Swimmer Nicholas Bennett of Parksville said he felt nothing but pride as he climbed to the top of the podium Monday to receive Canada’s first gold medal at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.
“That anthem shows the ingenuity of Canadian swimming. It’s an absolute honour to be on the same level as the greats before me. It’s indescribable,” said the 20-year-old Islander.
“Being this young and being able to throw down is amazing.”
Bennett surged from third place at the turn Monday: “It’s anybody’s race until the end. The crowd was electric, to say the least. I definitely heard the roar in the last couple of strokes and I think that helped even more. ”
From the sixth lane, Bennett passed world-record holder Naohide Yamaguchi of Japan and Jake Michel of Australia in a spirited and dramatic push down the final stretch to win the men’s SB14 100-metre breaststroke in one minute, 03.98 seconds in a packed and deafening La Défense Arena. Yamaguchi faded to third place in 1:04.94 and Michel captured the silver medal in 1:04.27.
“I had to hold on and race Yamaguchi. That’s the only thing that mattered at that moment. I had to hunker down,” Bennett said in the post-race media scrum.
“I was more confident. Breaststroke is such a finicky race for myself [but] I have been working on my breaststroke every day for the past year — working on the power of it.”
Bennett’s breakthrough gold medal, the first of his career in his second Paralympics following Tokyo 2020, followed up his silver medal Saturday at Paris in the S14 200-metre freestyle. The event in which he holds the world record, the 200-metre individual medley, is scheduled for Friday.
“This is a long road and hopefully there’s more to come,” said Bennett.
He always keeps his former teammates from the Ravensong Aquatic Club in Qualicum Beach in mind, Bennett has told the Times Colonist: “So many people have supported me back home and that means the world to me.”
Bennett lives with autism and began swimming in Qualicum Beach under coach Mike Thompson and is coached now by sister Haley Bennett-Osborne, herself a former swimmer in the Ravensong club.
“My success is my sister’s success and my family’s,” said Bennett.
“I wouldn’t be here without them. Being up there shows the Bennetts are doing the right thing. And I’m able to show the world that we’re here.”
Bennett added to his burgeoning medal collection that includes gold in the S14 200-metre freestyle at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games and two gold medals and a silver in the 2023 world championships in Manchester and two silver medals in the 2021 world championships in Madeira, Portugal.
Victoria wheelchair racer takes bronze in 100-metre event
Victoria-based Austin Smeenk finally reached the podium in his third Paralympics by taking the bronze medal in the men’s T-34 100-metre wheelchair final Monday at the Stade de France. It continued Smeenk’s breakout season in which he set world records in the 400 metres and 800 metres, the latter in which he will go for gold later this week.
Born with paraplegia of the lower limbs, the native of Oakville, Ont., and 2023 world 100-metre silver medallist, moved to the Island two years ago to train at the Western Hub Middle Distance Centre located on the PISE track of the Camosun College Interurban track.
“The atmosphere here in Paris is electric. Everybody is here with me in my heart. I couldn’t be more grateful to the people back home who have contributed,” said Smeenk.
“I am satisfied with the result today in that I got on the podium for the first time in the Paralympics but I think there’s still room to grow. There are still two more steps to climb on that podium and I’ll see what I can accomplish over the rest of the week with the remaining events I have.”
Smeenk, racing in a wheelchair designed by the Camosun Innovates program of the Camosun College applied research department, will also roll the final leg of the universal relay for Canada on Friday, in which the relay teams consist of two male and two female athletes, with a visually impaired athlete completing the first portion, an amputee sprinter the second, an athlete with cerebral palsy the third and a wheelchair athlete the anchor portion.
“Camosun Innovates has been amazing to work with. They took the time to analyze my biomechanics and optimize my racing chair for my body and performance. The adjustments they made have made a huge difference,” said Smeenk, in a statement.
Wheelchair rugby team captained by Parksville player finishes sixth
Canadian wheelchair rugby captain Trevor Hirschfield of Parksville, 40, rolled out of his fifth and likely final Paralympics with a sixth-place finish following a 53-50 loss to host France. The Islander also competed in 2008 at Beijing, 2012 at London, 2016 at Rio and 2020 at Tokyo and won silver and bronze medals in his distinguished Paralympics career.
The former Oceanside hockey player was a BCHL Junior A prospect with the Cowichan Valley Capitals before a van accident in 2000, while visiting his grandparents in Sicamous, left him paraplegic.
Byron Green of Merville was also on the Canadian wheelchair rugby team in Paris.
One of the Island’s biggest medal hopes, ambulatory 1,500-metre runner Nate Riech of Victoria, is readying to defend his gold medal from the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics on Friday at the Stade de France.
Mel Pemble of Victoria, a rare Summer and Winter Paralympian, placed fourth in track cycling on the weekend.
