#reasonstorun
Para Canoe, Ottawa, ON.
Brianna Hennessy
Meet the resilient , Brianna Hennessy, from Ottawa, ON.
"We don't know how strong we are, until being strong is our only choice." This is a quote that Brianna had her family write in her hospital room right after her catastrophic accident. It resonated deep within, as she was facing her new reality.
Brianna has been an elite athlete her entire life from playing AA ice hockey, to national level ball hockey, to representing Canada in rugby, to being an Ontario Amateur Provincial Champion in boxing. Sports have always been the most important part of her identity. But on November 11, 2014 while attending a work conference in Toronto, her life changed in a way she could never prepare for. While crossing the street as a pedestrian, she was struck by a speeding cab driver. She was knocked unconscious from the impact of her head smashing into the windshield, and suffered a broken neck and severed a main artery to her brain. At first, she woke up in the hospital and couldn't move her body from her neck down. Since then, she has lived with excruciating chronic pain and mobility challenges as a tetraplegic.
"I felt like I had forever lost my identity that day. What would my purpose be now? What was the point? For the first time in my life, I was ready to quit. I was terrified, helpless, and felt stuck."
"I had to choose to survive when I was in the hospital. When something bad happens, you only have three choices: you can let it define you, you can let it destroy you, or you can find a way to let it strengthen you. And for me, the third was my only option."
2 years after her accident, Brianna was introduced to wheelchair rugby, and unsurprisingly quickly excelled in the sport. For the 3rd season in a row, she is the only female international import to play on one of the 44 men's teams in the entire USA - for the Tampa Bay WWAR Div 1 team.
However, when Covid hit, competing in a team environment became increasingly difficult, so she turned to para canoe/kayak at the Ottawa River Canoe Club (O.R.C.C). This was upon the suggestion of her then wheelchair rugby coach, co-captain of Team Canada, & multi time Paralympian Patrice Dagenais. Para Canoe provided a competitive sporting opportunity that she could pursue during the pandemic.
Remarkably, in less than a year on the water and in both boats and with her phenomenal coach Joel Hazzan from O.R.C.C, Brianna qualified and made her Paralympic debut in Tokyo. She finished only 1 second off the Paralympic podium, competing against athletes who have years of experience in the sport. She is the first ever female to have qualified and competed in para canoe for Canada, in the history of the Paralympics. She was also the only Canadian athlete, to have qualified and competed, in both kayak and canoe at the Tokyo Games.
Brianna has applied to CAN Fund #150Women and is currently on our funding waitlist.
Cycling
Molly Simpson
Meet the inspiring , Molly Simpson, from Abbotsford, BC.
Molly grew up playing many sports, and one day, at the age of 10, she wanted to try BMX. Her dad drove her to the BMX track, where she fell in love instantly. She bought a BMX bike the same day because she knew deep down that this was the sport she wanted to pursue.
Today, Molly lives and breathes BMX. Competing in a male-dominated sport, she grew up racing and battling the boys, with little to no girls, making it challenging to fit in. However, Molly shares that racing the boys when she was younger helped her become the rider she is today.
Once Molly found out BMX had been added as an Olympic sport, she decided she was going to go for it.
Fast forward to today, and Molly is ranked 3rd in the world, with big dreams and visions of becoming an Olympic Champion.
Molly used the funds she received from the CAN Fund to cover travel and flight costs, as she travels to races one to two times a month, either overseas or in North America. She also used the funds for National team fees and accommodations.
Molly is living her dream, making her Olympic debut in Paris.
Canoe/Kayak
Sloan Mackenzie
Meet the exceptional , Sloan Mackenzie, from Windsor Junction, NS.
At just 20 years old, Sloan made a name for herself as part of the senior national team competing at the 2022 ICF World Championships. Here she earned a gold medal in the Women’s C4 500m in front of a home crowd in Halifax, NS! Leaving no stone unturned in pursuit of her Olympic dream, Sloan is also a full-time university student and works as a coach at her paddling club between training and classes to help support herself and supplement the costs of competing for Canada.
Sloan will be making her Olympic debut competing in the C2-500m alongside Olympic bronze medalist and fellow CAN Fund recipient, Katie Vincent!