Canada aims for top-16 overall at Rio 2016

The Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) has set a goal of a top-16 finish in the medal standings at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games to be held 7-18 September in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

This goal was established following discussions with Own the Podium – a non-profit organisation that prioritises and determines investment strategies for national sport organisations in an effort to deliver more Olympic and Paralympic medals for Canada – and assessment of national sport organisations' medal predictions.

"We are confident in our member national sport organisations, athletes and coaches that they will leave no stone unturned and their hard work will pay off," said Catherine Gosselin-Després, the CPC Executive Director for Sport. "It is harder now, more than ever, to make it on to the Paralympic podium because there are more sports and nations that are competitive, and the depth of field is emerging at a rapid rate.

"Such a tight depth of field will bring unprecedented drama and excitement of Paralympic sport competition to Canadian fans, and will keep them on the edge of their seats cheering for our athletes."

The Canadian Paralympic Committee based its performance target on recent results, rankings and its current pool of athletes. Own the Podium agrees a top-16 would be a great achievement for Canada at the Games

"Canada has set a lofty target for 2016, but we believe Team Canada are fully prepared and ready to be in the battle for medals," said Anne Merklinger, Chief Executive Officer of Own the Podium. "The rest of the world is not standing still and the performance bar is constantly being raised.

"Along with our partners, we have remained focused to deliver the tools and resources our nation's top Paralympic athletes require to achieve these goals."

The selection process for the Canadian Paralympic Team for Rio 2016 is ongoing and can be followed on Paralympic.ca or its social media channels Facebook and Twitter.