On a stifling hot day in Tokyo, Para triathlete Jessica Tuomela placed an impressive fifth at the Paralympics on Saturday in Japan.
Led by guide Marianne Hogan, the 38-year-old crossed the finish line in one hour 12 minutes 53 seconds in the PTVI1 category, which is reserved for fully blind athletes.
Tuomela’s latest race comes 21 years after her only Paralympic medal — silver, won as a swimmer in the 50-metre freestyle in 2000.
Spain’s Susana Rodriguez won gold in 1:07:15, while Italy’s Anna Barbaro took silver at 1:11:11 and France’s Annouck Curzillat brought home bronze with a time of 1:11:45.
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Tuomela, the Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., native, who now resides in Victoria, competed in three Paralympics from 2000 to 2008 as a swimmer, only earning that one podium finish.
But she felt as though she had unfinished business.
“Instead of training for one sport, I thought, ‘Why not [train] for three?'” she told the Times of India recently.
“That’s how I got into triathlon. I went from a sport where I won medals for myself. Now I entered a sport where I am tied to another human being the entire race. That totally changes the dynamic of the race. It’s about teamwork now.”
Hogan, a 31-year-old from Montreal, became Tuomela’s guide in 2019 and quickly earned a trio of third-place finishes, including bronze at that year’s world championships in Switzerland.
But it wasn’t to be on Saturday. Tuomela looked to be in good shape early, emerging from the 750-metre swim in second place and maintaining that position over 20 kilometres on a tandem bike with Hogan. It was the five-kilometre run where Tuomela fell back at the Odaiba Marine Park on another stiflingly hot day in Tokyo.
Canadians shine in the pool
Canadian swimmer Aurélie Rivard claimed the first gold medal for the country at the Tokyo Aquatic Centre on Saturday. Rivard had a superb performance in the women’s S10 100-metre freestyle, racing to the end in 58.14 seconds.
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Aurélie Rivard of St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que., sets a world record of 58.60 seconds in her women’s S10 100-metre freestyle qualifying heat at the Tokyo Paralympics. 3:09
Also in the pool, Canada’s Camille Bérubé placed eighth in the women’s SB6 100-metre breaststroke final. She posted a time of one minute 44.07 seconds. Maisie Summers-Newton of Great Britain took the gold in a Paralympic record of 1:32.34.
One day after coming fifth in the women’s SM7 200-metre individual medley, Bérubé broke a Canadian record in her qualifying heat. Competing in her third Paralympics, she finished in 1:42.80.
Meanwhile, Canada’s Danielle Kisser also competed in the event, but did not advance to the finals. She came sixth in her heat with a time of 1:49.04.
Tammy Cunnington of Canada competes at the Tokyo Aquatics Centre in the women’s SM4 150-metre individual medley. (Marko Djurica/Reuters)
While Nikita Ens came last in her heat of the women’s SM4 150-metre individual medley event, she also emerged with a new Canadian record.
Ens, 32, from Saskatchewan, finished the race in 4:34.01 to place sixth in her heat in her Paralympic debut.
Canada’s Tammy Cunnington also competed in the same event, placing fifth in her qualifying heat with a time of 3:41.06.
Matthew Cabraja of Canada swam a personal best time in the S11 100-metre backstroke qualifier, placing fifth in his heat with a time of 1:13.98.
Ouellet falls off in men’s T12 5,000m
Canada’s Guillaume Ouellet led for much of the men’s T12 5,000-metre on Saturday, but faded over the final kilometre to place fifth.
Ouellet, of Victoriaville, Que., made his move early to lead the pack, but was slowly overtaken by athlete after athlete over the final 1,200 metres or so.
The 34-year-old finished with a time of 14:47.47. He placed fourth in the event for the partially blind five years ago in Rio.
Spain’s Yassine Ouhdad El Ataby took gold at 14:34.13, with Australia’s Jaryd Clifford claiming silver (14:35.52) and Russian Aleksander Kostin earning bronze (14:37.42).
