Canada is off to a great start at the Winter Paralympic Games
Through three days of competition in Beijing, Canadians have already won 12 medals. That puts Canada second in total medals, behind host China (25) and ahead of Ukraine, Germany and the United States (8 each).
Today, Canada doubled its count by racking up six medals, including three gold. The highlight was 42-year-old visually impaired cross-country skier Brian McKeever capturing the 14th Paralympic title (and 18th medal) of his incredible career. Also, Tyler Turner became Canada’s first-ever Paralympic snowboard gold medallist, and 21-year-old cross-country skier Natalie Wilkie won the second Paralympic gold (and fourth medal) of her young career. Alpine skier Alana Ramsay became Canada’s first multi-medallist of these Games, adding a super-combined bronze to the one she picked up in the super-G a day earlier.
Canadians will contend for individual podiums again on Day 4, while the country’s Para hockey and wheelchair curling teams both continue their push for the semifinals. Here’s what to watch on Monday night and Tuesday morning:
Mark Arendz looks to start a new streak. After winning a Canadian-record six medals in six events at the 2018 Winter Paralympics, Arendz extended his podium streak to seven by taking bronze in the men’s biathlon standing sprint on Saturday in Beijing. The run ended last night when he finished fourth in his cross-country long-distance event. Arendz has a good shot to get back on the podium, and win his 10th Paralympic medal, as he switches back to biathlon for the men’s standing middle-distance race at 11:30 p.m. ET. He took bronze in this event in 2018.
Brittany Hudak will also ski for her second medal of the Games. After taking bronze in the women’s cross-country long-distance event won by Wilkie last night, Hudak moves over to biathlon for the women’s standing middle-distance race at 11 p.m. ET. She won a long-distance bronze in biathlon in 2018, so we already know Hudak is capable of reaching the Paralympic podium in both forms of Nordic skiing. Competing alongside her tonight is Emily Young, who won two cross-country medals at the 2018 Games and placed fifth in last night’s race where Wilkie and Hudak shared the podium.
Canada’s Para hockey team plays for a spot in the semifinals. Despite their humbling 5-0 loss to the defending-champion United States in the tournament opener on Saturday, the Canadians can lock up a berth in the final four when they face South Korea at 12:05 a.m. ET. This is the second round-robin game for both teams, but it’s also the last one because of the expulsion of Russia, which was supposed to play in this group. South Korea lost 9-1 to the U.S., which has clinched first place in the group and a spot in the semifinals. The winner of the Canada-South Korea game joins the Americans in the semis, while the loser will have to play its way in by beating whoever finishes third in the other group.
Canada’s wheelchair curling team will try to stay on top. Skip Mark Ideson, Canadian flag-bearer Ina Forrest and their teammates suffered their first loss of the tournament this morning when they were beaten by Sweden. But Canada (4-1) remains in first place, just ahead of the Swedes (3-1). China and Latvia are tied for third at 3-2. The top four teams after the 11-team round robin advance to the semifinals. The Canadians will attempt to hold onto the top spot as they face South Korea (1-3) at 8:35 p.m. ET and Slovakia (2-2) at 6:35 a.m ET.
More on the Paralympics
Catch up on everything you may have missed from Day 3 here. Read about what the 42-year-old McKeever hopes to accomplish in his final Games here. Read about how impairment classifications and timing adjustments work to level the playing field here.
How to watch live events
They’re being streamed on CBC Sports’ Beijing 2022 website, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem. See the full streaming schedule here, including links to watch events when they go live. You can also catch Paralympic action daily on the CBC TV network. See the full TV schedule here. Read more about CBC Sports’ Paralympic coverage plans here.
WATCH | What you missed on Day 3 of the Paralympics:
While You Were Sleeping: 6 Canadian medals including 2 historic Para snowboarding wins
12 hours ago
Duration 3:40
Lisa DeJong and Tyler Turner make Canadian Para snowboarding history, Natalie Wilkie and Brittany Hudak share a Para cross-country podium, Brian McKeever wins his 18th Paralympic medal. Catch up on what you missed overnight with CBC Sports’ Jacqueline Doorey. 3:40
Quickly…
A prominent NFL receiver was suspended for at least one full season for betting on games. According to the league, Atlanta Falcons wideout Calvin Ridley wagered on NFL games during a five-day period last November when he was away from the team. At the time, his absence was said to be related to mental-health issues. The NFL says its investigation found no evidence that Ridley used inside information or “that any game was compromised in any way.” Ridley, 27, was one of the most productive receivers in the league in 2020, when he caught 90 passes for 1,374 yards and nine touchdowns. Last year, he played in only five games and had 31 catches.
Leylah Fernandez won the Monterrey Open again. The 19-year-old Canadian tennis player repeated as champion of the low-end WTA event in Mexico yesterday by beating Colombia’s Camila Osorio in the final. Last year, Fernandez won Monterrey as an unseeded player and went on to make a stunning run to the final of the U.S. Open, where she was also unseeded. Now ranked 21st in the world, Fernandez was seeded No. 2 in Monterrey. Osorio was No. 5. Read more about Fernandez’s second career WTA title and watch highlights here.
Moh Ahmed lowered his Canadian 10,000m record. The Olympic 5,000m silver medallist sliced more than 25 seconds off his national 10,000m record by running 26:34.14 to finish second to American Grant Fisher yesterday at a track meet in California. Ahmed set the old record at the 2019 world championships in Qatar, where he placed sixth in the 10,000 (the same result he posted in that distance at the Tokyo Olympics last summer). The time he posted yesterday makes Ahmed the ninth-fastest 10,000m runner of all time. Read more about the run here.
And also…
Tomorrow is International Women’s Day. To mark it, CBC Sports is streaming a panel discussion hosted by Andi Petrillo that will both celebrate the progress made in women’s sports over the last year and address the work that still needs to be done. Watch it live Tuesday at 12:15 p.m. ET on CBC Sports’ Facebook page. At 1:30 p.m. ET, head over to the CBC Olympics Twitter page for a discussion on women in sports and mental health. Hosted by Shireen Ahmed and Signa Butler, the guests are sports psychologist Clare Fewster and Olympians Cynthia Appiah, Anastasia Bucsis and Kirsten Moore-Towers.
TORONTO – Reigning PWHL MVP and scoring champ Natalie Spooner will miss the start of the regular season for the Toronto Sceptres, general manager Gina Kingsbury announced Tuesday on the first day of training camp.
The 33-year-old Spooner had knee surgery on her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after she was checked into the boards by Minnesota’s Grace Zumwinkle in Game 3 of their best-of-five semifinal series on May 13.
She had a goal and an assist in three playoff games but did not finish the series. Toronto was up 2-1 in the semifinal at that time and eventually fell 3-2 in the series.
Spooner led the PWHL with 27 points in 24 games. Her 20 goals, including five game-winners, were nine more than the closest skater.
Kingsbury said there is no timeline, as the team wants the Toronto native at 100 per cent, but added that “she is doing really well” in her recovery.
The Sceptres open the PWHL season on Nov. 30 when they host the Boston Fleet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
