OTTAWA – Evan Mullen is a 12-year-old Russell resident who has been swimming with the Ottawa Go Kingfish Swim Club since he was 7 years old. He recently qualified to attend the Eastern Ontario Regional Championship (EORC) swim meet on June 2, 3 and 4. The EORC gathers swimmers from the Eastern Ontario region. Swimmers may qualify for the EORC by achieving at least three individual event standards. Mullen qualified with swim times of 33.11 seconds in the 50m freestyle, 1:16.66 in the 100m freestyle and 3:36.92 in the 200m breaststroke. He recently placed 1st in his age group in the 200m breaststroke at the 2017 Festival of Spring that took place at the Nepean Sportsplex in May 2017.

Mullen started swimming at home in the backyard pool but then enrolled in the Russell Barracuda swim team where his passion for swimming started. The Barracuda swim team was a great introduction to recreational swimming. He then enrolled in the Junior Go Kingfish program and moved on to the competitive level when he was 10. He now swims six times per week including two very early morning practices before making his way to his school, Pavillon Intermédiaire – École secondaire catholique Embrun.

Mullen has been training hard all season and is thrilled with his qualification times for the EORC meet. His goal is to improve his personal best times. He will be swimming seven events in the long-course 50m pool: the 100m freestyle, 50m freestyle, 100m backstroke, 100m breaststroke, , 200m breaststroke, 200m freestyle and the 200m IM (50m fly, 50m back, 50m breast, 50m free).

Good luck to Evan Mullen next week!