Cody Fournie is still relatively new to the sport of athletics. He only pivoted from a competitive career in wheelchair rugby to para athletics during the height of COVID pandemic health restrictions.
After only a couple years, Fournie became a Paralympic champion in the men’s T51 200 metres today – his first ever Paralympic race.
“It feels really good. All I can say is the hard work in nutrition and the hydration has paid off,” Fournie said.
Competing in front of the largest crowd he has ever raced in front of, he unleashed the fastest 200 metres of his life – stopping the clock with a time of 37.64 seconds.
“The transition from rugby to racing helped because I was putting so much time and effort into training, that coming over to racing wasn’t that difficult, because I was so used to training already,” he said. “What was the most difficult part about racing was getting this chair figured out with not having any stomach muscles. I had to learn how to use my head to change the direction of the chair, and that took quite a while to figure out. But again, all that hard work has paid off.”
Fournie’s not done competing yet. He will race in the men’s T51 100 metres later this week – the event in which he won World Para Athletics Championships silver this past spring.
Papaconstantinou Strides to Fourth Place
Marissa Papaconstantinou finished 4th in the women’s T64 200 metres with a time of 27.30 seconds.
“I definitely got out hard. I ran a fast corner. I came around the bend feeling good. I think I tightened up about halfway through that final stretch, especially when some of my competitors started coming up on me a bit,” she said. “I was hoping for a personal best today but, honestly, I gave it everything I had. Fourth is not ideal – it really sucks, honestly. But if I did have a PB, it wouldn’t have been quite enough today. Competitors are going really fast and I just have to keep up.”
Papaconstantinou booked her spot in the final with a time of 27.47 seconds – good enough to win her heat.
“I just wanted to run a solid first run here at Stade de France. I needed to get out hard. I wanted to execute a few things to qualify for the final. We haven’t raced in about a month, so it was good to just get that in. I relaxed really hard through the last 50, so I feel confident that I got a PB in me tonight. So I’m just going to go out there and do that and see what happens,” she said.
Haase Powers to Fourth
Sheriauna Haase’s first day competing at the Paralympics ended with a 4th place finish in the women’s T47 100 metres final, with a time of 12.53 seconds – quite the feat for the runner ranked 6th coming into the day.
“That final was very exciting – so many emotions. But I’m glad I executed the way I wanted to and that I kept calm. The place that I felt that I had in the bag, I got. So why wouldn’t you be proud of that?” Haase said. “I heard everybody roaring and it was just so warm, at the same time.
Haase finished 2nd in her semi-final heat earlier in the day, with a season’s best time of 12.47 seconds.
“My race was pretty nerve-wracking. What really helped me cope with the audience and the pressure of the whole competition was just getting into the blocks, taking a moment for myself, not worrying about how long I’m taking and just praying, then going through with the race,” she said. “I ran really close to my personal best, so I think I still have more in the tank for the final.”
Gingras Fights to Fifth
Zach Gingras was 5th in the men’s T38 400 metre final in a season’s best time of 50.63 seconds.
He got off to a fast start, hanging in with leader and eventual winner Jaydin Blackwell. As the pack rounded the last turn, Gingras couldn’t hold on to his spot, gutting it over the line for 5th place with the second fastest time of his life.
“That was the best executed race I’ve done in a while. Even compared to last year’s Worlds, that was perfectly how I wanted it to play out. I just didn’t have it at the end, compared to the other guys. All credit to them. I’ve just got to work harder next year,” Gingras said. “This was my first experience in the stadium, but it was surreal. It was a cool experience, especially with my parents in the stands.”
With this event complete, Gingras will focus on the 4×100 metre universal relay.
Injury Catches Borgella
Bianca Borgella had her women’s T13 final cut short, just metres from the start line. She suffered a leg injury and could not complete her race. She is being assessed by medical.
Borgella had a time of 12.15 seconds to finish 2nd in her semi-final heat during the morning session to book her spot in that final.
Tomorrow at Paris 2024
After such a big day on the track, we are due for a bit of a break. Maybe that’s why Team Canada’s schedule for Wednesday looks like we’re taking a half day.
That said, there are three more finals in tomorrow’s morning session – all in throwing events. Set your alarm, put on a pot of coffee and watch Charlotte Bolton (women’s F41 discus), defending Paralympic champion Greg Stewart (men’s F46 shot put) and Katie Pegg (women’s F46 shot put) compete for the medals before you even need to get dressed for work or school.
Athletics Canada’s Paris Headquarters
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Caroline Sharp
National Teams Communications Specialist
Athletics Canada
WhatsApp: (613) 323-5605 / Cell: (214) 601-8024
E: Caroline.Sharp@athletics.ca