Two medals in athletics for Canadian Para athletes at Commonwealth Games

GLASGOW, Scotland – Michael Barber was surrounded by two Scottish racers, competing in front of their home crowd, heading into the bell lap of the men’s T20 1500 metres final.

That group of three pulled away from the field and Barber held his own, fighting to a time of 4:01.84 to win the silver medal on Monday in athletics action at the Commonwealth Games.

“Going into the race, I had a plan to stay with (gold medallist Ben) Sandilands,’’ said Barber from Victoria, whose father Gary Barber ran at the 1990 Commonwealth Games. ‘’My whole plan was to wait until the right moment hit, then I was going to make that move. I made the move with 200 metres to go and work according to plan.

“I’m just over the moon with it. To have this be put around my neck after, again, after so many years, it definitely means a lot to me.”

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Zach Gingras needed the race of his life to snag his second Commonwealth Games medal. His new personal best time of 11.55 seconds was good for bronze in the men’s T38 100 metres final.

“The main focus all season is just perfecting my start, and I think I was able to do that to a pretty high degree today,’’ said Gingras, a two-time Paralympian who won bronze in the 400 at Tokyo 2020.  ‘’ It paid off and here we are standing with another bronze medal.

‘’It’s amazing given how different the field is than four years ago. It’s two different medalists than I was on the podium last time. That’s a testament to my consistency in that sense and how amazing these competitions are for me.’’

Canadian teams drop last prelims games in 3×3 wheelchair basketball

Team Canada’s women’s 3×3 wheelchair basketball team pushed Australia to the limit before dropping a hard-fought 12-10 overtime decision in Pool A action Monday at the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

Canada (1-2) will now face Wales in the quarterfinals at 3:30 p.m. EDT on Tuesday.

Élodie Tessier dropped a basket with 2.7 seconds remaining in regulation to tie it 10-10 and force the extra period.

“I mean, my head was going through so many emotions,” Tessier said. “I think it’s hard to explain. I think every athlete here is playing for that kind of game. I made the shot that mattered.

“Unfortunately, we were not able to generate any defence towards it. When you have a tie game like this, it’s the first to two (points), and unfortunately, I missed my other basket. It is sport. It is totally sport.”

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In men’s competition, Team Canada closed out pool play at the 2026 Commonwealth Games with a 20-12 loss to Australia on Monday.

Canada (1-2) battled throughout the 10-minute contest but was unable to slow Australia’s offensive attack.

Team Canada meets South Africa in Tuesday’s quarterfinals at 2 p.m. EDT.

Reed De’Aeth led the Canadian offence with a team-high nine points, knocking down two shots from beyond the arc while pulling down a game-best 10 rebounds.

“Australia is a really good team,” De’Aeth said. “Being in that high-intensity game, your adrenaline is going to be up. You don’t really have time to think with a team that is that fast, so you have to go off instinct.

“It’s unfortunate; we wanted to come out with the win, but we’re going to go back, watch some film, get ready for our crossover, and hopefully get prepared early.”

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Gill just misses second podium in Para swimming

Jack Gill of Brockville, Ont., took fourth at 1:12.79 in the men’s Para swimming SB9 100-metre breaststroke competition.

Australia’s Beau Matthews captured gold in 1:09.41. Canadian teammate Fernando Lu of Burnaby, B.C., was disqualified.

Anne Hibberd of Calgary and Jean Stairs of Moncton get into action Tuesday in Para lawn bowls.

CBC/Radio-Canada is providing 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, T12 100m (2018)

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

Maitlan Knoke, Saskatoon, F57 shotput

Michael Barber, Victoria, T20 1500m

Noah Vucsics, Calgary, T20 long jump

Zachary Gingras, Markham, Ont., T38 100m (2022)

Women

Addisyn Franceschini, Thunder Bay, Ont., discus, F42-44 or F61-64 ??

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

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

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

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

Sheriauna Haase, Toronto, T47 100m

Claire Norek, Gerald, Sask., shotput

PARA SWIMMING

Men

Hunter Helberg, Fort McMurray, Alta.

Sebastian Massabie, Surrey, B.C.

Alec Elliot, Kitchener, Ont,

Jagdev Gill, Montreal

Fernando Lu, Burnaby, B.C.

Reid Maxwell, Edmonton

Nicolas-Guy Turbide, Quebec City

Women

Tianna Asala, Calgary,

Danielle Dorris, Moncton, N.B.

Emma Van Dyk, Port Colborne, Ont.

Katie Cosgriffe, Burlington, Ont.

Mary Jibb, Muskoka, Ont.

WHEELCHAIR BASKETBALL (3X3)

Men

Garrett Ostepchuk, Regina

Lee Melymick, Toronto

Kyrell Sopotyk, Aberdeen, Sask.

Reed De’Aeth, Sherwood Park, Alta.

Women

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

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

Puisand Lai, Toronto

Rosie Long, Oakville, Ont.

PARA BOWLS

Anne Hibberd, Calgary, B6-8 Para pairs

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