2025 Canada Games Profile

With the Canada Games underway, Swim Ontario is highlighting some of the officials who made the trip to Newfoundland!

There are some people who would use the abstract terminology and connotation of “computer geek” or the slang word “tekki” to describe Trevor Cowan.

To others, like me, there is a better way to refer to Cowan. He is ideally an extremely knowledgeable individual and excessively brilliant, proficient and enthusiastic at dealing with anything involving computer technology.

You will agree once you talk with him about that electronic device that processes data, stores, retrieves, and manipulates information. It all results in a wide range of items from calculations to complex simulations to so much more.

Cowan’s fascination with computers may have very well be linked back to a family friend who made computer equipment. As Cowan described it recently in our telephone conversation, “that set off a spark and I became the beneficiary of someone else’s technology”.

For a wise and perceptive individual, the now 48-year-old made a bright decision that led to a career with Bell Canada where, out of the Barrie office, he supervises a team of 60 people. His title is Manager of Enterprise Architecture - and that, apparently, has lots to do with computers and technology.

Cowan, as the only child of a single mom, has some interesting stories about his younger years and a fascination that led to his connection with the world and computer wizardry. He was also a student, at the age of 16, at the University of Guelph. The focus – computer sciences.

Born in Guelph, and then working in Toronto, the stress, aggravation and time consumed to commute back-and-forth, became a problem.

Cowan had lengthy conversations with his wife (his high school sweetheart) and their two daughters. The decision was made to pack up and move – not to Toronto, but to Bermuda. That became home for 11 years where Cowan was employed with a private family office and managed Information Technology matters for a number of their business interests.

As for fitness and staying in physical shape, Cowan was more of a distance runner than a competitive swimmer. However, he had a technical appreciation for everything that was required to conduct a swim meet. As for watching his kids practice, train and compete, it was exciting as a parent, but time consuming and boring.

“I wasn’t going to sit around for four hours - and especially when I knew the kids were proficient and competitive in water,” he said. “So, I decided to get involved – and that has become 23 years of volunteer work and officiating.”

Cowan is one of a group of about 300 people in the country to have a Level 5 status – the pinnacle of officiating expertise in Canada. He can officiate at any level of competition, teach all officiating clinics and begin providing referee assessments for developing officials.

That brings us to the 2025 Canada Games, staged between August 8-25 in St. John’s, Nfld. It’s a gathering of some 10,00 people – athletes, officials, coaches and volunteers (lots of them) showcasing the elite amateur talent and stars of the future.

Cowan, who has been at nine multi-sport events, is back for his third stint at the Canada Games. His most recent officiating event, as the assistant meet referee, was the Ontario championships – a gathering of 1,200 swimmers in Toronto.

“I enjoy interaction with people like at the Ontario finals – it was the largest ever in the country,” said Cowan, who has recovered from a shattered right ankle suffered in a five kilometres obstacle course (a few years ago) that required 17 screws and two plates. “I find what I do, officiating, to be rewarding and meaningful.”

“It’s a celebration of sport and I am thrilled to be invited and be part of this special event,” said Cowan. “Sport achieves success - and the world needs it in a big way because, among other things, it develops good people.”

Cowan said his journey in the world of swimming opened lots of doors and gave him opportunities he didn’t expect.

“I’m not a swim coach … I’m no competitive swimmer and my job doesn’t make swimmers go fast,” he said. “What I do is officiate and it involves fair play, good communication, respect, and a chance for people to celebrate and even learn from failure. As an official, that’s where we contribute and make a positive difference.”

For Cowan, perseverance, resiliency and charting his path included a willingness to take opportunities that life presents and make things work.

Team Ontario has chosen 34 swimmers to compete in the 16th Canada Games. In the Olympic stream, there are 24 athletes. Paralympic athletes total six while Special Olympics has four swimmers.

Joining Cowan in the seven-member supervisory delegation from Ontario are master technical officials Ahmed Abdelfattah, Tina Cerqua, Libby Leung-Kalman and Siobhán Muldowney. The para technical advisor is Sandra Rousseau. Steve Sachs is the open water chief referee.

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.