Ouellet won the event at the 2015 world championships and took third in 2017, but has never reached a major international tournament podium otherwise.
Canadian goalball women edged by Australia
The Canadian goalball team fell to 1-2 with its 4-3 loss against Australia on Saturday.
Emma Reinke, coming off a four-goal performance in Canada’s lone win, scored another pair in the loss.
Meghan Mahon of Canada pictured during the team’s match against Australia at the Tokyo Paralympic Games. (Ivan Alvarado/Reuters)
Australia’s Meica Jayne Horsburgh was responsible for all of her side’s goals, including a penalty tally that ultimately stood as the winner.
The top four teams in each pool reach the quarter-finals. Canada now sits fourth in its group, tied with an Australian team that previously lost by 11-1 and 6-0 margins.
Canada’s final match comes against China on Monday at 1:45 a.m ET.
WATCH | Canada falls to Australia in goalball:
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Canada drops to 1-2 with a 4-3 loss against Australia in women’s goalball group play. 1:05
Boccia begins
Canadian boccia star Alison Levine got a winning start in Tokyo, taking her opening match against Martin Streharsky of Slovakia.
The Montreal athlete won 4-3, with all three of Streharsky’s points coming in the third end. Levine enters the competition ranked No. 1 in the world in her classification, BC4.
Levine will next play Wai Yan Vivian Lau of China on Sunday.
Meanwhile, two fellow Canadians lost their openers to Portugal players: Canada’s Danik Allard was defeated 8-4 by Cristina Goncalves in the BC2 class, while Iulian Ciobanu of Canada dropped his match 3-2 to Carla Oliveira in the BC4 class.
Wheelchair basketball men lose 3rd match
For a time it seemed Canada’s men’s wheelchair basketball team would get its first win in Tokyo — and against host Japan, too. Canada was on top for the majority of the game, at one point building an 11-point lead.
But Japan came back in the fourth quarter, outscoring Canada and eventually taking the win 62-56. The team remains undefeated with three wins.
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Canada is currently in fifth of the Group A standings with three losses. Patrick Anderson scored 22 points in the game and had 12 rebounds. Nikola Goncin notched 20 points and 13 rebounds.
The Canadian men play Korea at 4 a.m. ET on Sunday.
Canada finishes up in wheelchair fencing
Two Canadian athletes — Sylvie Morel of Pincourt, Que., and Matthieu Hébert of Beauharnois, Que., — finished up competing in Tokyo in their foil events on Saturday.
Morel started out with a win over Brazil’s Carminha Oliveira, but lost her next four bouts in the women’s Class A division. In the men’s Class A division, Hébert also lost his four bouts.
Para rowing repechages
Canada’s PR3 mixed coxed four team placed fourth in its repechage heat, finishing in seven minutes 15.81 seconds. They’ll miss the chance to compete for medals and will instead compete in the B finals on Sunday.
The Canadian PR2 mixed double sculls team of Jessye Brockway and Jeremy Hall also competed on Sunday, placing fifth in a repechage. The duo will also compete in a B finals.
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.
Inter Milan winger Tajon Buchanan, recovered from a broken leg suffered in training at this summer’s Copa America, is back in Jesse Marsch’s Canada squad for the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal against Suriname.
The 25-year-old from Brampton, Ont., underwent surgery July 3 to repair a fractured tibia in Texas.
Canada, ranked 35th in the world, plays No. 136 Suriname on Nov. 15 in Paramaribo. The second leg of the aggregate series is four days later at Toronto’s BMO Field.
There is also a return for veteran winger Junior Hoilett, who last played for Canada in June in a 4-0 loss to the Netherlands in Marsch’s debut at the Canadian helm. The 34-year-old from Brampton, now with Scotland’s Hibernian, has 15 goals in 63 senior appearances for Canada.
Midfielder Ismael Kone, recovered from an ankle injury sustained on club duty with France’s Marseille, also returns. He missed Canada’s last three matches since the fourth-place Copa America loss to Uruguay in July.
