Paralympic Athlete | Alana Nichols

High Fives Supporter Alana Nichols places 7th at Paralympic CANOE/KAYAK Final!

The improved weather conditions at the Lagoa Stadium set the stage for fast times and tight racing in the paracanoe finals at the 2016 Rio Paralympic Games.

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In the Women’s KL2 Final, five-time Paralympian Alana Nichols took to the water with the goal of earning another summer Paralympic medal. Starting out of lane one, Nichols pressed hard throughout on her way to finishing 7th overall with a time of 1:00.315, 7.027 seconds behind winner Emma Wiggs (GBR).

At the finish, Nichols reflected on her race; “This morning I found myself on the dock at 6:15, and it was glassy and the sun was rising over this little mountain, and it brought me to tears. It really did. I cried. It was just such a beautiful morning, and this whole experience has been incredible. So I knew this morning before it even happened that it was just an incredible experience. Going into the race I just wanted to have a super solid, consistent race. I’d had an injury before this; I’d slipped a disc at C6 – old ski racing injury – which put a lot of pressure on my nerve path in my right arm. So I had to take about four weeks off of training. I patiently watched all of my muscles atrophy, my endurance just kind of slip away, so that was a huge setback. I knew coming into Rio I wasn’t going to be as prepared as I wanted to be endurance-wise. So for me it was all about finishing strong. I made it to the final. Going out there, you couldn’t see me, I was in lane one, but I had a huge smile on my face. For me, it was all about being consistent, and that’s what I did, so I’m happy. Seventh in the world.”

Congratulations to the U.S. Paralympic Paracanoe Team on their performance in Rio!

Read more about US Canoe Kayak HERE

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