Record Canadian Para presence at 2026 Commonwealth Games

OTTAWA – One of the most special moments in Kady Dandeneau’s wheelchair basketball career came at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The Pender Island, B.C., resident was part of Canada’s first 3×3 women’s wheelchair basketball Commonwealth Games squad four years ago in Birmingham, England which went on to win the gold medal at the Games.

Para sports debuted at the 1994 Games in Victoria, B.C. as demonstration events and have been part of the official program since 2002. Canada’s Chantal Petitclerc was the first ever Commonwealth Games champion in a Para event winning the women’s 800m wheelchair race in Manchester.

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Last year, Dandeneau and Élodie Tessier took their experience from Birmingham 2022 and helped Canada to the 2025 IWBF 3×3 Open World Championship title. Dandeneau was named the tournament MVP.

“Winning gold at the Commonwealth Games in 2022 was a special moment for our team, and we’re excited for the opportunity to compete on that stage again,” said Dandeneau. “We’ve built strong chemistry through our experiences together, and we’re looking forward to representing Canada with pride in Glasgow.”

On Tuesday (July 21), Dandeneau was named Team Canada’s Flag Bearer for the the Opening Ceremony on July 23. 

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Canada will send a record number of 35 Para athletes to Glasgow as part of the Commonwealth Games team. The Games run from July 23 to August 4. Six Para sports are on the program, and all medals count toward each nation’s overall total.

Besides 3×3 wheelchair basketball, there is Para swimming, Para athletics, Para lawn bowls, Para cycling and Para powerlifting.  There are no Canadians in Para cycling or powerlifting.

Joining Dandeneau and Tessier on the women’s 3×3 team for Glasgow are Puisand Lai (Toronto) and Rosie Long (Oakville, Ont.).

On the men’s side, Garrett Ostepchuk (Regina) and Lee Melymick (Toronto) return after helping Canada win gold at the 2025 IWBF 3×3 Open World Championships.

Joining them are Reed De’Aeth (Sherwood Park, Alta.) and Kyrell Sopotyk (Aberdeen, Sask.), both of whom will make their 3×3 debuts in Glasgow.

“Any time you have the opportunity to represent Canada, it’s an incredible honour,” Melymick said. “We have a great mix of experience and young talent on this team, and we’re excited for the challenge ahead. Our focus is on playing our game, competing hard and making Canada proud.”

The men took silver at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Paralympic Games medallists headline Para swimming team in Glasgow

In Para swimming, there are 12 members on the Commonwealth squad.

The women’s team includes Paris 2024 Paralympic teammates Danielle Dorris of Dieppe, N.B., Katie Cosgriffe of Burlington, Ont., and Mary Jibb of Muskoka, Ont.

Dorris, is a three-time Paralympian and the two-time defending Paralympic champion in the S7 50-m butterfly while Cosgriffe took bronze in the S10 100-m butterfly in her Paralympic debut in 2024.

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“I’m super excited about it,” said Cosgriffe. “The Commonwealth Games will be a great opportunity to race. The event for me is an off event (the 200 IM) but I’m excited coming off world championships in September to get the opportunity to race and have fun with it.”

Rounding out the women’s squad are world champion Jibb, Tianna Asala of Calgary and Emma Van Dyk of Port Colborne, Ont.

Paralympic medallist and defending Commonwealth Games champion Nicolas-Guy Turbide of Quebec City leads the men’s team. At the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Turbide won gold in the 50-m freestyle S13 and set a Commonwealth Games record.

“Winning in 2022 was very exciting, a core memory and one of the big highlights of my career,” said Turbide. “The integrated Olympic and Paralympic programs all together shows us a different perspective.

‘’We get to see how things are on the Olympic side of things and they get to see what we do on our side as well. Our goals and objectives are very similar and having one team is something we look forward to.”

Also on the men’s side are Paralympic champion Sebastian Massabie of Surrey, B.C., fellow Paris 2024 Paralympians Reid Maxwell of Edmonton, Fernando Lu of Burnaby, B.C., and Alec Elliott of Kitchener, Ont, as well as Hunter Helberg of Fort McMurray, Alta., and Jagdev Gill of Montreal.

Five returnees in Para athletics

Five of Canada’s 13 Para athletics team members are returnees from the 2022 Commonwealth Games, including one medallist and several Paralympic and world championship veterans.

The women’s team features 2022 Commonwealth Games veterans Natalie Thirsk of Edmonton, who set a personal best in the heats four years ago, and Nandini Sharma of Brampton, Ont., who finished seventh in the women’s T54 1500 metre event. 

Paralympian Sheriauna Haase of Toronto and World Para Athletics Championships team members Addisyn Franceschini of Brooklyn, N.S., and Chloe Dunbar of Thunder Bay, Ont., will make their Commonwealth Games debuts in Glasgow. Emerging talent Christel Robichaud of Grande-Digue, N.B., makes her national team debut. 

