SINGAPORE – Reid Maxwell had been eagerly waiting to join in on the podium fun at the World Para Swimming Championships. He did it in style on the penultimate night.
Making his worlds debut this week in Singapore, the 18-year-old from St. Albert, Alta., paved the way for Canada’s second straight three-medal day with a silver performance in the men’s 200-m individual medley SM8 in the first Canadian final of the evening.
Danielle Dorris of Moncton, N.B., and Mary Jibb of Muskoka, Ont., followed with bronze swims in the women’s 50 freestyle S7 and 100 backstroke S9, upping the delegation’s medal count to 11 (2-2-7) heading into Saturday’s finale.
Maxwell surprised himself not only with his podium finish, but also with his Canadian record time of 2:26.72. He had already lowered his own national mark to 2:30.11 in the morning preliminaries.
“To be honest, I wasn’t expecting a medal or the time I got,” said the Edmonton Keyano Swim Club product, who became the first Canadian man in history to capture a world championships medal in an S8 event.
“It was not really an event I was targeting here this week. That’s why it’s kind of shocking. But I sure can’t complain,” said Maxwell, who was 10th in the event last summer in his Paralympic Games debut.
“I’m really happy. It’s a great way to close out the week.”
In the final, Maxwell was sixth at the first turn, took the lead after a superb back swim, dropped to third at the 150 mark, and then managed to out-touch third-place finisher Dimosthenis Michalentzakis of Greece (2:27.24) by just over half a second. Australia’s Callum Simpson triumphed in 2:25.49.
“In that last 50, it was pure instinct. I didn’t want to give up the medal. It was my last chance at a medal here, I just went for it. I didn’t know where I was in the pool. I was blacking out. My body just took over.
“I touched and looked at the time. Just a great feeling.”
In the women’s 50 free S7, Dorris had to fight to the very end to collect her third medal of the week, following her gold in the 50 butterfly and silver in the 100 back.
The 23-year-old, who finished second in the event at the Manchester 2023 worlds, clocked a season-best 33.67 to edge Great Britain’s Iona Winnifrith by 10 hundredths of a second.
Mallory Weggemann of the United Stated claimed her third career 50 free world title in 32.58, followed by 2023 titlist Sara Vargas Blanco of Colombia (32.99).
“I did have an idea how close it was,” Dorris said. “I could see Sara passing me and I thought ‘Ok, I just have to keep up with her and I’ll get a medal.’ But then I saw Iona beside me and really catching me, and I thought ‘I might not have this.’
“I really pushed in the last 15. When I looked at the board, I was ecstatic. I think this is my favourite medal of the week just because I had actually worked so hard for this event.”
Dorris, who trains at the Codiac Vikings Aquatic Club, has claimed a remarkable nine medals (4-3-2) at the last three worlds.
“I don’t feel like I am,” she said when asked if she should be considered one of the all-time Canadian Para swimming greats. “In my head I’m just a small town girl from New Brunswick who just happens to be swimming internationally on the world stage. But yes, I feel very honoured to be able to say that I am on par with the bests.
“I’m just really happy. Just to be able to show up and get medals for Canada… I’m from a small province and I feel really honoured to be able to do this.”
It was also the third medal of the week for Jibb, a worlds debutant who triumphed in the 200 IM on Day 2 before taking bronze in the 100 free on Day 4.
The 18-year-old is the youngest Canadian swimmer to win three or more medals in a single edition of the WPS championships since Aurélie Rivard captured five at 17 in 2013.
“That’s pretty incredible. I have Jy to thank for this,” said Jibb, who moved to the west coast six months ago to train with Jy Lawrence, who coaches the Pacific Sea Wolves in Surrey, B.C. “The last six months have been amazing. Just believing in myself and believing in the process. This is all a result of that.”
In the 100 back S9, Jibb posted her fifth personal best in as many finals this week, finishing in 1:10.63 behind Mariana Ribeiro (1:08.79), the Paris 2024 bronze medallist from Brazil, and Spain’s Núria Marquès Soto (1:09.01), the Paris runner-up and 2022 world champion.
Jibb placed fifth in the French capital last summer, her best result in her Games debut.
“Just training hard and leaving everything in the pool,” she said when asked about the recipe to her early career success.
“I’ve been talking a lot to Jonathan (Lasnier), our mental performance consultant for about the past four months. He’s really helped me calm myself, bring myself back to present, and to really be focused on what I need to do, not what other people need to do, in the ready room and during the race.
“Tonight, I was just really focused on the frontend speed because it wasn’t there in the morning, and then I knew from my training that I would be able to hold it coming back. It was about trusting in the first 50 instead of the last 50.”
Other Canadians racing in finals on Day 6 included Toronto’s Aly Van Wyck-Smart, who finished fifth in the women’s 200 free S3 (4:56.69), Surrey’s Arianna Hunsicker, sixth in the women’s 100 free S10 (1:03.69), Jagdev Gill of Brockville, Ont., and Fernando Lu of Burnaby, B.C., sixth and seventh in the men’s 100 free S10 (54.44 / 54.72), as well as Alisson Gobeil of Alma, Que., who took eighth place in the women’s 200 free S5 (3:29.70).
While he did not advance to the final of the men’s 200 free S5, the only other Canadian in action on Friday, Surrey’s Sebastian Massabie, lowered his own national mark to 2:58.96 in the morning preliminaries en route to 14th place.
The 20-year-old representing the Pacific Sea Wolves had set his previous best of 3:00.43 on July 25 at the BC Summer Provincials in Vancouver.
“I’m really glad that I’ve been able to set two Canadian records so far this week. I still have the 100 free coming up tomorrow, so hopefully I can get another one,” said Massabie, who established a national standard in the 200 IM SM5 on Day 4.
The World Para Swimming Championships run through Saturday at the OCBC Aquatic Centre in Singapore. Nineteen Canadians are among over 580 athletes from 75 nations competing in the first-ever edition of the event held in Asia.
Morning heats begin at 9 p.m. ET, with finals at 5:30 a.m. ET. Fans can watch all sessions on cbcsports.ca or on CBC Gem. Radio-Canada Sports is broadcasting the swimming events on its Tou.tv platform.
Schedule & results: https://www.paralympic.org/swimming/live-results