TOKYO — Victoria’s Caileigh Filmer says it was a combination of physical effort and heart that earned Canada its first rowing medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
Filmer and her partner Hillary Janssens of Surrey, B.C., took bronze Thursday in the women’s pair after a gutsy performance that won Canada its first medal in the event since Marnie McBean and Kathleen Heddle won gold at the 1992 Games in Barcelona.
Janssens said the medal was all the more meaningful because Heddle died of cancer at age 55 in January, while McBean is serving as the country’s chef de mission in Tokyo.
“That’s so special,” she said. “I’m so glad to be able to do that. Especially in memory of Kathleen … thinking about her family, and obviously Marnie’s here and I hope Marnie watched that and is proud.
“Two of the most amazing Canadian athletes and we’re so happy to continue their legacy.”
The 2018 world champions finished behind New Zealand’s Grace Prendergast and Kerri Gowler (6:50.19) and the Russian Olympic Committee’s Vasilisa Stepanova and Elena Oriabinskaia (6:51.45).
The B.C.-based pair led after 500 and 1,000 metres, and sat second with a quarter of the race to go before hanging on for bronze late with a hard-charging boat from Britain on their tail.
After crossing the finish line and seeing their time on the scoreboard, a visibly spent Janssens collapsed backwards into the arms of Filmer, who slumped forward in exhaustion.
“The first 1,000 (metres) was about being physical,” Filmer said. “And the second half was about rowing with our heart.
“I’m just proud.”
While Canada’s female swimmers have been on a medal streak, their momentum wasn’t enough to carry them to the podium in the women’s 4×200-metre relay.
The team of Summer McIntosh, Kayla Sanchez, Rebecca Smith and Penny Oleksiak set a new Canadian record, but finished fourth behind China, the United States and Australia.
A medal in the event would have made the 21-year-old Oleksiak Canada’s most decorated Olympian of all-time. Her next chance comes Friday morning (Thursday evening in Canada) when she defends her gold in the 100-metre freestyle.
“I think we’re definitely disappointed we missed the podium, but we knew it was going to be a tough race,” said Oleksiak, who anchored the relay only an hour and a half after swimming her 100-metre semifinal.
“We all swam the best we could so that’s all you can really ask for. You can’t be disappointed with a Canadian record.”
Elsewhere, the women’s basketball team bounced back from an initial loss against Serbia to pull off a commanding 74-53 win against South Korea,
Bridget Carleton led the way with 18 points and seven rebounds, while her Minnesota Lynx teammate Natalie Achonwa added 14 points and 10 rebounds and Kayla Alexander chipped in with 10 points. Kia Nurse finished with nine.
Canada, ranked fourth heading into Tokyo, closes the group stage against No. 3 Spain on Sunday.
In beach volleyball, Toronto’s Melissa Humana-Paredes and Sarah Pavan of Kitchener, Ont., improved their record to 3-0 with a straight-set victory over Switzerland’s Joana Heidrich and Anouk Verge-Depre. The Canadian duo will move on to the knockout stage without having dropped a set.
And Canada’s women’s rugby sevens team got off to a flying start as the Canadian squad routed Brazil 33-0 in the opening match of the group play stage for both teams.
Veteran captain Ghislaine Landry led a balanced scoring attack for the Canadians, making four out of five conversion attempts and adding a try for 13 points.
Olympic rookie Keyara Wardley, who came in as a substitute for the second half, added 10 points on a pair of tries, while Charity Williams and Karen Paquin had a try each.
Things didn’t go quite as well in the later match, which saw the Canadians fall to Fiji 26-12. Canada will wrap up group play with a match against France on Friday.
In other action, rowers Conlin McCabe of Brockville, Ont., and Kai Langerfeld of North Vancouver, B.C. finished fourth in the men’s pair on the 2,000-metre course at Sea Forest Waterway.
