Kate O’Brien had the honour of winning Canada’s first medal at the Paris Paralympics with a bronze in track cycling on Thursday at the velodrome. 

The Calgary native finished C4-5 500-metre sprint trials in 36.873, leading her to third place behind Caroline Groot of the Netherlands, while the silver went to Marie Patouillet of France. 

Groot finished with a time of 35.566 and Patouillet finished with 36.700. 

“To be quite honest, I didn’t expect this,” said O’Brien, to Cycling Canada. “I honestly didn’t think a medal was within reach.

“It means so much and to receive so much support from my family and friends.” 

The times were “very, very tight,” she added.

“I didn’t know if I would make the team and I came in and was able to get into the top six, make the finals, and finish with a medal, it’s an absolute dream.”   

C4 World Record holder and projected medalist Kadeena Cox, of Great Britain, fell off her bicycle after losing balance almost immediately after starting. After consideration, Cox was not given the chance for a do-over, being marked as DNF (did not finish). 

Earlier this morning, O’Brien finished fourth in the qualifiers with a 37.493 time, leading her to a 98.67% for the finals. 

Canadian Keely Shaw finished in 10th place in the heats and did not qualify for the finals.

O’Brien, who won two silver medals in her Paralympics debut, at Tokyo in 2021, had her wife, Meghan, and their son Robin, there to watch.  

It was a fight getting back on the track for O’Brien, who was on the Olympic cycling team in 2016 in Rio.

In 2017, she had a major accident during a track cycling demonstration, lost control and hit her head on the back of a motorbike. She suffered a head injury and other bodily trauma.