Alberta Winter Trials 2026
March 10, 2026
Punching a Ticket to the Big Show
The Provincial Trials at the Big Marble Go Center were essentially a high-stakes scavenger hunt for spots at the upcoming Championships. We walked away with plenty of hardware, securing 52 podium finishes and 17 golds, but the real win was the sheer number of swimmers who locked in their spots for Champs. Whether through race victories or hitting rigorous time standards, our roster is officially looking much larger for the next level.
Congratulations to Gibson, Aaron, Lauren, Charlie, Abigail L., Jayden W., Aiden, Sebastian, Yuseung, Desmond, Abigail F., and Quan for securing their tickets.
The Heavy Hitters
Gibson Hurd was a machine, walking away with four individual gold medals and anchoring the team’s relay success. Lauren Matiakis secured two individual golds, while Aaron Macdonald mirrored that feat with long-distance victories in the 400 and 800-meter freestyle. A special mention goes to 11-year-old Desmond Phillips, who earned a Top 10 Youth Recognition award for his efforts in the 200 back.
Significant Gains
A few swimmers had massive time drops: 17-year-old Claudia Harmon shaved a staggering 7.7% off her 50-meter butterfly time, while 11-year-old Esme Hockey followed suit with a 6.3% drop in the 100-meter butterfly. Meanwhile, 13-year-old Ethan Lee improved his 50-meter backstroke by nearly 5%, proving that practice is paying off.
The Record Book
11-year-old Sophia Rippe had a breakout meet, climbing the rankings in four different events and setting a new #2 club record in the 400-meter freestyle.
The Bottom Line
We have successfully cleared the runway for Champs, though our caffeine intake for the upcoming travel season will surely hit record-breaking levels as well.
Check out the updated top-10 lists, and more, on our rankings site.
Podium finishes – Individual events
Swimmer
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Gibson Hurd
50 Fly, 50 Free, 50 Back, 100 Back
100 Free
Aaron Macdonald
400 Free, 800 Free
400 IM
Lauren Matiakis
50 Free, 400 Free
200 Free
Charlie Serra
200 Back
200 IM
100 Fly, 100 Back
Abigail Lee
50 Free
50 Fly
100 Fly
Jayden Wong
100 Fly
50 Fly
100 Free
Aiden Katelnikoff
100 Back
50 Fly
Sebastian Cristancho
50 Back
100 Back
Yuseung Lee
200 Free
100 Free
Desmond Phillips
200 Back
Maya Gruszka
50 Breast, 100 Breast
Quan Sun
100 Breast, 50 Breast
Abigail Federkeil
50 Free
400 Free, 50 Back, 100 Back
Megan Sauder
200 Fly
800 Free, 100 Fly
Ingrid Kadatz
400 Free
Claire Scholefield
50 Back
Conrad Kadatz
50 Back
Jaydon Ondic
50 Breast
Silas Kwok
400 IM
Thomas Tait
200 Fly
Podium finishes – Relay events
Place
Event
Team
Gold
4x50 Free
KAZEEM, Hafsa (14), KWOK, Sonia (14), LEE, Abigail (14), FEDERKEIL, Abigail (13)
Gold
4x50 IM
WONG, Jayden (17), SUN, Quan (16), SERRA, Charlie (16), HURD, Gibson (17)
Silver
4x50 Free
WONG, Jayden (17), KATELNIKOFF, Aiden (15), SERRA, Charlie (16), HURD, Gibson (17)
Silver
4x50 IM
SCHOLEFIELD, Claire (13), NICHOLS, Gabrielle (14), LEE, Abigail (14), FEDERKEIL, Abigail (13)
Bronze
4x50 Free
CRISTANCHO, Sebastian (15), ARROYO OLIVERA, Tomas (17), SUN, Quan (16), MACDONALD, Aaron (16)
Bronze
4x50 Free
FORD, Katelyn (15), LES, Peyton (17), KADATZ, Elsa (18), KADATZ, Ingrid (15)
Bronze
4x50 IM
CRISTANCHO, Sebastian (15), VAIDYA, Vivaan (16), KATELNIKOFF, Aiden (15), MACDONALD, Aaron (16)
New time standards
Swimmer
Age
Champs
Trials
Aaron Macdonald
16
400 Free
Abigail Federkeil
13
100 Back
Aiden Katelnikoff
15
100 Back
Amara Harris
16
50 Free
Brynn Burrell
13
100 Back, 100 Free, 200 Free
Charlie Serra
16
200 Back
Clara Stringer
13
200 Back
Desmond Phillips
11
200 Back
Elsa Kadatz
18
200 Free, 50 Free
Ethan Jin
13
200 Back, 50 Back
Evan Ng
14
100 Back
Evelyn Mckee
14
50 Free
Gabriel Ellis
13
100 Free, 50 Free
Gabrielle Nichols
14
50 Breast, 800 Free
Gibson Hurd
17
100 Back, 100 Free, 50 Free
Kaia Grinde
16
400 Free
Lauren Matiakis
16
100 Fly
Luca Young
14
800 Free
Maddyn Rushfeldt
11
50 Back
Quan Sun
16
100 Breast, 50 Breast
100 Free
Sebastian Cristancho
15
100 Back, 50 Back
Sophia Kwok
16
100 Free
Sophia Rippe
11
100 Free, 400 Free, 50 Free
Thomas Tait
12
200 Fly, 50 Fly
New Youth Recognition awards
Swimmer
Age
Top 10
Desmond Phillips
11
200 Back
Notable improvements
Swimmer
Age
Improvement
Event
Claudia Harmon
17
7.7%
50 Fly
Esme Hockey
11
6.3%
100 Fly
Ethan Lee
13
4.8%
50 Back
New club records – all-time top 10
Swimmer
Age
Event
All-time rank
Desmond Phillips
11
200 Back
#2 (was #3)
Desmond Phillips
11
200 Free
#3 (was #4)
Elsa Kadatz
18
100 Breast
#6 (new to top 10)
Megan Sauder
15
200 Fly
#6 (new to top 10)
Nolan Curtis
11
400 Free
#5 (was #7)
Silas Kwok
12
400 IM
#9 (new to top 10)
Sophia Rippe
11
400 Free
#2 (was #10)
Sophia Rippe
11
200 Free
#5 (was #7)
Sophia Rippe
11
100 Free
#8 (new to top 10)
Sophia Rippe
11
50 Free
#8 (new to top 10)
Thomas Tait
12
200 Fly
#6 (new to top 10)