LIMA – Para table tennis star Stephanie Chan will lead the Canadian Parapan Am Team into the Opening Ceremony as flag bearer at the Lima 2019 Parapan American Games, the Canadian Paralympic Committee announced today.
“Congratulations to Stephanie on this very well-deserved honour!” said Stephanie Dixon, chef de mission of the Lima 2019 Canadian Parapan Am Team. “Stephanie has been a leader in Canadian Para table tennis for many years now, and is an incredible example of hard work, perseverance, and dedication. She is a wonderful ambassador for Para sport, and I know the entire team will be thrilled to have her represent Canada as flag bearer.”
Chan is one of the top table tennis players in her class 7 division and will be leading a team of five Canadian athletes in the sport in Lima. Her gold medal victory at Toronto 2015 qualified her for Rio 2016, where she just missed the podium with a fourth-place finish in her Paralympic debut. Lima 2019 will be the 62-year-old’s fourth Parapan Am Games, and she has medalled in all three previous tournaments (one gold, two silver, and one bronze).
“I’m so excited to go into the stadium with the team. In my mind, I just want to show here how to play well, how to work hard, and that age is just a number,” said Chan. “This is a privilege, and I hope to have a good time, and I can show people that if I can do it, you can do it.”
From Vancouver, Chan is currently ranked No. 9 in the world, and No. 2 in the Americas. Her Lima 2019 Parapan Am Games campaign actually begins today, with Para table tennis the first sport to start competition. The individual event runs from August 22 to 24, with the team tournament going August 25 to 27.
Chan will take the flag bearer reins into the Opening Ceremony on Friday August 23 at 7 p.m. local time in Lima / 8 p.m. ET. It will be live streamed via the CPC Facebook page, CBC Gem streaming service, cbcsports.ca, the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, as well as the Radio-Canada Sports app and radio-canada.ca/sports.
The Lima 2019 Parapan Am Games take place August 23 to September 1, with Canada competing in 13 sports.
