This September 6-8, Blake Haxton and Jillian Elwart raced in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Windy conditions characterized the three days of paracanoe racing at the Vaires-sur-Marne Nautical Stadium and Blake and Jillian both made the best of the windy course.
For Blake, this was his third Paralympic Games — having raced in para rowing in the Rio 2016 Games, both paracanoe and para rowing in the Tokyo 2020 Games, and now focusing completely on paracanoe during the Paris 2024 Games. On September 8, Blake added a second Paralympic medal to his collection, placing third in the Men’s Va’a VL2 200m event. Blake’s blazing fast semifinal earned him the Paralympic record for the fastest time in the Men’s Va’a VL2 200m event for about an hour before the Brazilian gold medalist, Fernando Rufino de Paulo set the new record in the final later that day.
In the final, Blake finished in third place, earning a Bronze medal for Team USA, missing out on silver by only 3 hundredths of a second (0.03 seconds) in a hard-fought race against an extremely competitive field. The large and supportive crowd was an exhilarating and welcome change from the Covid impacted Tokyo 2020 Games where Blake took home a silver medal in front of empty stands. After returning home with some new hardware, Blake’s focus is set on LA28.
PARIS, FRANCE – SEPTEMBER 08: Gold medalist Fernando Rufino de Paulo of Team Brazil (C) silver medalist Igor Alex Tofalini of Team Brazil (L) and bronze medalist Blake Haxton of Team United States pose for a photo with their medals during the medal ceremony for the Men’s Va’a Single 200m – VL2 Final A on day eleven of the Paris 2024 Summer Paralympic Games at Vaires-Sur-Marne Nautical Stadium on September 08, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
Jillian made her Olympic debut in Paris at 41 years old after taking up the sport in her mid-30s. She finished in a solid third place in Final B in the Women’s Va’a VL2 200m event that also debuted for the first time at a Paralympic Games. Jillian found her way to paracanoe as a recreational paddler and hopes with the excitement and momentum of LA28, more athletes will do the same.
The United States are incredibly fortunate to be represented by such a phenomenal team. Please join us in congratulating Blake and Jillian on their incredible achievements and give them your full support as they begin to prepare for LA28!