The Canadian Paralympic Athletics Committee has presented the list of 32 athletes and coaches who will train at the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (UFJF) for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

The team arrives in Juiz de Fora next Saturday, the 27th, and is expected to train on Sunday. They are expected to stay in the city until September 5. The organization of the UFJF 2016 will reveal the terms and conditions allowing the public to access the training sessions.

Of the 24 Canadian athletes ranked for this edition of the Games, 16 will be at the University to complete their final preparation for events such as wheelchair racing and javelin and discus throws. Six of the athletes have previously competed in the Paralympic Games.

In her sixth Paralympic competition, Diane Roy, 45, is the most experienced in the delegation. The athlete participates, in a wheelchair, in the 400, 800, 1,500 and 5,000 meters. The youngest athlete is Marissa Papaconstantinou, 16 years old, finalist in the 100 and 200 meters at the World Championships held in 2015.

Accident and sport

Alex Dupont suffered a motorcycle accident and was inspired to compete after watching the Athens Games (Photo: CPC)

They all have in common remarkable stories of overcoming barriers through sport, like that of runner Alexandre Dupont. The athlete He lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident when he was 17. About a year later, he became interested in the sport after watching wheelchair racing in 2004 at the Athens Paralympics. In 2015, he won four gold medals: three at the Parapan American Games and one at the World Para Athletics Championships.

His compatriot Jean-Philippe Maranda also experienced a similar situation. Before becoming paraplegic following a car accident in 2007, he was the Canadian weightlifting record holder in 2006. Encouraged by coach Jean Laroche, the same one who trains Diane Roy, he embarked on this wheelchair sport in 2010. Two years later, was already part of the country’s team. The first medal came at the Parapan American Games in 2015, with third place in the 100 meters.

The athletes are accompanied by 16 members of the technical committee, including the head of delegation, the physiotherapist, the chiropractor, the masseuses and the person responsible for relations with family and friends.

To access list of athletes and coaches.

Canadian History
Canada has obtained 1,033 medals, across all sports, during the 12 editions of the Paralympic Games in which it has participated. At London 2012, there were 31 podium finishes, including nine medals in athletics. The country ranked 20th in the medal table. Brazil took seventh place, with 43 podiums.

Paralympic athletics
At the Paralympic Games, events are classified by a code of letters (F for field events, T for track events) and numbers which indicate the type and degree of disability of the competitors. Check out the rankings below:

11 to 13 years old – visually impaired
20 – with a mental/intellectual disability
31 to 38 years – with cerebral palsy (31 to 34 years, wheelchair users / 35 to 38 years, walking)
40 – dwarves
41 to 47 – amputees and others (the others)
51 to 57 years old – compete in a wheelchair (after-effects of polio, spinal cord injuries and amputations).

The Rio 2016 Paralympic Games will take place from September 7 to 18. At 177 athletic events with 1,100 participants begins on the 8th and continues until the last day of the competition.

learn more about Paralympic athletics.

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