Canadian swimmer Nicholas Bennett captured the country’s first silver medal of the Paris Paralympics on Saturday in the men’s 200-metre freestyle S14 final.
The 20-year-old from Parksville, B.C., native touched the wall in one minute 53.61 seconds at Paris La Défense Arena, earning his first career Paralympic medal and Canada’s fifth medal of these Games.
Bennett, who lives with autism, is the reigning world champion in the event.
Great Britain’s William Ellard won the Paralympic title in a world-record time of 1:51.30, while Australia’s Jack Ireland finished right behind Bennett for bronze (1:53.77).
WATCH l Bennett claims 200m freestyle silver in Paris:
Nicholas Bennett of Parksville, B.C., finished second in the men’s 200-metre freestyle S14 final, behind only William Ellard of Great Britain, who won with a world record time.
Bennett advanced to the final with the top qualifying time of the day.
He made his Paralympic debut in Tokyo, finishing sixth in the final.
Two other Canadian Paralympic swimmers will compete for medals later on Saturday.
The 25-year-old Routliffe, who originally hails from Auckland, New Zealand, claimed silver in the event at the 2016 Games in Rio.
Dorris, a 21-year-old from Moncton, N.B., is the defending Paralympic gold medallist and world-record holder in the SM7 butterfly event, which kicks off Sept. 7.
Pemble narrowly misses podium
Canadian track cyclist Mel Pemble narrowly missed the podium in the women’s C1-3 500-metre time trial on Saturday, finishing 0.3 seconds away from her first career Paralympic medal.
The 24-year-old from Victoria clocked a factored time of 38.610 seconds in the six-rider final at the National Velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France.
Pemble started strong and never looked back while racing alone against the clock in the two-lap event, giving her the lead with three cyclists to go.
Germany’s Maike Hausberger (C2) followed Pemble and ultimately bested her for bronze, while Australia’s Amanda Reid (C2) and China’s Qian Wangwei (C1) captured gold and silver, respectively. Qian set a world record in her category with a finish time of 40.878.
The event combines the C1 to C3 classifications, with factored times determining the final standings.
C3 world record
Pemble set a C3 world record earlier on Saturday with a blazing qualifying time of 38.512 in her Summer Games debut, advancing as the fourth-fastest rider among the field of 11.
Pemble, a former Paralympic alpine skier, broke the mark of 39.093 set by Australia’s Aniek van den Aarssen on the same track at the 2022 world championships.
“I know it’s going to sweeten the pot a little knowing I set that world record and it will make that fourth place sting a little less in the end,” Pemble said after the final.
“But it’s going to take a little while to get over that.”
Pemble posted an average speed of 46.739 kilometres an hour in her qualifying heat.
WATCH l Pemble pedals to world record:
Mel Pemble of Victoria clocked a time of 38.512 seconds in the qualifying stage, to break the world record for the women’s C3 500-metre time trial at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Pemble would go on to finish fourth in the final.
”She made sure she had an optimal environment for her training leading into the Games and she got the result she fully deserved,” said Canada’s Para cycling head coach Sébastien Travers.
Pemble, who was born with cerebral palsy, claimed silver in the same event at this year’s world championships in Rio de Janeiro last March. She is a two-time world champion in the women’s C3 omnium competition, despite only switching sports in 2020.
Pemble enjoyed a successful alpine skiing career that saw her reach the 2018 Paralympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Canada bounces back in women’s wheelchair basketball
Canada’s women’s wheelchair basketball squad rebounded from its opening loss with a 64-54 comeback win over Great Britain at Bercy Arena on Saturday.
Arinn Young of St. Albert, Alta., scored a game-high 26 points, including three three-pointers, while Cindy Ouellet of Rivière-du-Loup, Que., helped lead the way with 19 points.
“We really needed this win today to set us up for the rest of the pool games,” Young said. “I’m so proud of my team. That was a massive team win.”
Canada, which lost 70-65 to China on Thursday, plays its final group-stage game against Spain on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET. All eight teams in the women’s and men’s tournaments advance to the quarterfinals.
The Canadians finished fifth three years ago in Tokyo.
WATCH l What makes wheelchair basketball and rugby so popular?:
Brian Hnatiw is joined by John Loeppky to talk about arguably the two most popular sports at the Paralympics: wheelchair rugby and basketball.
Canada’s men’s team took the court after the women, falling 88-58 to Tokyo bronze medallist Great Britain.
Rothesay, N.B., native Colin Higgins led the Canadians with 14 points, with co-flag-bearer Pat Anderson of Edmonton adding 11.
Canada wraps up group play against Germany on Monday at 10 a.m. ET. They opened with an 83-68 win over France.
“We put up a good fight, and it wasn’t our day,” Anderson said. “But you know, we’re in it for the long haul, so we’re gonna rest up. The savour of last night’s win — that’s still sweet.
“We’re not satisfied with that, but we know we can win on this court, in this atmosphere, so we’ll still carry that confidence forward and see what we can do in a couple days.”
Humboldt’s Wassermann fails to reach medal race
Humboldt bus crash survivor Jacob Wassermann finished fourth in his repechage heat in the men’s PR1 single sculls rowing event, missing out on a spot in the medal race.
The 24-year-old Humboldt, Sask., native posted a time of 11:28.31 in the first of two repechages at Vaires-sur-Marne Stadium, needing a top-two finish to reach the Final A. He will instead compete in the four-man Final B.
Wonderful scenes at the para rowing venue for 🇨🇦 Jacob Wassermann in his repechage race today. He finished in a time of 11:28.31.<br><br>And as he reached the finish line the massive crowd roared. His competitors cheered. <br><br>Wassermann is in the B Final tomorrow morning in Paris. <a href=”https://t.co/h1m1koi3YF”>pic.twitter.com/h1m1koi3YF</a>
—@Devin_Heroux
Wassermann made his Paralympic debut in Paris, less than two years into competing in the sport. He is one of 13 survivors of the 2018 tragedy, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down.
Wassermann clocked a time of 11:22.35 in qualifying.
In other Canadian results:
- Wheelchair tennis player Robert Shaw advanced to the quarterfinals in the men’s quad singles tournament with a 6-2, 6-1, first-round win over Brazil’s Ymanitu Silva at Roland-Garros Stadium. He will face the winner of today’s match between Lucas Sithole of South Africa and Niels Vink of the Netherlands.
- Guillaume Ouellet finished fifth in the men’s 5,000m T13 race.
- Ashlyn Renneberg placed seventh in the women’s javelin F13 final in her Paralympic debut.
- Yuka Chokyu was eliminated in the women’s singles WH1 badminton tournament with a straight-sets loss to Thailand’s Sujirat Pookkham.