Josh Liendo celebrates after winning the men's 100m freestyle at the Canadian Olympic Swim Trials in Toronto on May 16.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
When Josh Liendo touched the wall at the Canadian Olympic trials, winning the 100-metre freestyle and securing a spot on the team for Paris this summer, he could hear people on their feet applauding.
It was the second time Thursday night that a solo performance from a Liendo had received such an ovation.
About 15 minutes earlier, his younger sister stepped up to the microphone and sang the national anthem, putting the varied talents of the Liendo family on display, and raising the question: which one of them is better under pressure?
Sophia Liendo, a 20-year-old student at the University of Alberta with a talent for singing, says she is far more nervous watching her brother than singing O Canada in front of thousands.
Having to carry a tune doesn’t faze her. But the swimming though.
“I don’t know why,” she says. “It’s like I’m going to write an exam, that’s how I feel. Which is dumb because he always shows up.”
After the applause for Sophia died down, her big brother, slightly more than a year older, took over and won the men’s 100m freestyle in a time of 47.55 seconds.
Teammate Yuri Kisil came second in 48.19, also locking down a spot as the top two finishers in every event this week make the roster, provided they meet the Olympic qualifying time.
Summer Time! Canada’s McIntosh sets 400 IM world record at Olympic swim trials
For Liendo, his second Olympics will be marked by a different approach.
Born in Canada, he moved to Trinidad as a child, where his parents taught him to swim mostly to keep him safe around the ocean, before moving back to Canada as a boy. When he made the cut for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, his goal was to make the semi-finals or finals of his events.
Now he’s going for the podium.
“My mindset right now, I want to be at the top with the best guys,” he said.
It’s evidence of how the approach of the whole men’s program has changed in recent years. After the women’s team burst on the scene with six medals at the 2016 Rio Olympics, and followed that up with six more in Tokyo, the men’s side has been building more slowly.
But make no mistake, Liendo and Kisil both said, the men are expecting a breakthrough. After narrowly missing a relay bronze in Tokyo, which left a bitter taste, the squad is now placing higher expectations on themselves.
“It seems like it’s recent for everyone else, but this has been going on for years for us,” Kisil said. “We’ve been hungry for this. Ever since we got fourth in the last Olympics, we weren’t happy with that. We want more, we want better.”
Liendo is now a leader on the team and a legitimate podium threat for Canada.
“That’s a really solid swim for the guys right there. That’s world class,” Liendo said of the times in the 100m Thursday.
“I’m really happy to be that fast right now, and just build that momentum going in. I think I can be faster. Obviously that’s the goal going into Paris.”
His sister couldn’t be happier for him. Though she’s impressed by Liendo’s progression in the pool, which has potentially set him up for bigger things in Paris, there’s still something she’d like to see him do. Perhaps a national anthem.
“They should get him up there to sing it one day,” Sophia said. “That would be cool.”