, a TV series that showed how everyday items are manufactured.

While boosting LGBTQ inclusivity in sports has been a slow process, Tewksbury is confident progress is being made.

“What’s cool is when history happens in such little, tiny, incremental steps, sometimes you don’t see it and it feels useless and hopeless,” he told CBC Sports in 2018.

“But when you have enough time – like 20 years – the steps start to add up and make some sense.”

CBC Sports' Scott Russell says U of T swimmer Kylie Masse is a proud product of Canadian universities

ullahnor — Fri, 28 Jul 2017 16:46:58 +0000

CBC Sports' Scott Russell says U of T swimmer Kylie Masse is a proud product of Canadian universities

ullahnor Fri, 07/28/2017 - 12:46

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Backstroke world champion Kylie Masse is a proud product of the Canadian university system, says CBC's Scott Russell (photo by Martin Bureau/AFP/Getty Images)

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Canadian sports veteran Scott Russell writes that Kylie Masse's world record shows Canadian schools can still produce champions.

“Masse studies kinesiology full-time at the University of Toronto and is an award-winning athlete not only because of what she does in the pool with her collegiate squad, the Varsity Blues, but also because of her commitment to sportsmanship and the leadership qualities she possesses,” he writes at CBC Sports.

Russell goes on to talk about challenges with Canada's top high-performance athletes heading south of the border for at least part of their training because the U.S. collegiate sports scholarship system offers significant funding. A system like that does not exist in Canada, he says.

“But Masse is a clear indicator that Canadian university sport is still fertile ground for nurturing champions,” he adds.

Russell quotes Masse's coach Byron MacDonald, who heads up the U of T swimming team.

“She remained in Canada for university and made her giant strides on the world stage because of the swim program at the University of Toronto,” MacDonald states in the piece. “While receiving less glamour than their NCAA counterparts, the Canadian university swim program constantly produces top athletes.”

Coach Linda Kiefer adds that swimmers like Masse are “showing that you can combine full-time academics and swimming at this level.”

And Olympian Bruce Kidd, vice-president, principal of the University of Toronto Scarborough, believes Masse's win “fortifies the place of the student-athlete in Canadian university sport.”

“It's a tribute to her remarkable personal qualities, her coaches at U of T and the Canadian Sports Centre Ontario,” Kidd says in the article. “Kylie is just another one who proves that you can attend and benefit from an outstanding academic program in one of the best universities in the world, while pursuing your athletic dreams – all right here in Canada.”

Kylie Masse takes gold, sets new world record at world swimming championships

geoff.vendeville — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 16:58:14 +0000

Kylie Masse takes gold, sets new world record at world swimming championships

geoff.vendeville Tue, 07/25/2017 - 12:58

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U of T's Kylie Masse took the gold and set a new world record in the 100-metre backstroke in Budapest (photo courtesy Swimming Canada)

Geoffrey Vendeville

Jelena Damjanovic

Author legacy

Jelena Damjanovic & Geoffrey Vendeville

Topic

Subheadline

The first female Canadian swimmer to win a world title

Kylie Masse, the star of U of T’s Varsity Blues women’s swimming team, set a new world record and took the gold in the 100-metre backstroke at the swimming world championships in Budapest on Tuesday.

She finished with a time of 58.10 seconds and became the first-ever female Canadian swimmer to win a world title, CBC reported. With this win, Masse broke the longest-standing record in women's swimming set by Great Britain’s Gemma Spofforth in July 2009, and became the first Canadian to win a world title since Brent Hayden claimed gold in the men's 100 freestyle in 2007.

“I don't' think it's really sunk in yet,” said Masse after the race. “I touched the wall and I looked back and I had to make sure I was looking at the right lane and right time, I was so excited.

“After the Olympics, I realized that I belong in the final and I belong on the podium. That all comes with confidence and this entire year I felt better about my racing, which helps leading up to a championship.”

On CBC's The National, host Paul Hunter said Masse was now “known to the entire sports world,” after what he described as a “jaw-dropping effort” – and sports commentator Scott Russell called Masse's record a victory for the Canadian university sports system.

“She’s an academic, award-winning athlete and she combines her studies along with athletics and she does it at a Canadian university,” he said. “That looks really good on this country and on Kylie Masse’s future going forward.”

Read CBC News story

Head coach of the Varsity Blues swimming program and former Olympian Byron MacDonald said he was very proud of Masse.

“The magnitude of what Kylie has been able to accomplish in a relative short period of time is amazing. She just broke the oldest female world record on the books. She is the world champion,” he said.

“Kylie is the perfect example of a student athlete excelling in the classroom and her sport. An incredibly humble young woman, she is going to find it harder and harder to stay under the radar with performances like this.”

Masse said MacDonald and coach Linda Kiefer told her to enjoy the experience now that the hard work of training was over.

“Most importantly, from both of them, they just said have fun,” she told the National Post. “All the training that I’ve done is behind me, this is the fun part and this is the best part, just racing. Having fun, I think that’s the most important as well.”

Read National Post story

MEDAL ALERT | Kylie Masse sets a new world record in the 100m backstroke, winning gold at #FINABudapest2017 https://t.co/23V6h5Xe2S pic.twitter.com/vimQHSItO0
— CBC Olympics (@CBCOlympics) July 25, 2017

The 21-year-old from LaSalle, Ont., shared the story of how she came to U of T in a first-person article for CBC ahead of her record-breaking swim. Now in her fourth year of undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education, she came to U of T ranked 201^st in the world in the 100-metre backstroke.

“Little did I know that this decision would change the direction of my story,” she writes.

