Tillsonburg Teen Arrives in Japan for 2020 Tokyo Paralympics

Wednesday, 25 August 2021 05:44

Photo Credit: Charlotte Bolton Instagram page, @charlotte.bolton.throws

The 2020 Tokyo Paralympics officially kicked off on Tuesday and Tillsonburg's Charlotte Bolton will compete in three track and field events starting this weekend.

TILLSONBURG - The 2020 Paralympics officially kicked off in Tokyo with the opening ceremonies on Tuesday.

Tillsonburg's Charlotte Bolton will represent Canada at the games. She will compete in three track and field events that get started on the weekend.

Bolton likely wouldn't have qualified for the games had they happened in 2020. She originally set her sites on representing Canada at the 2024 games in France. However the extra year off, helped her to hone her skills and qualify. At 18, she is the youngest member on the track and field team. In a press release from Team Canada, Bolton explains what it meant to her to qualify for the games.

“The truth is, I’ve never worked harder for anything in my life. As soon as I was told that the Paralympics were delayed until 2021, I had it in my head that I was going to go. There was no way I would have made it with the level I was at in 2020, but I’ve put my blood, sweat and tears into improving this year to qualify even though the original plan was Paris, not Tokyo. It’s really gratifying to see that the hard work I, my coaches, and all the other people supporting me have put in pay off in the end.”

Bolton also shared some inspirational words for para athletes across Canada.

“If I were to tell the fans at home one thing it would be to dream big. Going to the Paralympics at age 18 wasn’t in my plans two years ago. But someone said maybe, and I said yes. Since then, going to the Paralympics has been the biggest dream I’ve had. You’re never too old, and you’re never too young to have big dreams.”

The Tokyo games will be her first major games. She has a chance to medal and is currently ranked 4th in the world for Discuss.

The teenager holds three Canadian records in the F41 throwing events:

- Shot Put - 9.05 metres

- Javelin - 20.33 metres

- Discuss - 26.02 metres

You can send her a message of support through her Instagram account @charlotte.bolton.throws