'It's an incredible sport': Winnipegger Leanne Taylor reflects on Paralympic bronze medal win

Leanne Taylor receives her bronze medal for women's Para Triathlon PTWC during the Paralympic Games in Paris, France on Sept. 2, 2024. (Dave Holland/The Canadian Press Paralympic Committee)

Winnipeg's Leanne Taylor became the first Canadian woman to medal during the Paralympic triathlon, and she hopes she won't be the last.

The 32-year-old won bronze Monday in Paris – just six years after an accident that left her paralyzed from the waist down.

"I'm really happy it turned out. It ended up being a beautiful, iconic course that had a lot of challenges, but I'm happy to be able to come home as a bronze medalist," Taylor told CTV News Winnipeg.

Before her accident, Taylor loved sports and competing but was never at an elite level.

Afterwards, her goal was to make it to the world stage.

"Moving into para-triathlon, things happened really quickly, and I think it was a transition that was quick for me to have to learn about the high-performance environment and what it sort of took to perform at the elite level."

When she first set the goal of being a Paralympic athlete, it was all about building a life post-accident, and not wanting to undo what happened to her.

"That was really the lens that I looked at this whole journey through. And it's been six years and I really feel like now we can look back and say I wouldn't undo this. The people that I've met and the things I've learned, the person that I've become is so valuable to me that being able to walk wouldn't be an appropriate trade."

Throughout it all, she said the joy of the sport helped her thrive and become a Paralympic medalist.

"It was definitely something that at one point I thought I wouldn't be able to do, so I tried to keep that joy going into the games and it paid off in the end."

Taylor hopes her journey will encourage others to join the sport and try to compete at the highest level.

"I'd love to see the sport grow and bring more women in. It's an incredible sport."

Fresh off her win, she now plans to take a break and spend some time in Paris and Rome, before getting back into the sporting circuit, with plans to compete in the World Championships.