Alumni Spotlight

He did, however, have time on his hands after graduating from the civil engineering program at Queen’s University, where he was captain of the varsity lacrosse team. He had previously run only half-distance Ironman races in the summer to keep in shape. 

One of the most grueling sporting events, a full Ironman entails a 3.8 km swim, 180 km bike ride and 42.2 km run.  

“I thought I might as well check it off my bucket list,” he says of the Sacramento race. “It was an incredible experience. You don’t forget your first Ironman. Then I thought, ‘I have time for the final race of the year in Australia, so I might as well do it.’ I was already in Ironman shape and  had my bike and wetsuit.”

While in Australia, a friend sent him information about triathlete Connor Emeny — coincidentally, also a Queen’s grad — who owned the record for youngest person (26) to complete Ironman races on six continents. Canavan realized he had a window to best that mark. 

“I had a week to myself before the Australia race, and all I did was think and set goals for the next year,” he recalls. “I mulled it over, and a couple of days before the race I signed up for races in South Africa and Brazil, and then, from there, Sweden and Japan.”

He completed the Japan race last September, at which time he became the record holder not only for youngest person to complete Ironman triathlons on six continents — at age 23 years and 158 days — but also for fastest aggregate time to complete Ironman triathlons on six continents, at 69 hr 27 min 24 sec. These feats are recognized by Guinness World Records.  

What makes all this especially impressive is that Canavan was dealing with a partially torn meniscus in his knee after his first race. “In Australia, my knee was like a coconut,” he recalls. “It was so swollen before I even stepped on the start line.”

He expresses gratitude towards his family not only for helping fund his travel and race registrations, but also for journeying far and wide to support him. He had family at every race; his parents Joe and Laurissa were so excited they flew to Australia to cheer him on, then turned around and hopped a flight back home.  

Canavan has since turned his focus to his career. Before finishing his Ironman series, he accepted a position at Ribbon, a Toronto tech firm that has developed a system for companies looking to hire in which applicants are screened through AI-powered video interviews that are then evaluated by AI. 

 “I started out onboarding new clients and answering technical questions,” he explains. “It’s grown to helping pilot candidates build out the product before they sign the contract. And it’s about resolving bugs and financial reporting. It’s been incredible having this responsibility and learning that much so quickly.” 

As for future Ironman races, he says, “Many people have reached out and said things like, ‘If you ever want to do one, there’s a group of us who want to do Ottawa’ or wherever it may be. I’d be more than happy to jump back in and do it as a group thing for fun. But, as of right now, I have no events planned, and no records scheduled. I’m just trying to enjoy life.”