Written by: Matt Johnson
The trip to Santiago, Chile this past fall was especially rewarding for 12 Canadian individual athletes and teams, who locked up their respective spots at the 2024 Olympic Games this November at the Pan Am Games and Parapan Am Games.
That includes Tammara Thibeault, who had a golden run in Santiago, Chile, winning 75kg women’s boxing gold. Finishing atop the podium helped Thibeault, who started boxing in Regina, receive a berth at the Games once again after making her Olympic Debut in Tokyo. In a rematch of the 2022 World Championship middleweight final, Thibeault defeated Panama’s Athena Byron by unanimous decision to claim gold, as she improved on her silver medal at the Games in 2019.
A second boxing gold medal at the Pan Am Games — Wyatt Sanford’s gold medal in the men’s 63.5 kg helped the Kennetcook, N.S. product also lock up his respective spot in the Games.
When breakdancing and surfing makes their Olympic debuts in 2024, a pair of Canadians will be in the field, thanks to a pair of standout performances in Santiago.
Philip Kim won gold in breaking at the Pan Am Games — one of Canada’s 47 gold medals at the Games — to lock up a quota spot at the Olympics. Also earning a quota spot was surfer Santa Dempfle-Olin, thanks to a silver medal in surfing’s women’s sports event.
Three respective equestrian teams — eventing, jumping and dressage — all finished on the podium in Santiago, helping Canada receive berths in each of the three events at the Olympics.
A successful Games for Canada’s sailing teams helped the country lock up spots in the women’s skiff 49erFX, and men’s skiff 49er and women’s kite events.
Lastly, Tugrul Ozer and Shannon Westlake earned Canada entries in the men’s 10-metre air pistol and women’s 50-metre 3 positions shooting events.
The success for Canada didn’t stop at the Pan Am Games.
Canada’s women’s goalball team claiming gold at the 2023 Parapan Am Games helped the squad punch their ticket to Paris. The team’s 4-3 victory over the United States in the gold medal game helped Canada clinch a Paralympic berth in the team’s final opportunity — ensuring the world’s number-four ranked team will be suiting up at the Games once again. Canada will be looking to improve on a ninth-place finish in Tokyo.
A trio of respective athletes joined the women’s goalball team in earning spots for the Paralympic Games.
Para archer Kyle Tremblay’s bronze medal in men’s compound open helped Canada earn a quota spot, and so too did Alison Levine and Iulian Ciobanu in bocci’s BC4 pairs.
Learn more about the path to qualification for the Paralympics.