Canada Breaks National Record for Medals With Gold in Women’s Sprint Canoe and Men’s Breakdance, Silver in Men’s 800M

Katie Vincent, from Mississauga, Ont., poses for photos with her two Olympic medals following the 200m canoe single final at the Summer Olympics, in Vaires-sur-Marne, France, on Aug. 10, 2024. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

Team Canada athletes have earned a record number of medals for the country, including recent wins in women’s single canoe, men’s breakdancing, and the men’s 800m.

Ontario’s Katie Vincent won gold in the women’s single 200-metre canoe sprint final at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. She is the first Canadian woman to win an Olympic gold medal in canoe-kayak sprint.

Vincent said that when the word “Canada” popped up on the digital leaderboard, she looked toward the crowd.

“I looked over and I saw so many Canadian flags waving in the crowd,” she said. “And think that was a really special moment, and that made me really excited.”

Her score set a new world and Olympic record at 44.12 seconds. Nevin Harrison of the United States came in second at 44.13 seconds, and Cuba’s Yarisleidis Cirilo Duboys earned bronze with a time of 44.36 seconds.

It is the second medal she has won at this year’s competitions. She won bronze in the women’s doubles 500 metres with athletic partner Sloan MacKenzie on Aug. 9.

It is the eighth gold for Canada at the Paris Olympics, a record-setting number for a non-boycotted Summer Games. Vincent’s win is also the 25th medal that the county has earned during the 2024 games—also a record.

She already has a bronze from the 2020 Tokyo Games, earned during the women’s doubles 500 metres.

Canada Gets Gold in Breaking Event

Philip Kim, also known as Phil Wizard, took gold in the men’s breakdancing event. It was the Olympic debut for the 27-year-old from Vancouver.

He took on France’s Dany Dann in the final, winning all three rounds. While Dann earned four votes in the opening round, Kim won five. In the final two rounds, Kim got the votes of all nine judges.

Kim took on Japan’s Shigekix in the semifinal battle, earning 17 votes in total during the three rounds, compared to 10 for Shigekix.

He earned the title of world champion at the 2022 WDSF Breaking World Championships. He followed it up with a silver medal at the 2023 World Championships.

He also has a gold medal from Santiago 2023.

Canada Earns Silver in Men’s 800M

Canada’s Marco Arop took silver in the men’s 800-metre competition on Aug. 10, Canada’s first medal in the event since 1964.

Arop ran 1:41.20, making it his personal best. His previous best time was 1:42.85. He came behind Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyoni (1:41.19) and ahead of Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati (1:41.50).

This is the second Olympic Games Arop has competed at; he placed 14th in the Tokyo Games in 2020. He also won gold at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest.

The Canadian Press contributed to this article.