Time to start getting to know our athletes headed off to the Olympics, starting with two-time Olympic medalist and swimmer Kayla Sanchez.
Related: Here Are All The Filipino Athletes Competing At The 2024 Paris Olympics
If you were tuned into the 2024 Olympics, you’d find the story of a Filipino-Canadian swimmer switching her athletic allegiance to represent the Philippines in the Olympics a familiar one. If you weren’t, then let us tell you about 23-year old Kayla Sanchez.
Born to OFW parents in Singapore, Kayla and her family moved to Canada when she was young. She started her swimming career there, and has become a pride of the nation after bagging multiple accolades and medals, including not one, but two Olympic medals.
Though based in Ontario, in 2022, Kayla made the switch from working with Canada for her professional swim career, and is now headed to the Olympics to compete in the women’s 100m freestyle, the only woman and one of only two Filipino swimmers to compete in the event. Before the Games begin, get to know more about Kayla below.
WHEN SHE WON TWO OLYMPIC MEDALS, NBD
At 23, Kayla’s already earned her fair share of accolades, winning two medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics for relay swimming in her first foray into the Games. Along with her teammates Maggie Mac Neil, Rebecca Smith, and Penny Oleksiak, Kayla won the silver medal in the 4×100-meter freestyle relay, Canada’s first medal that year.
That’s not all—with Maggie, Penny, Kylie Mass, Taylor Ruck, and Sydney Pickrem, the Canadian team also secured a bronze medal in the 4x200m freestyle relay, making Kayla a two-time Olympic medalist. Iconic.
WHEN SHE STARTED COMPETING AT 16
Kayla made her competitive swimming debut in a major international competition in 2017, at the FINA World Junior Swimming Championships—and yes, of course she placed. Twice. She earned a silver medal in the 200-meter individual medley, a bronze in the 100-meter freestyle, and with her teammates Penny Oleksiak, Rebecca Smith, Jade Hannah, Faith Nelson, and Taylor Ruck, swept the team relays. She was a force to look out for immediately, that’s for sure.
WHEN SHE EARNED ALL HER OTHER ACCOLADES
With all the weight of her medals around her neck, it’s a wonder Kayla can still swim as quick and graceful as she does. Besides her Olympic achievements, the swimmer has accolades in the FINA World Junior Championships, FINA World Championships, Commonwealth Games, and the Pan Pacific Championships.
GETTING THAT DEGREE
Besides being an Olympian, Kayla’s also a student at the University of British Columbia, taking up political science while also being part of the school’s Thunderbirds swimming team. We love a versatile, educated athlete.
CHOOSING THE PHILIPPINES
Having competed for Canada in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, as well as in all previous relay and freestyle competitions, Kayla now swims under the Philippine flag. She made the switch in 2022 for personal and family reasons, and has made it known that she wants to inspire more of her people to get into swimming as a sport and career.
In a statement from competitive swimming governing body Swimming Canada, Kayla said, “I’ve always been really proud of my Filipino heritage. Aside from how much I’ve grown and how good everything has been in Canada, I needed to make this really difficult decision for myself and my family to take this opportunity to represent the Philippines. I want to help inspire people that are like me to swim and get into the sport.”
Continue Reading: 7 Reasons Why We’re Seated For The Philippines’ Participation At The Olympic Games Paris 2024
