Top Age Group Ranking Profile

We are proud to spotlight a group of 15-17 swimmers who are making their mark within the TAG (Top Age Group) Rankings across Canada. Recognized through the leadership and support of the Canadian Swim Coaches Association (CSCA), these athletes represent the next wave of Canadian swimming excellence.

As we launch this series, we celebrate the coaches, clubs, and families who support these swimmers — and we look forward to following their journey as they continue to rise within Canada’s performance pathway.

There have been days when Arthur Galiano had his doubts.

Welcome to the world we all live in.

Like most teenagers faced with challenges, decisions to make and so much more, Galiano has felt the ambiguity and suspense in life. To his credit, he also found effective and compelling ways to manage his priorities and opportunities.

While not many know about the confidence shown by this intellectually bright 17-year-old, word is getting out across Canada about his gift of courage, determination and tenacity.

Born in Ottawa, and a member of the Nepean Kanata Barracudas Swim Club, take note of his name, his talent, grit and belief in oneself.

Just finished grade 11, graduation ceremonies are a year away from École secondaire publique Louis-Riel, and then likely shuffling off to the University of Toronto to pursue studies in business and analytics statistics.

But Galiano is in the spotlight for another reason.

The Canadian Swimming Coaches Association (CSCA), always watching out for the extremely talented young swimmers and leaders of tomorrow, have Galiano listed among the top age group rankings in the country. That includes being top-ranked in the 15-to-17-year-old category in both the 50 and 100-metres breaststroke.

Impressive indeed.

Just recently, at the 2026 Bell Canadian Swim Trials, held this month in Montreal, Galiano had superb performances in three Junior age breaststroke events. Clocked in 28.81 seconds, he placed third in the 50-metres and was again third in the 100-metres in one minute, 02.79 seconds. In the 200-metres, he was timed in 2:19.23 for a sixth-place finish.

Recovering from an injury, even for swimmers, can be traumatic and take its time. Galiano did have an episode where, on a school day trip he had a bicycle accident that resulted in a hairline fracture in his wrist.

One month later, and after a brief setback from training, hospital staff removed his cast.

Galiano’s debut on the National stage came as a 14-year-old. First, it was the Canadian Junior Championships (CJC) in the summer of 2023. The, the following year, his first Olympic Trials where he swam the 100 and 200-metres breaststroke and placed fourth in the 100-metres freestyle at the CJC event that year.

“When you’re dedicated to something, like I am to swimming, you just want to keep working harder to improve performance, times and becoming better,” said Galiano who has been invited next year to join other elite swimmers at the High-Performance Centre located at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre.

For now, it’s 20 hours a week combining dryland strength conditioning with training at the Nepean Sportsplex. Yes, he does get spare time that he tends to devote to fun with video games but is not the individual with the same name staring in the science fiction blockbuster feature movie Masters of the Universe.

His heroics, outside of academics and swimming, have come in another way.

At age 13, Galiano had some health irregularities – things like fatigue, shortness of breath and a high heartbeat. He was diagnosed with a medical term called Supraventricular Tachycardia (SVT).

It’s defined as “an arrhythmia where faulty electrical signals cause the heart's upper chambers to beat rapidly…. It starts and stops suddenly, making it difficult for the heart to fill completely with blood before pumping.”

“Sure, I was scared and had surgery in Ottawa when I was 15,” said Galiano. “I thought about a lot of things including the end of my swim career. Thanks to some great medical people, things changed for the better and I am very thankful.”

Galiano has come a long way since, at the age of four, taking swim lessons at a variety of municipal pools. What followed, were early years of competing for a private club, ROC Swimming (Ravens of Carleton Swimming) at the Carleton University pool.

That was a special experience in his life, which started in 2019 and included developing a close bond with his coach at the time, Nico Belisle.

“(Belisle) taught me discipline, confidence, and how to keep improving through setbacks,” said Galiano. “He helped me with my (swim) technique and had a major influence on my progress shaping the swimmer and person I am today.”

Belisle, according to Galiano, had a huge part in the youngster making three event finals and a spot at the World Cup held in Toronto.

Then, this year, under the tutelage of Scott Faithfull – a former Ottawa Coach of the Year - came a further enhancement of believing in himself, the daring and fearlessness to excel and carry through with dreams of competing for Canada at the international level.

One day, his memoirs will include some fascinating stories about races and personal best times.

Among them, the stunning six medals he won at a meet in Kingston, Ont. Also, the 2024/25 Quebec Cup – where he was chosen best junior athlete under the age of 18 - as well as winning four junior medals with Team Ontario while competing at a 2025/26 Euromeet in Luxembourg.

Earlier this year, Galiano got off to a great start with personal best times at the Eastern Regional finals in May and is hoping to fulfill a dream of making it to the Junior Pan Pacific Championships in Vancouver in August.

The road to fame will continue.

For Galiano, it’s likely in the same manner it has been for other elite swimmers who have excelled for Canada in multiple events.

David Grossman is a veteran multi award-winning Journalist and Broadcaster with some of Canada’s major media, including the Toronto Star and SPORTSNET 590 THE FAN, and a Public Relations professional for 50+ years in Canadian sports and Government relations. In 2026, he was inducted to the Toronto Sports Hall of Honour with a Lifetime Achievement Award.