Aurélie Rivard of Canada secured a bronze medal during the Para Pan Pacific Championships in Walnut, California. The competition took place on Saturday, where Rivard, a 13-time Paralympic medalist, finished third 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 free, earned 933 points with a time of 4 minutes 37.04 seconds, placing second.
The gold medal was claimed by Australia’s Lakeisha Patterson, an S9 swimmer, who scored 986 points with a time of 4:40.35. Despite American Ali Truwit touching the wall first in 4:31.52, she garnered 971 points, securing the silver. Mary Jibb of Bracebridge, Ontario, finished eighth with 848 points and a time of 4:47.89.
Swimmers receive points based on their proximity to the world record standard for their specific class. Rivard, who recently returned to international competition after a break, expressed her joy and determination, stating that the 400m freestyle remains her favorite race where she believes she can achieve even better results.
In other Canadian results, Nicholas Bennett from Parksville, British Columbia, finished fourth in the men’s 100m breaststroke final, where Naohide Yamaguchi of Japan set a new world record with a time of 1:02.38. Reid Maxwell from St. Albert, Alberta, secured fifth place in the men’s 400m freestyle.
Fans can watch the Para Pan Pacific Swimming Championships live on CBCSports.ca and CBC Gem. The Day 3 preliminaries start on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. ET, followed by the final session at 8:30 p.m. ET.