Canadian track cyclists Shaw, Hayward race to Paralympic bronze in 3,000m individual pursuit
CBC
Canadian track cyclists Keely Shaw and Alexandre Hayward both won individual pursuit bronze medals at the Paris Paralympics on Friday.
Shaw won the bronze-medal race in the women's C4 3,000-metre event for the second straight Games, while Hayward stormed to victory in the men's C3 classification for his first career Paralympic medal.
The 30-year-old Shaw, who hails from Midale, Sask., beat Samantha Bosco of the United States by 1.6 seconds in the head-to-head race with a time of three minutes 46.942 seconds at the National Velodrome.
Shaw claimed bronze in the event three years ago in Tokyo and has also won two silvers and a bronze at the Para track cycling world championships.
WATCH l Shaw wins 2nd career Paralympic bronze medal in individual pursuit:
In pursuit, each rider tries to both post the fastest time and attempt to overtake the other cyclist before the end of the race.
Hayward of Quispamsis, N.B., clocked a time of 3:24.865 to defeat Spain's Eduardo Santas by 3.8 seconds.
The former wheelchair basketball player advanced to the medal race earlier on Friday with the fourth-fastest qualifying time (3:26.940). He made his Paralympic debut in Paris.
Shaw finished third overall among the field of eight riders in the women's qualifying heats.
Australia's Emily Petricola broke her own world record from the Tokyo Games to reach the gold-medal race, dominating the field in a time of 3:35.856. The 44-year-old successfully defended her Paralympic title against New Zealand's Anna Taylor.
Shaw races in the C4 category for athletes with lower-limb impairment, while Hayward's C3 classification is for athletes with moderate upper or lower limb dysfunction.
Shaw suffered partial paralysis on her left side when she fell off a horse at the age of 15. Hayward broke his neck playing hockey in 2012 and has quadriplegia in his limbs.
Canadian Para swimmer Katarina Roxon advanced to the women's 100m breaststroke SB8 final on Friday, becoming the first woman to compete in the sport at five Paralympics.
The Kippens, N.L., native finished third in the first of two qualifying heats, touching the wall in 1:26.70 for the sixth-fastest time among the eight who qualified at La Defense Arena.
