Swimming at the Canada Games entered its second day, and Newfoundland and Labrador got yet another medal.
This was thanks to Thomas Pelley’s performance in the Men’s Special Olympics 100m Freestyle, where he finished with a time of 1:03.09. After the race, Pelley said he felt good about winning a medal in front of the home crowd. Pelley also raced in the Men’s Special Olympics 50m breaststroke, where he finished fourth with a time of 39.69.
Pelley had previously won three medals at the 2022 Canada Games, including a silver medal in this very same event. He had also won a silver in the 50m Breaststroke and bronze in the 100m Backstroke.
There were some other Newfoundlanders in the pool today as well. Both Gavin Baggs and Nathan Luscombe participated in the Para Men’s 100m Freestyle, where they both barely missed out on the podium, finishing fourth and fifth, respectively.
Baggs won silver in yesterday’s Para Men’s 200m/400m freestyle. He said he entered the Games “hoping for a medal… to come out here in my fourth Games and get a medal is just so special.” Playing in front of the home crowd has been an “unreal experience” for Baggs, and that it has been amazing to “meet and compete against so many wonderful people.”
Anna Rideout also had a solid day, coming in first in the Women’s 400m IM Final B with a time of 5:10.08. She came first again in the Final B of the Women’s 200m Backstroke with a time of 2:23.85.
There were multiple other swimmers from NL to compete in final races today as well, including James Traverse, who competed in the final of the Men’s 200m backstroke, while Alexandra Campbell competed in the final for the Women’s 200m backstroke.
Team NL will be returning to the pool this week and will hopefully add to their medal count.
