Paralympic newsletter: Canada wins its first two medals, plus who to watch on Friday | CBC Sports

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Canada won its first two medals of the Paralympic Games

Track cyclist Kate O’Brien got Canada on the board quickly on Day 1 in Paris, taking bronze in the women’s C4-5 500m time trial. It’s the second Paralympic medal for O’Brien, who took silver in this event at the 2021 Games in Tokyo. She also competed in the 2016 Olympics before a training crash the following year caused a serious brain injury.

Later, swimming star Aurélie Rivard captured her 11th Paralympic medal with a bronze in the women’s 50m freestyle S10 event. That moves the 28-year-old Rivard into a tie with wheelchair racer Brent Lakatos for the most medals among Canadians competing in Paris.

Swimmer Shelby Newkirk came close to her first Paralympic podium, placing fourth in the women’s 50m freestyle S6 final.

Other key Canadian results:

* Second-ranked women’s individual BC4 boccia player Alison Levine split her first two group-stage games. She plays her final one Friday at 11 a.m. ET. The top two in each group advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals.

* Canada’s fifth-ranked wheelchair rugby team challenged the second-ranked United States in their group-stage opener before losing 51-48. Canadian star Zak Madell scored a game-high 31 tries. Canada, going for its first Paralympic medal since 2012, faces ninth-ranked Germany on Friday at 11:30 a.m. ET before closing group play Saturday against No. 3 Japan.

* The Canadian women’s wheelchair basketball team also lost a close one, falling 70-65 to China. Canada placed fifth at the 2021 Paralympics and the most recent world championship, in 2022, while China took silver at both events. As usual, Kady Dandeneau led the way for Canada, scoring 28 points with nine rebounds and seven assists. The Canadians’ next game is Saturday against Great Britain.

* In other team sports openers, Canada crushed France 10-0 in women’s goalball and swept Slovenia in straight sets in women’s sitting volleyball. The goalball team continues group play Friday at 8:45 a.m. ET against Japan, while the No. 1-ranked sitting volleyball squad faces Brazil on Saturday.

WATCH | O’Brien wins Canada’s 1st medal in Paris:

Top Canadian medal chances on Day 2

Here are Friday’s leading contenders, in chronological order of their finals:

Track cycling: Keely Shaw in the women’s C4 3,000m individual pursuit

Shaw did not get through qualifying in Thursday’s C4-5 500m time trial event — where, as a C4-class athlete, she was facing opponents with a less-severe disability classification. Her chances in the C4 3,000m are better. Shaw took bronze in this event at the 2021 Paralympics and has reached the podium three times at the world championships.

The two fastest riders in qualifying (6:15 a.m. ET) will race for the gold medal at 9:25 a.m. ET while the next two fastest square off for the bronze at 9:17 a.m. ET.

Canada’s Alexandre Hayward will also try for a medal in the men’s C3 3,000m individual pursuit. He placed fifth at this year’s world championships and took silver in a different event.

Swimming: Katarina Roxon in the women’s 100m breaststroke SB8

Canada’s co-flag-bearer won her lone Paralympic gold in this event in 2016, and all four of her individual medals at the world championships have also come in the 100m breaststroke. She took silver in 2019 and captured her third bronze last year.

Assuming she advances through the heats at 5:18 a.m. ET, Roxon will swim for a medal at 2:21 p.m. ET.

Other Canadians to watch on Friday

* Humboldt bus crash survivor Jacob Wassermann makes his Paralympic debut in rowing at 4:10 a.m. ET in the men’s PR1 single sculls heats. The winner of each heat advances to Sunday’s final while everyone else gets another chance in the repechage round on Saturday. For more on Wassermann’s story, watch this video and read this story by CBC Sports’ Devin Heroux. 

* Canada’s men’s wheelchair basketball team opens group play against France at 12:15 p.m. ET. Canada won three Paralympic golds and a silver from 2000-2012, but it dropped to 11th place at the 2016 Games and eighth in 2021 before finishing sixth at the most recent world championship. The team is led by Pat Anderson, Canada’s other flag-bearer for the opening ceremony and one of the best wheelchair basketball players ever. Anderson, 45, was part of all four of Canada’s medal wins and is now appearing in his sixth Paralympic Games. 

* The first day of track and field competition includes Lakatos in the opening round of the men’s T54 5,000m event at 3:02 p.m. ET. The sixth-time Paralympian won four silver medals at the 2021 Paralympics in Tokyo, including in the 5,000m.

More on the Paralympics

If you’re wondering what PR1, SB8 and other such event designations mean, they’re disability classifications. Here’s a handy guide to how they work in each sport. Classification can be a controversial aspect of the Paralympics, with some athletes even accused of “class doping.” Read more about the fraught system in this story by CBC Sports’ Myles Dichter. 

If you missed Tuesday’s newsletter, here’s our primer on the Paralympics with some fun facts about the Canadian team.

For more stories, video and live streams, visit CBC Sports’ Paris 2024 website and Paris 2024 app.

How to watch the Paralympics

Go here to choose the live events you want to watch and find replays and highlights. See the full streaming schedule here.

You can also catch the action in Paris via three daily live shows on the CBC TV network, CBC Gem and CBC Sports’ Paris 2024 website and app. There’s Petro-Canada Paris Prime, hosted by Scott Russell, at 2 p.m. ET; Toyota Paralympic Games Primetime, hosted by Russell and Stef Reid, at 8 p.m. in your local time zone; and Canadian Tire Paralympics Tonight, hosted by Devin Heroux and Roseline Filion, at 11:30 p.m. local.

Digital coverage will also include daily episodes of Rise and Stream, highlighting the must-see events and Canadians to follow, and Hot Takes, featuring interviews with athletes and analysts. Both shows are available on the Paris 2024 site and on CBC Sports’ YouTube channel, Facebook, Instagram and X. Here’s more on CBC’s Paralympics coverage.