Toronto will host Canadian Open of para-swimming after worlds postponed
Canada to take on Australia starting on Oct. 2
Toronto will host the top para-swimming athletes from Canada and Australia next week after the world championships in Mexico City were postponed following a series of devastating earthquakes that wracked the country earlier this month, Swimming Canada announced Friday.
In a press release, the organization said the Canadian Open will take place Monday and wrap up Wednesday. The event will replace the world championships in Mexico City, which were set to begin Saturday.
"Our primary goal is to provide a quality racing opportunity that will allow our swimmers to stay on their preparation plans and post performances for world rankings and for team allocations for the 2018 Commonwealth Games," James Hood, senior manager of Swimming Canada high performance para-swimming programs, said in the release.
The 2018 Commonwealth Games will be held in Gold Coast, Australia next April.
Swimming Canada said the Canadian team will take on the Australians in a head-to-head battle at the Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre.
Among the Canadians competing will be nine-time Paralympic gold medalist Benoit Huot, Katarina Roxon and 21-year-old Aurelie Rivard, the country's top para-swimmer, who is coming off a world-record performance in the S10 200-metre freestyle at the Berlin para-swimming world series in July.
The International Paralympic Committee announced last Wednesday that the World Championships in Mexico City would be postponed. More than 430 people have died have died in the quakes, according to Reuters.