Para sport update: Canada places seventh at wheelchair rugby world championships

SAO PAULO – Canada completed the wheelchair rugby world championships in the winner’s circle Sunday with a 48-43 victory over the Netherlands to place seventh.

Cody Caldwell of Peterborough, Ont., an offensive force throughout the tournament was named the top 2.0 classification player of the tournament.

The U.S. won the gold medal defeating  Australia 57-51 in the final while Japan beat Great Britain 54-47 in the bronze medal game. France was fifth, Denmark sixth, Canada seventh in the 12-country tournament.

“It’s a team we had beaten earlier in the tournament, so we were confident we could repeat the result,’’ Anthony Létourneau of Boisbriand, Que., told Sportcom.  ‘’The most important thing was to have as few turnovers as possible so that our defence could do its job.”

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Canada went 2-3 in the preliminary round to finish third in Group A. Then losses to Great Britain and Denmark in the playoffs put Canada in the seventh-place match.

‘’It’s great to finish on a high note,’’ said veteran Travis Murao of Toronto, named the player of the match. ‘’You always want to win the last game you play. It was a big journey for us to get here and to finish where we did, especially with a lot of new players, younger team, I couldn’t be happier.’’

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Canada fielded four newcomers among its 12-player squad.

“It was incredible to compete at the world championship for the first time,’’ said Yanick Racicot about his first worlds.  ‘’I was so nervous before my first game, but it was a great experience.’’

Canadians finish fifth at Para dressage World Championships

Canadian Paralympians Roberta Sheffield and Jody Schloss each posted fifth place finishes in the Para dressage freestyle finals at the integrated World Equestrian Championships which concluded on Sunday.

It is the first time Canada records two fifth-place finishes at the worlds in Para dressage.

Sheffield, who now resides in Lincolnshire, U.K., and Nardando scored 71.060 per cent for fifth place in the Grade II Para Grand Prix Freestyle Individual Final.

Sheffield said Nardando, an eight-year-old KWPN gelding, delivered a strong performance despite a challenging warmup.

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“He settled down and Nardando did a really solid test,” Sheffield said. “I’m very pleased with Nardando, his trot work felt fantastic. His walk is getting better and stronger. He did all the required movements nicely, and he put in a clean, accurate Freestyle. I am very proud of him.”

Schloss, from Toronto, and El Colorado also finished fifth in Grade I with a score of 73.580 per cent.

Schloss said she and El Colorado, a 17-year-old KWPN gelding, have made significant progress over the past year after discovering the horse had an ulcer in 2025.

“We have improved a lot this week and over the past year,” Schloss said. “Now we have much more of a partnership.”