Nate Riech takes silver in sizzling 1500 race at the Paralympic Games

PARIS – Canada finished the Para athletics competition with nine medals as Nate Riech of Victoria took the silver Saturday night at the 2024 Paralympic Games.

Canada added two more medals to conclude its Para athletics competition Saturday before another near capacity crowd at the 80,000 seat Stade de France. On Saturday morning Austin Smeenk of Oakville, Ont. won gold in the men’s T34 800-metre.

With five gold, three silver and one bronze, Canada equals its best performance in Para athletics at the Games since London 2012. Canada won eight medals in Para athletics at both Tokyo 2020 and Rio 2016.

Riech was hoping to successfully defend his Games crown in the men’s T38 1500-metre. The 29-year-old has dominated the event since 2018 and holds the world record at 3:47.89 set in 2021.

Amen Allah Tissaoui of Tunisia, the 2024 world champion against a field that didn’t include Riech this past May, won the gold in 4:12.91. Riech made a strong surge to the finish to snare the silver by 0.01 seconds over Reece Langdon of Australia in 4:13.12.

‘’I had three plans: slow medium and fast,’’ said Riech, diagnosed with a brain injury after an accident at age 10 which affects his right side. ‘’I thought Reece was going to grab early control but he didn’t.  I knew that I would drift up with 700 to go, if it was slow, and bake those guys.

‘’The plan worked great but I thought I would have more wheels at the end.’’

Announcing these could be his last Games, Riech wanted to go out the champion.

‘’It sucks,’’ he said about being runner-up. ‘’But at the end of the day those guys were great to me when I won and I have nothing but respect for Amen. He was the best guy out there. No doubt about it.’’

Born in the U.S., and now based in Victoria, Riech comes from one of the great sports families which includes his father Todd Riech, a 1996 Olympian for the U.S. in javelin, his mother Ardin Tucker a national team pole vaulter for Canada while his grandfather Jim Harrison played eight years in the NHL with the Maple Leafs, Blackhawks and Bruins.

‘’It’s so beautiful to represent the red and white and I always leave it all out there when I compete. I’ll probably go to one last worlds. It’s just been a tremendous honour and I thank those who have made the biggest sacrifices for us athletes to be out here.’’

In the men’s T20 long jump for competitors with an intellectual impairment, Noah Vucsics of Calgary took fifth spot in his Paralympic debut. After earning a silver at last year’s worlds, Vucsics said these Games were a valuable experience.

‘’Just thinking five years ago the goal was always Paris 2024 and the fact that it’s finally happened is just crazy and wild,’’ said Vucsis, 24. ‘’It was a great crowd, great atmosphere. Obviously, I didn’t jump the way I wanted. I was a little bit slow on the runway.

‘’Still a fifth place finish I can’t complain. I would have needed a personal best to get on the podium. But here it was a busy environment, a lot of stuff going on and my goal was just to stay focused.

‘’There’s lots to learn from these Paralympics.’’

Sheriauna Haase of Toronto, 17, completed an impressive Paralympic Games debut placing sixth in the women’s T47 200m. She was fourth earlier this week in the 100.