Weekend recap: Mark Arendz wins three straight World Cup races for first time
For the first time in his career, Mark Arendz has earned three consecutive World Cup wins at the Para nordic event which concluded Sunday in Martell, Italy.
The 11-time Paralympic Games medallist from Hartsville, PEI was first in the men’s standing 7.5 kilometres, 10 kilometres and pursuit. In 7.5 and 10 kilometre races, he was perfect in the shooting range hitting the target 35 straight times over the two events.
From Moonbeam to star, Fabien Lavoie ends legendary wheelchair rugby career
QUEBEC CITY – A warrior on the wheelchair rugby court, Fabien Lavoie unexpectedly gets emotional when discussion turns to his childhood. There are some tough memories, capped by an accident that would then require him to use a wheelchair.
Lavoie, who announced his retirement after 20+ years as one of Canada’s top players on the national team in December, was born in Moonbeam, Ont., a small Franco-Ontarian community along Highway 11 between North Bay and Kapuskasing.
Canadian team announced for wheelchair rugby Paralympic Games qualifier
OTTAWA – Scoring machine Zak Madell headlines a veteran 12-player roster announced Thursday by Wheelchair Rugby Canada for the last chance Paralympic Games qualifying tournament set for March 20-24 in Wellington, New Zealand.
Eight countries will battle for a spot in the top-three, which guarantees a ticket to the 2024 Paralympic Games set for Paris.
In the media: Canada’s Para athletes praise Performance Recognition Program
Canadian Para triathlete and Paralympian Kamylle Frenette says young people with a disability will now be able to look at Paralympic athletes as equals to their Olympian counterparts.
That’s thanks in part to the Canadian Paralympic Committee’s Paralympic Performance Recognition program announced last Wednesday. Since then, Canadian Paralympians have been prevalent in the media from coast to coast commenting on the historic announcement.
Canada’s Para nordic skiers on fire to start World Cup season
TOBLACH, Italy – It’s no secret that Canada is a superpower in Para nordic skiing and that fact was reemphasized with six medals at the first two days of competition at the season opening World Cup in Toblach, Italy.
Mark Arendz of Hartsville, PEI, an 11-time Paralympic medallist, has led the charge with gold in the men’s standing 10 kilometre classic and silver in the 10 kilometre mass start.
New chapter written in Canadian Paralympic Movement
GATINEAU, Que. – The house where Canada’s vast and varied history resides hosted one of the biggest announcements in Canadian Paralympic sport on Wednesday. Beginning in 2024 at the Paralympic Games in Paris, Canadian medal winners will receive performance bonuses for the first time.
Canadians on the podium in Para nordic and Para alpine skiing
Mark Arendz of Hartsville, PEI, an 11-time Paralympic medallist, led a triple podium Canadian performance with gold in the men’s standing 10 kilometre cross country race Wednesday at the season opening Para nordic World Cup competition in Toblach, Italy.
Brittany Hudak of Prince Albert, Sask. added silver in the women’s 10 kilometre standing event while Derek Zaplotinsky of Smoky Lake, Alta. collected a bronze in the men’s sitting 10 kilometre.
Bell Let’s Talk: The mental health ‘’roller coaster’’ of Paralympians
This past summer at the world championships in Glasgow, Scotland, Nathan Clement became a world champion in Para cycling for the first time. Yet in what was expected to be a great moment of celebration, Clement struggled to compose himself in the media mixed zone.
Eriksson/Smith, Guimond repeat medallists at Para alpine World Cup
VEYSONNAZ, Switzerland – Canadians Kalle Eriksson and his guide Sierra Smith continued their stunning start to their Para alpine World Cup careers on Tuesday with the silver medal in the men’s giant slalom for visually impaired at the circuit’s third stop.
Meanwhile two-time Paralympic Games medallist Alexis Guimond of Gatineau, Que., marched to a seventh medal in seven races this season with bronze in the men’s standing GS.
Sixth podium in six World Cup Para alpine races for Canada’s Alexis Guimond
VEYSONNAZ, Switzerland – Two-time Paralympic Games medallist Alexis Guimond continued to display consistency this season on the Para alpine World Cup circuit on Monday with a bronze medal in the men’s standing giant slalom at this winter’s third stop.
Guimond, from Gatineau, Que., has reached the podium in his six World Cup races this season with one gold, two silver and three bronze.