Team of 38 athletes to compete for Canada at Chile 2025 Youth Parapan American Games

Ottawa, October 30, 2025 – A team of 38 young Canadian Para athletes will take to the international stage of the Chile 2025 Youth Parapan American Games from October 31 to November 9, the Canadian Paralympic Committee confirmed Thursday.   

Taking place in the regions of Santiago and O’Higgins in Chile, Canada will compete in five sports: wheelchair basketball (15 athletes), goalball (12), Para swimming (6), boccia (4), and Para table tennis (1).   

Elise Froese (wheelchair basketball, women’s 3×3 team) and Harry Nickerson (men’s goalball team) will carry the flag for Canada in the Opening Ceremony.  

Froese, from Victoria, B.C., first competed for Canada internationally at the U25 women’s world championships in 2023. The 19-year-old recently made her senior national team debut at the 2025 Americas Cup in Bogota, where Canada won bronze. She is also a student-athlete, playing wheelchair basketball at the University of Arizona while majoring in religion.  

“I’m honoured and excited to be selected as flag bearer for the Youth Parapan American Games,” said Froese. “It’s an amazing opportunity to represent wheelchair basketball on the international level, and I couldn’t be prouder to carry the flag for Canada at the opening ceremony.” 

At just 16 years old, Nickerson made his international debut for Canada this past summer, competing at the IBSA Americas Championships in Sao Paulo. The youngest player to make the senior men’s national team, the Halifax, N.S. resident finished second in scoring. Nickerson is also active on the national science fair circuit, developing AI diagnostic platforms to improve the early detection of eye conditions like his own. 

“It’s been a dream of mine for a very long time to just play for Team Canada, but carrying the flag is an unbelievable honour,” said Nickerson. “I think our team has the chance to do some really special things here, and being able to carry the flag for Canada is a huge motivator to prove what we’re capable of as a team on and off the court.”  

This will be the sixth edition of the Youth Parapan Am Games, and the first to be hosted in Chile following the successful Santiago 2023 Parapan Am Games. More than 1,500 athletes between the ages of 14 and 21 from over 30 countries are expected to participate.  

This is the largest Canadian contingent set for a Youth Parapan Am Games and will be the first Canadian team to compete since 2017. Nine provinces are represented by the athletes: Ontario (14), Alberta (7), British Columbia (6), Quebec (3), Newfoundland & Labrador (2), Nova Scotia (2), Saskatchewan (2), Prince Edward Island (1), and Manitoba (1).  

They will be supported on the ground by 29 coaches and support staff.   

The complete list of Chile 2025 Canadian Youth Parapan Am Team members can be found HERE.  

“Congratulations to Elise and Harry on being named Canada’s flag bearers and to each of the athletes selected to compete in Chile,” said Catherine Gosselin-Despres, Chief Sport Officer, Canadian Paralympic Committee. “The Youth Parapan Am Games is an exciting opportunity for these young athletes to gain international experience against world-class competition and is a valuable step towards one day competing at the Parapan Am Games or Paralympic Games. We are looking forward to watching them compete and following their journeys and wish each athlete the best of luck.”  

For more information on the Chile 2025 Youth Parapan Am Games, please visit Paralympic.ca/games/chile-2025-youth-parapan-american-games