Canadians are finding it increasingly difficult to win medals at the Paralympic Games, which will make them even more valuable in Paris.
The delegation of 126 athletes is among 4,400 from 168 countries who will compete in 22 disciplines starting Thursday.
There were only 122 countries participating in Sydney, Australia in 2000, so the bar has been raised considerably to reach the Paralympic podium in almost 25 years.
“Every year, every Paralympic cycle, the event continues to get bigger and bigger, with more media coverage, more athletes, more events,” said Toronto wheelchair rugby player Travis Murao.
The representatives of the maple leaf won 21 medals, including five gold, at the Tokyo Paralympic Games three years ago. These were held behind closed doors, without spectators, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Canada’s Paralympic medal haul dropped from 31 at London 2012 to 29 at Rio de Janeiro 2016, before reaching 21 at Tokyo 2021.
“As a country, since our 31 medal haul at the London Games, the trend has been downward,” agreed Own the Podium CEO Anne Merklinger.
“After Tokyo, there was a concerted, collaborative effort between the Canadian Paralympic Committee and the national sport organizations that are invested in Paralympic sport to say we need to look at this issue and identify opportunities for Canada to have a similar haul to London… to potentially be in the top 10, maybe top 8 at the Summer Paralympics again?” Merklinger said.
Today’s Paralympic disciplines require the hiring of professional coaches and qualified support staff to meet the needs of Paralympians. The cost of purchasing a sports wheelchair can also range from $5,000 to $25,000.
A question of financing
“We are proud of what we have accomplished and I would say we are performing much better than other countries of similar size,” said Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) Director of Operations Karen O’Neill.
“In this case, I would say the critical element for us to continue to be competitive on the international stage and to close the gap behind the elite is funding for the Paralympic system,” she added.
The swimming and athletics teams are expected to shine again in Paris, but the cycling, triathlon and boccia teams should not be underestimated either during the 11 days leading up to the closing ceremony on September 8.
Star para-swimmer Aurélie Rivard from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, wheelchair racer Brent Lakatos from Dorval, and judoka Priscilla Gagné from Granby will be ones to watch.
“In Rio, the stands were full, everyone was yelling, I had trouble hearing my coach’s instructions,” Gagné recalled. “In Tokyo, it’s the opposite, because the stands were empty, so you could hear a pin drop.”
“Being back in front of a packed house, with my family and friends by my side since it’s an easily accessible destination, it will be simply wonderful,” added the Quebecer. “It will be the cherry on the sundae, the end point to my career.”
Canada has not won a medal in a team sport since London 2012. The women’s goalball team and the wheelchair volleyball team could end that drought.
“We always covet medals in team sports,” said CPC head of sport Catherine Gosselin-Després. “However, in team sports, it is always the draw and the identity of the opponent that determines the outcome (of the tournament).”
It will also be the first time that Canadian Paralympians who reach the podium will receive a purse equivalent to that offered to Olympians — $20,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze.
“It’s huge to know that a Paralympic medal will be worth as much as an Olympic medal,” admitted wheelchair volleyball player Heidi Peters of Neerlandia, Alta.
The CPC will reward the athletes from a special $8-million fund. Health-care technology entrepreneur Sanjay Malaviya of Hespeler, Ont., contributed $4 million, and the federal government contributed $2 million.
Malaviya also renewed its $5,000 scholarships for each Paralympic medallist, an amount that is in addition to that paid by the government.
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) will allow 88 Russian and eight Belarusian athletes to compete in the Paralympic Games under a neutral banner, surpassing the total of 32 for the Olympic Games.
The IPC analyzed the applications of each athlete from these countries to ensure that they did not have links to the military or support the invasion of Ukraine.
With contributions from Gregory Strong