Peter Cowan
The 2024 Paris Paralympic Games are the first for Peter Cowan of New Zealand. He won silver at the International Canoe Federation Para Canoe World Championships in Szeged, Hungary, finishing 0.071 seconds behind first place, reported Paralympics New Zealand.
Cowan competes in the VL3 200-meter para va’a, which is a rudderless outrigger canoe that has a pontoon as a support float and the competitor uses a single-blade paddle. The VL3 category is for those with lower-body impairments.
When he was 15, the rugby player was training for the Iron Maori triathlon when his bike was clipped by an oncoming car. Later, his right leg had to be amputated above his knee. When he was 17, he was invited to a waka ama, or Maori outrigger canoe, training session.
Cowan served a mission in Japan and Australia, and he and his wife are the parents of two boys.
