Canada’s Aurélie Rivard clinched a bronze medal during the second day of the Para Pan Pacific Championships in Walnut, California. The 30-year-old, a 13-time Paralympic medalist, secured third place in the women’s 400-meter freestyle final, competing against athletes from the S6-11 and S13 categories. Rivard, a three-time Paralympic champion in the S10 400 freestyle, earned 933 points by finishing the race in 4 minutes 37.04 seconds.
Australia’s Lakeisha Patterson, competing in the S9 category, claimed the gold medal with 986 points, clocking in at 4:40.35. Despite S10 American Ali Truwit touching the wall first in 4:31.52, she only accumulated 971 points. Mary Jibb from Bracebridge, Ontario, finished eighth with 848 points, completing the race in 4:47.89.
Swimmers earn points based on their proximity to the specified world record standard for their specific classification. Rivard, who recently returned to international competition after a hiatus, expressed her joy at reaching the podium and her determination to continue improving. In other Canadian results, Nicholas Bennett from Parksville, British Columbia, finished fourth in the men’s 100m breaststroke SB4-6, 8-9, 11, 13-14 final.
Reid Maxwell from St. Albert, Alberta, placed fifth in the men’s 400m freestyle S6-9, S11, S13 race. The Para Pan Pacific Swimming Championships can be streamed live on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem, with Day 3 preliminaries beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, followed by the final evening session at 8:30 p.m. ET.