Checking in with Paralympians: Rowers snag Paralympic spot

Competition calendar filling up for Para athletes
rowing wc

(photo courtesy of Rowing Canada)

Canada’s Paralympians are staying busy, training, sharing their stories and opinions on social media, and more. We will check in regularly with what the nation’s Para athletes have been up to and share some of the top highlights here. 

Here’s a quick look at some recent updates: 

Canada’s PR3 mixed coxed four qualified a boat for Canada in Tokyo after a win in the finals at the Final Paralympic Qualification Regatta in Gavirate, Italy on the weekend. Bayleigh Hooper, Andrew Todd, Victoria Nolan, Kyle Fredrickson and coxswain Laura Court gained the spot for Canada beating out Brazil. The Canadian Paralympic Committee will officially announce Canada’s rowing team heading to Tokyo later this summer. 

 

 

Sport is about triumph but also about heartbreak, and Jeremy Hall and his new partner Jessye Brockway missed a Paralympic spot by one place at the final rowing qualifier, placing third in PR2 Mix 2x pairs. Still, the performance augurs well for the future.

 

 

After a recent feature on judoka Priscilla Gagné, the official Tokyo 2020 website has featured multiple Paralympic champion swimmer Aurélie Rivard and her preparations for the Games.

 

 

The Canadian team for the World Para Ice Hockey Championships set for June 19-26 in Ostrava, Czech Republic was announced late last month. Players went to social media to share their excitement including Liam Hickey, Rob Armstrong, and Tyrone Henry.

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Tyrone Henry (@tyronehenry5)

 

Also set to return to action is Canada’s most successful sport at the last Paralympic Games – Para cycling. The world championships in road Para cycling gets underway Wednesday in Cascais, Portugal and 11 Canadian athletes are set to compete including Lowell Taylor, who will ride with his pilot Ed Veal, and Carla Shibley and her pilot Meghan Brown.

 

 

 

 

Canadian Para swimmer Katarina Roxon recently participated in the #swimforhope organized by swimming clubs in Newfoundland and Labrador to raise money for cancer research. Roxon completed 105 kilometres. The cause is close to Roxon’s heart. Her mother is a cancer survivor.