Canadian Wheelchair Racer Austin Smeenk Wins: On Monday, Canadian wheelchair racer Austin Smeenk won his first Paralympic bronze in the men’s T34 100 meters. The Oakville, Ont. native won Canada’s sixth bronze and 10th medal of the Games in 15.19 seconds at Stade de France.
The three-time reigning champion Walid Ktila of Tunisia won silver, but the 27-year-old drove into medal position down the line. Thailand’s Chaiwat Rattana won gold in 14.76 by setting a Paralympic record.
Canada’s second track medal came from Smeenk in Saint-Denis. On Sunday, wheelchair racer Brent Lakatos won the men’s T53 400m silver medal. Smeenk won his heat in 15.38, the fourth-fastest qualifying time.
He took silver at the World Para Athletics Championships in July. Smeenk placed seventh in Tokyo three years ago and sixth in Rio de Janeiro in his Paralympic debut in 2016. Also competing is Smeenk in the men’s 800m T34. He has the 800 (1:35.59) and 400 (48.06) world records.
He will race the heat on Friday at 6:10 a.m. ET and the final on Saturday at 4:12 a.m. Live coverage is available on CBC Gem, the Paris 2024 website, and the Android and iOS mobile app. Smeenk’s congenital paraplegia causes lower limb stiffness.
Taylor Takes the Triathlon Bronze
Canadian Leanne Taylor earned a triathlon bronze earlier today. The 32-year-old Winnipegger placed third in the women’s wheelchair triathlon behind Australian winner Lauren Parker and US silver medalist Kendall Gretsch.
I don’t think it’s set in yet, but it meant so much to me to have a performance that got people cheering louder. I’m thrilled “Taylor stated after the race. I had a rough day. Despite feeling sick before the race, I was anxious about how hard I could push.”
Paris hosted Taylor’s Paralympic debut. Five years ago, a mountain bike crash crippled her from the waist down. Many folks helped me recover from a bike accident six years ago. To demonstrate ‘this is why we did it,'” she said. A 750-meter swim, 20-kilometer handbike, and 5-kilometer wheelchair race are included.
Taylor ran 1 hour 12 minutes 11 seconds. Parker beat defending champion Gretsch (1:07:46) in 1:06:23 to upgrade her Tokyo silver medal. Para triathlon had scheduling issues like the Olympics. Seine River water quality issues forced a schedule change and race postponement.
