SEAN PENHALE (CATALINA 2001-2005)
2010 Commonwealth Games - 1500 Free (7th)
2010 Pan-Pacific Games - 1500 Free (12th)
2005 Canada Summer Games - 800 Free (2nd), 1500 Free (3rd)
1995 - 2001
Swam summer club with Lacombe Dolphins winning multiple provincial medals and holding 8 club records
Sept 2001 - November 2005
Swam with Red Deer Catalina Aaron Dahl (2001-2002 season) and under Mike Effray (2002-2005) My event growing up as a kid was the 200 Fly breaking many records in my 4 years with Red Deer and being led to a Western National Championship in the 200 Fly in February of 2005 (my 1st Westerns ever) While swimming in Red Deer I qualified the summer of 2004 for Nationals in the 1500 long course, qualifying me for the 2005 Australian youth Olympic Festival, in Sydney Australia. Also the 2005 Canada Summer Games where i won 1 Silver medal (800 Free (8:33 LC)) and 1 Bronze medal (1500 Free (15:17 LC))
After leaving Red Deer for personal reason in November, I swam at the University of Calgary until July 2006. Not progressing very well for injuries and physical breakdowns after returning from Australia, I was offered a full-ride scholarship to Western Kentucky University. I took the Scholarship as it was a chance to get away from Canadian swimming and experience something brand new and exciting. They had recruited a few butterfliers the year I signed and so my distance career started getting better. I would swim the 500yard and 1000yard freestyle every duel meet with the occasional 200 fly. My freshman year I broke the 1000 freestyle record and just missed the 1650. my Sophomore year (2nd) I spent most of my time focusing on other things but swimming and it was a hard year for many different reasons. After not swimming well in the 07-08 season I got my priorities straightened out and broke the 500, 1000, and 1650 yard freestyle records multiple times in-season and at conference. I set the Conference Record in the 1650 free that still stands today at 14:54 which qualified me for the 2009 NCAA champions where I placed 17th in the 1650 in 15:05
My senior year of college started off badly with Swine-Flu and then mono back to back and my season did not start till december but it was too late to red-shirt(take a year off from competing) so I finished my year and returned to Canada to train in Victoria, BC with Olympic Bronze Medalist Ryan Cochrane. After 8 weeks of training I snuck onto the 2010 Pan Pacific Games team being selected for the 1500 (15:31 LC). I was the 25th man of 26. After another 3 weeks of preparation I swam even faster in Irvine, California (15:21) and after the 10male and 10 female swimmers were selected they chose 5 swimmers based on Fina Points and again I found myself being selected 5th of 5. I placed 12th at Pan Pacific Games in the 1500.
In the weeks to come I withdrew from my final 5 classes at Western Kentucky University in order to train full-time in Victoria and accept Swim Canada Transition funding (for 1st time members on the national team) Training kept going and I participated in Commonwealth Games, Delhi, India. I placed 7th in 15:38. It was not my best swimming but I accomplished my goal of making the final and then moving up in the final from 8th (which i was seeded going into it)
Since India I have been training full-time in Victoria. I have overcome yet another injury and I am in final preparation for World Championship Trials in Victoria March 31st - April 3rd.
Swam summer club with Lacombe Dolphins winning multiple provincial medals and holding 8 club records
Sept 2001 - November 2005
Swam with Red Deer Catalina Aaron Dahl (2001-2002 season) and under Mike Effray (2002-2005) My event growing up as a kid was the 200 Fly breaking many records in my 4 years with Red Deer and being led to a Western National Championship in the 200 Fly in February of 2005 (my 1st Westerns ever) While swimming in Red Deer I qualified the summer of 2004 for Nationals in the 1500 long course, qualifying me for the 2005 Australian youth Olympic Festival, in Sydney Australia. Also the 2005 Canada Summer Games where i won 1 Silver medal (800 Free (8:33 LC)) and 1 Bronze medal (1500 Free (15:17 LC))
After leaving Red Deer for personal reason in November, I swam at the University of Calgary until July 2006. Not progressing very well for injuries and physical breakdowns after returning from Australia, I was offered a full-ride scholarship to Western Kentucky University. I took the Scholarship as it was a chance to get away from Canadian swimming and experience something brand new and exciting. They had recruited a few butterfliers the year I signed and so my distance career started getting better. I would swim the 500yard and 1000yard freestyle every duel meet with the occasional 200 fly. My freshman year I broke the 1000 freestyle record and just missed the 1650. my Sophomore year (2nd) I spent most of my time focusing on other things but swimming and it was a hard year for many different reasons. After not swimming well in the 07-08 season I got my priorities straightened out and broke the 500, 1000, and 1650 yard freestyle records multiple times in-season and at conference. I set the Conference Record in the 1650 free that still stands today at 14:54 which qualified me for the 2009 NCAA champions where I placed 17th in the 1650 in 15:05
My senior year of college started off badly with Swine-Flu and then mono back to back and my season did not start till december but it was too late to red-shirt(take a year off from competing) so I finished my year and returned to Canada to train in Victoria, BC with Olympic Bronze Medalist Ryan Cochrane. After 8 weeks of training I snuck onto the 2010 Pan Pacific Games team being selected for the 1500 (15:31 LC). I was the 25th man of 26. After another 3 weeks of preparation I swam even faster in Irvine, California (15:21) and after the 10male and 10 female swimmers were selected they chose 5 swimmers based on Fina Points and again I found myself being selected 5th of 5. I placed 12th at Pan Pacific Games in the 1500.
In the weeks to come I withdrew from my final 5 classes at Western Kentucky University in order to train full-time in Victoria and accept Swim Canada Transition funding (for 1st time members on the national team) Training kept going and I participated in Commonwealth Games, Delhi, India. I placed 7th in 15:38. It was not my best swimming but I accomplished my goal of making the final and then moving up in the final from 8th (which i was seeded going into it)
Since India I have been training full-time in Victoria. I have overcome yet another injury and I am in final preparation for World Championship Trials in Victoria March 31st - April 3rd.
