Canada’s Aurélie Rivard clinched a bronze medal at the Para Pan Pacific Championships in Walnut, Calif., on the second day of the event. The 13-time Paralympic medalist secured the third spot in the women’s 400-meter freestyle final, competing against athletes from the S6-11 and S13 classifications. Rivard, a three-time Paralympic champion in the S10 400 freestyle, from Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., accumulated 933 points with a finishing time of four minutes 37.04 seconds.
The gold medal in the event was claimed by Australia’s Lakeisha Patterson, S9, who earned 986 points with a time of 4:40.35. She surpassed S10 American Ali Truwit, who finished first in 4:31.52 but accrued 971 points. Mary Jibb from Bracebridge, Ont., came in eighth with a time of 4:47.89 and 848 points.
Points are allocated based on how closely a swimmer’s time aligns with the designated world record standard for their specific class, with higher points awarded for closer times to the record benchmark.
Following her return to international competition after a year, Rivard expressed mixed emotions about her performance, stating, “It’s been the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows with this race, but it’s my favourite.” Rivard believes she has more to showcase and prove to herself, expressing confidence in her abilities to achieve even better results.
In other Canadian results, Nicholas Bennett of Parksville, B.C., secured fourth place in the men’s 100m breaststroke SB4-6, 8-9, 11, 13-14 final. The event witnessed 2020 SB14 Paralympic champion Naohide Yamaguchi of Japan setting a world record with a time of 1:02.38.
Reid Maxwell from St. Albert, Alta., finished fifth in the men’s 400m freestyle S6-9, S11, S13 category. Viewers can catch live coverage of the Para Pan Pacific Swimming Championships on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem, with Day 3 preliminaries starting at 12:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, followed by the final session of the meet at 8:30 p.m. ET.