“My coaches Byron MacDonald and Linda Kiefer set out a plan. I went to a high-altitude training camp, planned my meets, school, swimming, dry land and physio appointments, all with the end goal of making the Olympic team…I had done it. I had made the Olympic team, but I hadn’t done it alone. Coaches, teammates, support personnel at the University, professors, classmates, friends and family, all contributed to where I was that day. I will always be grateful for all the support.”

Read Toronto Star story

News about Masse’s win reached U of T just as the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Eleanor McMahon, was making an announcement at U of T's Varsity Stadium about Advancing Opportunities for Women and Girls in Sport: Ontario's Action Plan.

“How apropos, how timely it is to demonstrate that investment of resources through this insightful government announcement can lead to inspiring performances and role models, such as Kylie Masse, who will be recognized around the world,” said Professor Ira Jacobs, dean of the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education.

Read Toronto Sun

Masse has made one of the fastest ascents in the world of swimming, winning the bronze medal in the 100-metre back race at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro only a couple of years after being ranked 200th in high school. She's the first Varsity Blues swimmer to claim an Olympic medal while enrolled as a student at U of T.

MacDonald thanked U of T for the support they provided Kylie that helped get her to this point.

“We have a good stable of sports professionals, from Alanna Veerman, a full time strength coach, Jason Meehan as physiotherapist, her academic advisers and teammates at the university,” he said. “Kylie is the epitome of the student athlete at U of T.”

Read Masse's first-person article

U of T's Kylie Masse now ranks number one in world for two swimming events

lanthierj — Mon, 10 Apr 2017 15:20:39 +0000

U of T's Kylie Masse now ranks number one in world for two swimming events

lanthierj Mon, 04/10/2017 - 11:20

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(all photos by Martin Bazyl)

Varsity Blues Athletics

Author legacy

Varsity Blues

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University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's swimming star Kylie Masse crushed it at the Team Canada Trials, sweeping the competition in the 50-metre, 100-metre and 200-metre backstroke in Victoria, B.C.

Masse overtook the 200-metre Olympic bronze medalist Hilary Caldwell in the final few metres to win in 2:07.23 on April 8. Caldwell was just .06 behind.

They were the two fastest times at that distance this season – and well under the FINA time to qualify for this summer's world championships in Budapest.

See the CBC story

“It's incredible,” said Masse, who is in her third year of undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education. “She's someone I've looked up to in the backstroke for a long time now. It's really cool to be racing side-by-side with her.”

U of T's Kylie Masse wins a bronze in the women's 100-metre backstroke in Rio

krisha — Tue, 09 Aug 2016 14:15:07 +0000

U of T's Kylie Masse wins a bronze in the women's 100-metre backstroke in Rio

krisha Tue, 08/09/2016 - 10:15

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Kylie Masse celebrates third place in the Women's 100m Backstroke on Day 3 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Olympic Aquatics Stadium on August 8, 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)

Jelena Damjanovic

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Jelena Damjanovic

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Varsity Blues swimmer Kylie Masse tied for a bronze medal in the women's 100-metre backstroke race in Rio – Canada's fourth medal of these Olympic Games.

The University of Toronto undergrad made a Canadian record time of 58.76 seconds, coming in only .01 second behind the silver medallist.

Masse was ranked 200th in the world only a couple of years ago, but managed to climb 190 spots just over last year. En route, she broke six national records, earned a gold medal at the Summer Universiade in South Korea and qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

“Her stunning improvement over the past two years is due to hard work on her part, but also to the team of professionals that we have been able to surround her with,” said Byron MacDonald, head coach of the Varsity Blues swimming program and a former Olympian.

Working in tandem with assistant coach Linda Kiefer to drive the agenda daily, MacDonald said people like athletic therapist Jason Meehan, Masse’s academic advisors, her strong family support and teammates all contribute to her success.

“Kylie has that wonderful combination of talent, drive and dedication to go along with a sunny disposition that makes her a joy to coach,” MacDonald said.

MacDonald spoke from Rio where he is serving dual roles: he's Masse’s coach and a CBC swim news commentator.

In a poolside interview with CBC's David Amber just minutes after her race, Masse praised MacDonald.

“He's a great coach,” Masse said. “Byron and Linda run an amazing program at U of T and I'm super-grateful to be a part of that.”

Read the National Post story on Masse's victory

Read the Toronto Star story

Read the CBC story

Read the Sportsnet story

Back in Toronto, Professor Ira Jacobs, dean of the Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education (KPE), was among the Canadians watching and cheering for Masse in front of the TV.

“My family can attest to the fact that I jumped out of my chair and yelled “YES!!!” when I heard the results from Byron,” said Jacobs. He immediately emailed Masse to congratulate her on her success on behalf of the whole Faculty.

“To write “congratulations” seems so understated for being chosen to participate in the Olympic Games, never mind setting another Canadian record and winning a medal,” said Jacobs.

“I hope we will get a chance to see that medal up close when Kylie returns and we wish her continuing great swims and great experiences.”

Masse, a second-year student at KPE, was named U of T female athlete of the year, Ontario University Athletics (OUA) female athlete of the year and the BLG top female athlete in Canadian University Sport. She is the first Varsity Blues swimmer to claim an Olympic medal while enrolled as a student at U of T.

Read about more U of T athletes in Rio

(Below: Kylie Masse poses with her bronze medal on the podium of the Women's 100m Backstroke at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on August 8, 2016/ photo by GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/Getty Images)

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U of T's Kylie Masse wins a bronze in the women's 100-metre backstroke in Rio

Read the National Post story on Masse's victory

Read the Toronto Star story

Read the CBC story

Read the Sportsnet story

Read more about Masse

Read about more U of T athletes in Rio