“The Commonwealth Games holds a special place in my heart. In 2022, it was my first time on Team Canada,’’ said Thirsk, entered in the T38 100 and 200 metre events. ‘’I remember the immense pride and excitement I felt stepping onto the track in front of a roaring crowd.’’

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On the men’s side, 2022 Commonwealth Games medallist Zachary Gingras of Brampton makes his return. Gingras took bronze in the men’s T38 100 metre event in Birmingham, scoring a personal best time in the process.

“The Commonwealth Games are so unique for Paralympic athletes such as myself, as we are integrated into the program alongside our Olympic counterparts,’’ said Gingras, a Paralympic Games medallist in 2020.  ‘’It helps us create bonds outside of our typical crowd, which will last beyond the Closing Ceremony.” 

George Quarcoo of Toronto also makes his second Commonwealth Games team. The 2018 Games veteran will race alongside his guide Segun Makinde of Ottawa,  who competed as an able-bodied sprinter at Gold Coast 2018.

World Para Athletics Championships veterans on the team include 2023 T20 long jump silver medallist Noah Vucsics of Calgary and Michael Barber of Victoria. Emerging thrower Maitlan Knoke of Saskatoon gets his first taste of multisport Games action for Canada. 

Two Canadian women in Para lawn bowls

The selection of Anne Hibberd of Calgary and Jean Stairs of marks a historic milestone for the sport. This will be the first time Canada is represented in Para bowls in the women’s pairs (B6-B8) discipline at the Commonwealth Games.

Hibberd will enter Glasgow as a veteran of two previous international competitions, bringing valuable experience.

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“This is an important moment for bowls in Canada,” said Britany Gordon, Chief Executive Officer of Bowls Canada. “Anne and Jean have demonstrated tremendous dedication and perseverance on their journey to the international stage.

‘’Their appointment represents a significant step forward for inclusivity and growth within our sport.”

Stairs will make her second international appearance and has continued to impress through her commitment and competitive development within the high-performance pathway.

CBC/Radio-Canada will provide comprehensive coverage of the 12-day multi-sport event on CBC TV, CBC Gem and ICI TOU.TV, including live daily broadcast and streaming coverage starting with the Opening Ceremony on July 23, and up-to-the-minute news across CBC Sports and Radio-Canada Sports digital and social media platforms.

Visit https://www.cbc.ca/sports/commonwealthgames for programming details. 

For more information: 2026 Commonwealth Games | Commonwealth Sport Canada

Canadian Para athletes at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, July 23-August 4, 2026

PARA ATHLETICS

Men

George Quarcoo, Toronto, ON, T12 100m (2018)

Segun Makinde, Ottawa, ON, T12 100m (guide) (2018)

Maitlan Knoke, Saskatoon, SK, F57 shotput

Michael Barber, Victoria, B.C., T20 1500m

Noah Vucsics, Calgary, AB, T20 long jump

Zachary Gingras, Markham, ON, T38 100m (2022)

Women

Addisyn Franceschini, Thunder Bay, ON, discus

Chloe Dunbar, Brooklyn, N.S. women, T47 100m

Christel Robichaud, Grande-Digue, N.B., F57 shotput

Nandini Sharma, Brampton, ON, T54 400m and 1500m (2022)

Natalie Thirsk, Edmonton, AB, T38 100m and 200m (2022)

Sheriauna Haase, Toronto, ON, T47 100m

Claire Norek, Gerald, SK, shotput

PARA SWIMMING

Men

Hunter Helberg, Fort McMurray, AB.

Sebastian Massabie, Surrey, B.C.

Alec Elliot, Kitchener, ON.

Jagdev Gill, Montreal, QC.

Fernando Lu, Burnaby, B.C.

Reid Maxwell, Edmonton, AB.

Nicolas-Guy Turbide, Quebec City, QC.

Women

Tianna Asala, Calgary, AB.

Danielle Dorris, Moncton, N.B.

Emma Van Dyk, Port Colborne, ON.

Katie Cosgriffe, Burlington, ON.

Mary Jibb, Muskoka, ON.

WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL (3X3)

Men

Garrett Ostepchuk, Regina, SK.

Lee Melymick, Toronto, ON.

Kyrell Sopotyk, Aberdeen, SK.

Reed De’Aeth, Sherwood Park, AB.

Women

Kady Dandeneau, Pender Island, B.C. (2022)

Élodie Tessier, Saint-Germain-de-Grantham, QC. (2022)

Puisand Lai, Toronto, ON.

Rosie Long, Oakville, ON.

PARA BOWLS

Anne Hibberd, Calgary, AB, B6-8 Para pairs

Jean Stairs, Moncton, N.B., B6-8 Para pairs