Penny Oleksiak wins Lou Marsh Award as Canada's top athlete in 2016

What were you doing at 16?

Probably not as much as Penny Oleksiak, who might need to buy another trophy case pretty soon.

The 16-year-old Canadian star of the Rio 2016 Olympics was named the Lou Marsh Award winner on Tuesday, given annually to Canada’s athlete of the year.

This means a lot to me!! 💗🙏🏻🙏🏻 Thank you so so much https://t.co/DFfGZpGrqv

— Penny Oleksiak (@OleksiakPenny) December 13, 2016

Oleksiak is the youngest athlete to ever win the Lou Marsh, which was first awarded back in 1936. Sidney Crosby previously held the record when he won in 2007 at the age of 20.

Penny was the right choice, given her incredible performance in the pool in Rio. She won four medals – the first Canadian to do so at a single Summer Olympics – including Canada’s first swimming gold since 1992.

Oleksiak had stiff competition for the award this year, beating out Andre De Grasse (sprinting), Derek Drouin (high jump), Brooke Henderson (golf), and Crosby (hockey).

Recent Lou Marsh Award winners:

See also

• 18 memorable moments from Rio 2016 Olympics
• 16-year-old Penny Oleksiak wins Canada's first gold medal at Rio 2016 Olympics
• 16 facts about Canada's 16-year-old Olympic star Penny Oleksiak