Curtis Thom and his relay teammates gave their all in Rio — twice — but his favourite Paralympic memory was what came after: a precious moment on the podium. Collecting their bronze medals in Canada’s name was the high point, the wheelchair racer recalled Thursday, but with a faraway tone in his voice he added, “The atmosphere of Rio was great (generally) . The team of Thom, Brent Lakatos, Tristan Smyth and Alex Dupont won a bronze medal in the 4x400-metre relay after appealing for a re-race of the final. The pleasures of the games were perhaps slightly dimmer in his memories after a long flight from Brazil; travel is the downside of competitive athletics for Thom — “planes,” he notes, “are not spacious things.”In midair or at the track, Thom says he dislikes keeping still. Even before he gets into his chair before a race, sitting at the edge of the warm-up track, he likes to focus this energy by listening to something upbeat.

Source: thestar September 23, 2016 17:48 UTC