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PARIS – Canada has surpassed its total medal count and gold medal count from the Tokyo Paralympics with two days remaining in Paris.

Wheelchair racer Cody Fournie earned his second gold of the Games, while discus thrower Jesse Zesseu took silver, both at Stade de France. In the pool, Sebastian Massabie struck gold for Canada’s 11th swimming medal and fourth gold.

Canada is now up to 23 medals and eight golds, having won 21 in total and five golds in Tokyo three years ago.

Fournie won the men’s T51 100-metre final while setting a personal best of 19.63 seconds after triumphing in the 200 on Tuesday. The 35-year-old from Rimbey, Alta., is making his Paralympic debut after years on the Canadian wheelchair rugby program.

“I feel wonderful, it feels great to get two gold medals at the Paralympics. I am going to bring back everything I learned from this event and apply (it) to my training back home in Victoria.”

For Zesseu, a 25-year-old from Toronto, it was redemption from his last performance in Paris a year ago.

He triple faulted in the discus, a moment he says was tough on him.

“I guess it was relief. I was here last year in exactly the same city, Paris, at the Stade Charlety (for the world championships) and I triple faulted. It was the worst moment in my life and I cried,” he said.

“I cried again now in Paris but for a different reason, a good reason.”

Zesseu threw 53.24 metres in the men’s F37 discus throw to place behind Tolibboy Yuldashev from Uzbekistan, whose gold-medal throw travelled a personal-best distance of 57.28 metres.

In the pool, Massabie set a world record in the men’s S4 50-metre freestyle just hours after setting the Paralympic record in the heats.

He set the Games record with 36.95 seconds earlier Friday and proceeded to swim a time of 35.61 seconds in the final to smash the previous world record of 36.25 by Israel’s Ami Omer Dadaon, who earned bronze on Friday, in 2022.

“I feel really, really happy, excited, and proud of myself,” said Massabie, who is one of 10 rookies on the Canadian Paralympic swim squad.

In women’s wheelchair basketball, Canada fell 72-61 to the Netherlands in the semifinals.

Arinn Young paced the Canadians with 29 points, while Kady Dandeneau had another 24.

Canada will next play China in the bronze-medal game on Sunday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.

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WINNIPEG – There is some extra fire for when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers host the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the annual Banjo Bowl at Princess Auto Stadium on Saturday.

Fresh on the Blue Bombers’ minds is the illegal hit that knocked their starting quarterback, Zach Collaros, out of the game late in the first half of last Sunday’s game in Regina. The CFL fined defensive tackle Miles Brown for that indiscretion.

“We’re a brotherhood, we work with all of these guys putting in work every single day,” Bombers linebacker Tony Jones said Friday.

“So, whenever one of your guys goes down – especially with an illegal hit – it does add a little extra fire into you, especially your starting quarterback, who means so much to the team.”

Bombers running back Brady Oliveira is determined not to allow the possibility of it happening again.

“Obviously, it’s been talked about — ‘Hey, we can’t have anyone hitting our quarterback,’” he said. “But we need to take even more pride and understanding what’s going on up front and make sure that no one touches (Collaros).

“It’s on us. It’s on the offensive line. It’s on me as a running back going back there in pass protection to make sure no one gets a finger on Zach. So, I guess that’s our little added motivation.”

Brown claimed he had no intent to injure Collaros.

“Not at all did I mean to try to hurt him and intend to hit him in the head,” Brown told Regina reporters.

Bombers head coach Mike O’Shea believes a fine does not act as enough of a deterrent for such incidents. He thinks the CFL should introduce the possibility of an ejection after the command centre checks such plays out.

“I don’t think I was satisfied with this one,” O’Shea said. “It is what it is. There’s nothing that I can do about it.”

Roughriders head coach Corey Mace, who insisted that Brown is not a dirty player, does not expect any extra-curricular antics as a result of the incident.

“I just know Osh (O’Shea) and the type of mentality he likes to put on his team — those guys play a physical brand of football, but they also try to play it the right way,” he said.

“The game will be physical enough. Will it be chippy? I think it’s just kind of a rivalry anyway to be chippy, but I’m certain he’s telling his team the same thing that I’ve told ours.”

Collaros, who will return to action on Saturday, was looking ahead not behind.

“You think about last week — I didn’t finish the game, which was the disappointing part for me, obviously,” he said. “I treat this week like I do any other week … nothing really changes. Once that first snap happens, you’re just locked into your job and looking forward to it afterwards.”

After Collaros was knocked out of the match, the Bombers held on for a 35-33 victory. So, the Roughriders are determined to avenge that loss.

“Looking for some payback,” Logan Ferland, who will start at centre, told Regina reporters. “They came into our house and did that, and we have to go into theirs and do the same.”

Starting Saskatchewan quarterback Trevor Harris relishes playing in such an environment.

“It’s fun,” he said. “The Banjo Bowl, we know it’s going to be loud. We aren’t going to be able to use our cadence because the fans are going to be too loud for us to use it. But, what more would you want? You don’t want to play a road game with 8,000 people.

“So, it’s gonna be all of them against us, so let’s go. Like Rocky IV in a hostile environment in Russia. Get ready for it and build for it.”

SASKATCHEWAN ROUGHRIDERS (5-6-1) AT WINNIPEG BLUE BOMBERS (6-6)

Saturday, Princess Auto Stadium

MILESTONE: Bombers defensive tackle Jake Thomas will play in his 200th CFL game.

PENDING MILESTONE: With his next victory, O’Shea will move past Bombers legend Bud Grant for a club-record 103 CFL regular-season wins.

MULTI-TALENTED DEFENDER: Saskatchewan defensive back Rolan Milligan Jr. leads the CFL with 17 special teams tackles six interceptions and 10 knockdowns.

INJURY WOES: Bombers linebacker Adam Bighill was moved to the six-game injury list … Roughriders wide receiver Dohnte Meyers was put on the six-gamer. Saskatchewan lost two centres to injury last week.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.