Marissa Papaconstantinou has a busy couple of days ahead of her on the Tokyo Paralympics track.
When the Toronto native comes out the other end, there may be a medal to bring home as a souvineer.
The women’s T64 100 metre qualifiers will take off Thursday at the National Olympic Stadium, an event for which her qualifying time ranked fifth. It was also the only mark judged not to have been aided by the wind.
‘’It’s going to be a couple of busy days on the second and third. I’m going to shift my focus to the 100 metres,” said Papaconstantinou, in a post-200m race interview on Tuesday morning in Tokyo. “It’s going to be very competitive because everyone’s really tight in time.’’
Papaconstantinou came out strong in 2021, setting a new personal best in the 100 metres – a wind-aided 12.87 seconds – at another Tokyo Qualifier Series event in Guelph, Ont.
The 21-year-old captured double gold at the Canadian Paralympic Trials in the 100- and 200-metres. Later that month in Toronto, without the aid of the wind, she lowered her time by about a second to 13.12 in the 100m.
For her to medal in this competition she is going to have to beat out some stiff competition in the likes of Marlene van Gansewinkel of the Netherlands, and Femina Ayanbeku and Beatriz Hatz, both from the USA.
The University of Toronto Track Club member feels like she is on top of her game heading into the competition.
“To be at my best all season right now, when it matters the most, is definitely a huge accomplishment. Obviously, there’s a desire for more,’’ said Papaconstantinou.