Canada's Maude Charron poses with her silver medal in the women's 59kg Weightlifting at the Summer Olympics on Aug. 8, 2024 in Paris, France.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press
Charron earns silver in weightlifting
Maude Charron lifted Canada to a silver medal Thursday in the women’s 59-kilogram weightlifting event at the Paris Olympics. The 31-year-old from Rimouski, Que., adds a second Olympic medal to her collection. She had previously won gold in Tokyo in 2021 in the 64-kg category, which has since been removed from the Olympic program. Unlike the pandemic Games in Tokyo, where athletes competed in mostly empty venues, Charron celebrated her podium finish in Paris in front of a raucous crowd, including her family. Charron lifted 106 kilograms in the snatch and 130 kilograms in the clean and jerk for a total of 236 kilograms to win Canada’s 20th medal at the Paris Games. China’s Luo Shifang, the reigning world champion, won gold with an Olympic-record total of 241 kilograms, while Kuo Hsing-Chun of Taiwan, the defending Olympic champion in the category, won the bronze with a total of 235.
Canadian Sophia Jensen competes in the women’s single 200 metres at the Paris Olympics on Aug. 8, 2024.Molly Darlington/Reuters
Jensen, Vincent advance to semis in women’s 200m
PARIS Sprint canoeists Sophia Jensen and Katie Vincent are advancing to the Olympic semi-finals in the women’s single 200 metres. The two Canadians finished first in their respective heats Thursday morning. The 22-year-old Jensen, from Chelsea, Que., clocked in at 46.80 seconds, followed by Spain’s Antía Jácome with 47.35. Vincent came in at 47.22, with Spain’s Maria Corbera just behind at 47.74. The top two in each heat moved forward directly to Saturday’s semi-finals, while the rest take part in the quarter-finals later today. The 28-year-old Vincent, of Mississauga, is also competing in the women’s double 500-metre semi-finals on Friday with teammate Sloan MacKenzie of Windsor Junction, N.S. She won a bronze medal in the event with partner Laurence Vincent Lapointe at the Tokyo Games.
Canada's Savannah Sutherland runs in a women's 400-metre hurdles semi-final at the Summer Olympics in Paris on Aug.6, 2024.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Up the track
In the women’s 400 hurdles final Thursday night, Savannah Sutherland of Borden, Sask., finished seventh with a time of 53.88 seconds in her Olympic debut. Sutherland, who turned 21 on Wednesday, is the Canadian record holder and the 2023 NCAA champion in the event before earning silver this year competing for the University of Michigan. “Just overwhelming,” she said of her Olympic experience. “I think that the atmosphere out there was insane and it really pushed some girls to some really fast times. “It’s just unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I’ve ran in stadiums before but nothing like this.”
Canada coach Bev Priestman attends a training session at the FIFA Women's World Cup in Melbourne, Australia, on July 30, 2023.Scott Barbour/The Canadian Press
Canadians split on FIFA’s penalty, poll says
OTTAWA Most Canadians are not exactly outraged by the punishment meted out to the Canadian women’s soccer team over its Olympic drone spying scandal, according to the results of a new poll released Thursday. Seventy per cent of the respondents to a Leger poll on the Paris Olympic Games said they were either very or somewhat familiar with the scandal, after a member of the Canadian team’s coaching staff was caught using a drone to spy on New Zealand team practices before the start of competition. The team was docked six points and three coaching staff members were given one-year suspensions after the scandal came to light as the Olympic Games kicked off in late July. Over all, 39 per cent of respondents to the poll said the punishment from the governing body FIFA was fair and 32 per cent said it was unfair. The poll of 1,521 Canadians was conducted over the weekend. It doesn’t have a margin of error because online surveys are not considered truly random samples.
Sarah Mitton, of Canada, competes during the women's shot put qualification at the Summer Olympics on Aug. 8, 2024, in Saint-Denis, France.Ashley Landis/The Associated Press
Mitton in shot put final
Sarah Mitton advanced to the women’s shot put final with a top throw of 19.77 metres on her first attempt and didn’t throw again. The nearest throw to Mitton’s was 19.25 by New Zealand’s Maddison-Lee Wesche. The qualifying standard was 19.15 or to be among the 12 top performers for Friday’s final. The 28-year-old from Brooklyn, N.S., earned silver at the 2023 world championships and won the world indoor title in March. Mitton has a personal and season best of 20.68 metres from May. Mitton looks to become the first Canadian woman to earn an Olympic medal in shot put. “One and done just gives you a lot of confidence,” she said. “I feel very confident in my throw in general. That felt very controlled.”