Rivard wins Canada’s first Paralympic gold followed by Lakatos’s gold
RIO DE JANEIRO — Swimmer Aurelie Rivard won Canada’s first gold medal at the Paralympic Games, and she did it in commanding fashion.
The 20-year-old from St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., won the S10 50-metre freestyle in a world record time of 27.37 seconds on Friday, about an hour after Canada won its first medals of the Games — two silvers in track cycling.
Rivard, competing in her second Paralympic Games, finished ahead of New Zealand’s Sophie Pascoe and China’s Yi Chen. Rivard had broken the Paralympic record in her qualifying heat in the morning.
“I am not sure I realize it yet,” Rivard said. “I don’t know whether to laugh, jump or throw up. It’s my first event and I’ve broken the world record and won. I’m in heaven.”