Ryan Rousell Ryan Rousell

Ryan Rousell was born prematurely and is affected with cerebral palsy which affects his motor skills on his right side. His right leg is shorter, has less muscle mass and is slower to respond to commands than his left.

He started fencing at age seven in Asquith, Saskatchewan and trained for more than a decade with able-bodied teammates. He also played numerous other sports including hockey and basketball.

It was teammate Sylvie Morel, also a scout for the national wheelchair fencing team, who convinced him to try the wheelchair version of the sport. In 2018 he won his first World Cup gold at an event in Montreal in sabre – his favourite of the three weapons. Later that year he competed at the under 23 worlds and won the bronze in sabre. In 2019, helped Canada to two top-10 finishes in team events at the world championships.

During the pandemic, Rousell revised his training habits and also advanced in his schooling. Rousell took a hard look at his nutrition and physical exercise habits as he prepared for the Tokyo Games.

Since the 2020 Games, Rousell’s performance highlights include double gold at the 2022 Americas Championships and another victory at the 2024 Americas.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

2017, 2019, 2023 World Championships… 2018 U23 World Championships bronze in sabre… 2018 World Cup in Montreal gold medal in sabre… Double medal performances at the 2018, 2022, 2024 Americas Championships…

PERSONAL

Family owns farm in Asquith, Sask… Computer engineering at the University of Saskatchewan…

NOTABLE INTERNATIONAL RESULTS

• 2024 Americas Championships Sabre 1st
• 2024 Americas Championships Epee 3rd
• 2023 World Championships Sabre 20th
• 2022 Americas Championships Epee 1st
• 2022 Americas Championships Sabre 1st
• 2020 Paralympic Games Sabre 13th
• 2020 Paralympic Games Epee 14th
• 2019 World Championships Team sabre 9th
• 2019 World Championships Team epee 10th
• 2018 Americas Championships Sabre 2nd
• 2018 Americas Championships Epee 3rd
• 2018 U23 World Championships Sabre 3rd