What to watch this weekend in Olympic and Paralympic sports
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From the Parapan Am Games in Chile to winter Olympic sports in Europe and North America, here’s what to keep an eye on this weekend:
Parapan Am Games: Canadians go for medals and Paralympic spots
Yesterday in Chile, the Canadian wheelchair rugby team fell just short of capturing gold and a spot in next summer’s Paralympic Games in Paris, losing to the top-ranked United States in the final at the Parapan Ams. Canada will have to go through a last-chance qualifier next year to get to the Paralympics.
Today, the Canadian women’s goalball team went all the way, defeating the U.S. 4-3 in their championship match to win gold and a Paralympic berth in the sport for visually impaired athletes.
WATCH | Women’s goalball captures gold, books ticket to Paris:
Featured VideoEmma-Leigh Reinke scored a hat-trick, including two successful penalty conversions, and Canada hung on for a 4-3 victory in the Santiago 2023 Parapan American Games women’s goalball gold medal final. The win also gives Canada a berth at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
The same scenario is in front of the Canadian women’s wheelchair basketball team today at 5 p.m. ET when it meets the U.S. for gold and a spot in the Paralympics. The loser can still get in via a last-chance qualifier.
The Canadian men’s wheelchair basketball team will have to take the long road to the Paralympics after losing in the semifinals today to Colombia. They’ll play Argentina for bronze on Saturday.
Other Canadians in the hunt for medals before Sunday’s closing ceremony include cyclist Alexandre Hayward, who’s already won a gold and a bronze; and boccia players Alison Levine and Iulian Ciobanu, who are trying for the pairs podium after winning gold and bronze, respectively, in singles.
Read the latest on today’s top Canadian performances here. Check the full Games schedule and results here. See a complete list of Canadian medallists here.
CBC Sports is streaming multiple feeds of live events all day, every day through the closing ceremony on Sunday. You can find them here. Watch more Parapan Am Games coverage on the CBC TV network Saturday at noon ET.
Figure skating: Last chance to qualify for the Grand Prix Final
The Final, reserved for the top six in each discipline based on a season-long points system, is coming up in two weeks in Beijing. Most of the spots are already spoken for, including five Canadian entries spread across the pairs and ice dance events. Ice dancers Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier and the pairs duo of Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps lead their standings after winning both of their Grand Prix assignments.
Skaters on the outside looking in have one more chance to climb into the top six at this week’s NHK Trophy in Japan, the final regular stop on the Grand Prix tour. The only Canadians competing are the pairs duo of Kelly Ann Laurin and Loucas Ethier and ice dancers Marie-Jade Lauriault and Romain Le Gac. Both teams ranked seventh after last night’s opening round. The deciding free skates begin tonight at 10 p.m. ET. Watch them all on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem.
Alpine skiing: World Cup tour returns to North America
Following a handful of stops in Europe, the world’s best women’s ski racers are in Vermont for a giant slalom race on Saturday and a slalom on Sunday. The Canadian to watch Saturday is Valérie Grenier, who won a gold and a bronze on the World Cup circuit last season. On Sunday it’s Laurence St-Germain, who upset American star Mikaela Shiffrin to win the slalom gold at the world championships last season.
Watch both events live at 10 a.m. ET on CBC Sports’ streaming platforms. Listen to St-Germain talk about her surprise world title on the latest episode of the Player’s Own Voice podcast.
The lone Canadian stop on the alpine World Cup tour happens next weekend, when Quebec’s Mont Tremblant hosts a pair of women’s giant slalom races. Alberta’s Lake Louise was removed from the rotation for this season.
This weekend also brings the start of World Cup seasons in biathlon, cross-country skiing and freestyle skiing. Canada’s Evan McEachran was awarded his first-ever World Cup victory at the men’s ski slopestyle season opener today in Austria after severe winds forced the cancellation of the final round.
