Brianna Hennessy
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| Born | September 23, 1984 Ottawa, Canada | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Sport | Paracanoe | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Brianna Hennessy (born September 23, 1984) is a Canadian paracanoeist and wheelchair rugby player.
Career
[edit]Prior to her accident, Hennessy was a multi-sport athlete. She played AA hockey, national level ball hockey, competed in provincial and national level women’s rugby, was the Ontario Provincial boxing champion, and played eight years of competitive soccer.[1]
In 2016, Hennessy was introduced to wheelchair rugby through the Ottawa Hospital Rehabilitation Centre. She went on to qualify for the Ontario provincial team and to play for the American men's team, the Tampa Bay Generals.[2]
With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting practicing team sports, Hennessy took up para-canoe, training with Joel Hazzan at the Ottawa River Canoe Club, about sixth months before the qualification deadline for the upcoming Tokyo Paralympics.[3][4] She qualified to represent Canada at the 2021 World Cup in Hungary in Women's KL1, and Women's VL2[5] and won 4th-place in the women’s VL2 200m para-canoe sprint.[6][7][8] Less than two years after beginning para-canoe, Hennessy made her Paralympic debut in the sport. At the 2020 Summer Paralympics, she placed placed fifth in the VL2 and eighth in the KL1 para canoe events.[4]
At the 2022 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Hennessy won silver in the VL2 and bronze in the KL1 200-metre races.[1][2] She won bronze in the women's KL1 and silver in the VL2 at the 2023 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships.[9]
In 2023, Hennessy was one of ten players selected to compete on Canada’s first ever women’s wheelchair rugby team for the 2033 Women's Rugby World Cup.[10]
At the 2024 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships, Hennessy won a silver medal in the women's VL2.[11] She will compete in her second Paralympic Games in 2024 in KL1 and VL2.[12]
Personal life
[edit]Hennessy was hit by a cab in Toronto in 2014. She was diagnosed tetraplegic but has since regained some mobility in her upper body.[2] Her mother, Norma, passed away in 2023.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Sport is the answer for Brianna Hennessy". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2023-08-23. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ a b c Smart, Zack (2023-08-22). "Canada's Brianna Hennessy chasing Paralympic dream in 2 sports after life-altering injury". CBC. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ "Push and pull: Paralympian Brianna Hennessy is stronger for her multi-sport participation". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2022-10-27. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ a b c Bergeron-Oliver, Annie (2024-08-06). "She played contact sports all her life. Then an accident changed her athletic career forever". CTVNews. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ "Hennessy | Canadian Paralympic Committee". paralympic.ca. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
- ^ Howitt, Madalyn (2021-08-24). "From rugby to canoeing, Brianna Hennessy is making miracles happen". OttawaSportsPages.ca. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ ottawasportspagesca (2021-05-13). "After overcoming a tragedy, Brianna Hennessy has set her sights on the Paralympics". OttawaSportsPages.ca. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
- ^ "My Survival Story - Brianna Hennessy". Sportskanazee.com. 2020-12-09. Retrieved 2021-08-25.
- ^ "Brianna Hennessy wins second medal at Para canoe world championships". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2023-08-28. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ "Brianna Hennessy ready to be part of history in wheelchair rugby". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2023-03-08. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ "Three athletes nominated to compete for Canada in Para canoe at Paris 2024 Paralympic Games". www.newswire.ca. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
- ^ Daignault, Louis (2024-08-25). "Paris 2024 Para rowing, Para canoe Lookahead: Paddler Brianna Hennessy top medal hope for Canada". Canadian Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2024-09-03.