But Canada will be without centre back Derek Cornelius, who exited Marseille’s win Sunday over Nantes on a stretcher after suffering an apparent rib injury.
The Canadian men will prepare for Suriname next week at a camp in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
“We are looking forward to getting the group together again with the mindset that there is a trophy on the line,” Marsch said in a statement. “We want to end 2024 the right way with two excellent performances against a competitive Suriname squad and continue building on our tremendous growth this past summer.”
The quarterfinal winners advance to the Nations League Finals at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., with the two semifinals scheduled for March 20 and the final and third-place playoff March 23, and qualify for the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Thirteen of the 23 players on the Canadian roster are 25 or younger, with 19-year-old defender Jamie Knight-Lebel, currently playing for England’s Crewe Alexandra on loan from Bristol City, the youngest.
Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies captains the side with Stephen Eustaquio, Jonathan Osorio, Richie Laryea, Alistair Johnston and Kamal Miller adding veteran support.
Jonathan David, Cyle Larin and Theo Bair are joined in attack by Minnesota United’s Tani Oluwaseyi.
Niko Sigur, a 21-year-old midfielder with Croatia’s Hadjuk Split, continues in the squad after making his debut in the September friendly against Mexico.
Suriname made it to the Nations League quarterfinals by finishing second to Costa Rica in Group A of the Nations League, ahead of No. 104 Guatemala, No. 161 Guyana and unranked Martinique and Guadeloupe.
“A good team,” Osorio said of Suriname. “These games are always tricky and they’re not easy at all … Suriname is a (former) Dutch colony and they’ll have Dutch players playing at high levels.”
“They won’t be someone we overlook at all,” added the Toronto FC captain, who has 81 Canada caps to his credit.
Located on the northeast coast of South America between Guyana and French Guiana, Suriname was granted independence in 1975 by the Netherlands.
Canada has faced Suriname twice before, both in World Cup qualifying play, winning 4-0 in suburban Chicago in June 2021 and 2-1 in Mexico City in October 1977.
The Canadian men, along with Mexico, the United States and Panama, received a bye into the final eight of the CONCACAF Nations League.
Canada, No. 2 in the CONCACAF rankings, drew Suriname as the best-placed runner-up from League A play.
Canada lost to Jamaica in last year’s Nations League quarterfinal, ousted on the away-goals rule after the series ended in a 4-4 draw. The Canadians lost 2-0 to the U.S. in the final of the 2022-23 tournament and finished fifth in 2019-20.
Canada defeated Panama 2-1 last time out, in an Oct. 15 friendly in Toronto.
Goalkeepers Maxime Crepeau and Jonathan Sirois, defenders Joel Waterman, Laryea and Miller and Osorio took part in a pre-camp this week in Toronto for North America-based players.
Canada Roster
Goalkeepers: Maxime Crepeau, Portland Timbers (MLS); Jonathan Sirois, CF Montreal (MLS); Dayne St. Clair, Minnesota United FC (MLS).
Defenders: Moise Bombito, OGC Nice (France); Alphonso Davies, Bayern Munich (Germany); Richie Laryea, Toronto FC (MLS); Alistair Johnston, Celtic (Scotland); Jamie Knight-Lebel. Crewe Alexandra, on loan from Bristol City (England); Kamal Miller, Portland Timbers (MLS); Joel Waterman, CF Montreal (MLS).
Midfielders: Ali Ahmed. Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS); Tajon Buchanan, Inter Milan (Italy); Mathieu Choiniere, Grasshopper Zurich (Switzerland); Stephen Eustaquio, FC Porto (Portugal); Junior Hoilett, Hibernian FC (Scotland); Ismael Kone, Olympique Marseille (France); Jonathan Osorio, Toronto FC (MLS); Jacob Shaffelburg, Nashville SC (MLS); Niko Sigur, Hadjuk Split (Croatia).
Forwards: Theo Bair, AJ Auxerre (France); Jonathan David, LOSC Lille (France); Cyle Larin, RCD Mallorca (Spain); Tani Oluwaseyi, Minnesota United (MLS).
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
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