Pan Pacific Championships Set for Saanich Commonwealth Place

OTTAWA, Ontario, Canada, February 4. SWIMMING Canada, the national body for competitive swimming in Canada, announced Friday that the 2006 Pan Pacific Swimming Championships will take place at the Saanich Commonwealth Place in Victoria BC from August 17-20 2006.

“We are thrilled to host the 2006 Pan Pacific Championships at the Saanich Commonwealth Place in Victoria. The City of Saanich and the Province of British-Columbia were very supporting in bringing the Championships to Victoria” said Pierre Lafontaine, CEO and National Coach for Swimming Canada. “This pool has generated very fast swimming in the past and it will be very exciting for swimmers competing at this prestigious event.”

The Saanich Commonwealth Place was home to the 1994 Commonwealth Games where Australia's Kieran Perkins broke the World record for both the 800 and 1500 freestyle. In 2003, Brian Johns from Vancouver set a world record in the short-course men’s 400 individual medley at the CIS Championships under the same roof.

Participating nations for the event include Canada, the United States, Australia and Japan, in addition to several other non-European countries such as China, New Zealand and Brazil.

“Hosting the Pan Pacific Championships in Victoria presents a unique opportunity for Canadians to witness the world’s greatest swimming superstars such as Australia’s Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett, USA’s Michael Phelps and Canada’s Brent Hayden” said Lafontaine. “The Australian and American delegations have expressed great enthusiasm upon receiving the news.”

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