Many of Canada's biggest stars could leave Paris Olympics without medals

Canadian fans tuning into the Paris 2024 Olympics got to see many familiar faces perform for their country, with a collection of Canada’s 300+ athletes returning to the Summer Games for their second, third, or even fourth appearance or more.

But while some new Olympic stars have emerged over the past couple of weeks, a few major disappointments have carried into the Games as well.

Damian Warner, Penny Oleksiak, and Andre De Grasse waltzed into Paris as three of the biggest stars in the history of Canada at the Olympics. All three came into these games with at least one gold medal in their past, with the three carrying a combined 15 medals in their careers (seven for Oleksiak, six for De Grasse, and two for Warner).

But with just one event left between them, the three former Olympic champions — who have all served as Canadian flag bearers at either the closing or opening ceremonies before — look like they’ll be leaving Paris without a medal.

Warner’s performance in the decathlon was perhaps the most disappointing, having suffered a fault during the pole vault portion. Coming into the event as defending Olympic champion, Warner eventually quit the event after being unable to medal with only two events remaining.

“I decided to drop out because, this may sound crazy, but that’s the most painful thing to do. I pride myself on finishing decathlons, but at the same time, I pride myself on being consistent. So when I drop out of a competition after a mishap like pole vault, it’s tough and it’s really hard on me. But that gives me the best opportunity to grow because I don’t want that feeling to happen again,” Warner told the media earlier this week.

Oleksiak failed to qualify for any individual events these Games, having had a tough Olympic cycle riddled by injury. Though she was a member of two relay teams for Canada, both the 4x100m freestyle and 4×100 medley relay teams were held off of the podium.

De Grasse, meanwhile, is the only one of the three left to compete, though that might be in question after dealing with a reoccurring hamstring injury this week. He failed to advance to either the 100m or 200m final, finishing his events in both at the semifinal stage. He continues his Olympic journey in the 4x100m relay event later this week, with the heats being held tomorrow ahead of Saturday’s final.

The Olympics are closing in on their final week in Paris, with only a few more days left of competition. The closing ceremony is set for Sunday, August 11, as are the final medal events.

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