Maude Charron lifted Canada to a silver medal Thursday in the women鈥檚 59-kilogram weightlifting event at the Paris Olympics.

The 31-year-old from Rimouski adds a second Olympic medal to her collection. She had previously won gold in Tokyo in 2021 in the 64 kg category, which has since been removed from the Olympic program.

Unlike the pandemic Games in Tokyo, where athletes competed in mostly empty venues, Charron celebrated her podium finish in Paris in front of a raucous crowd, including her family.

鈥淲e didn鈥檛 say much. We cried most of it. They said, 鈥榃e鈥檙e there鈥�. I said, 鈥業 saw you guys. I heard you.鈥� We鈥檙e just so glad that we can share this moment with them,鈥� she said of her family.

鈥淚t was amazing and so nice to be with a crowd. In weightlifting, we don鈥檛 have that big of a crowd, but it鈥檚 so amazing.鈥�

Charron lifted 106 kilograms in the snatch and 130 kilograms in the clean and jerk for a total of 236 kilograms to win Canada鈥檚 20th medal at the Paris Games.

China鈥檚 Luo Shifang, the reigning world champion, won gold with an Olympic-record total of 241 kilograms, while Kuo Hsing-Chun of Taiwan, the defending Olympic champion in the category, won the bronze with a total of 235.

Charron attempted a final clean and jerk of 132 kilograms, the highest weight she had ever attempted but was unable to complete it.

Canada entered the day with 19 medals 鈥� six gold, four silver and nine bronze.

Winnipeg鈥檚 Skylar Park also added to Canada鈥檚 medal haul in Paris on Thursday with a bronze medal in taekwondo.

The 25-year-old defeated Lebanon鈥檚 Laetitia Aoun 2-0 in the women鈥檚 57-kilogram division.

Earlier in the day, the outlook seemed less promising for Park, who lost her quarterfinal 2-0 to South Korea鈥檚 Kim Yujin.

Park needed Kim to advance to the final to enter the repechage, and Kim delivered by defeating top-seeded Luo Zongshi of China.

She then defeated Turkey鈥檚 Hatice Kubra Ilgan 2-0 in the repechage to advance.

Park credited her father, Jae, along with her brothers and sparring partners, Tae-Ku and Braven, for helping her reach the podium.

鈥淭hey鈥檝e been everything. I think from the time that we鈥檝e started this journey, and especially qualifying for the Games, it was never that I qualified. It was that we qualified as a family. And so we鈥檙e still sticking to that,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd today, we won a bronze medal as a family, and I鈥檓 grateful for them.鈥�

The country is guaranteed to add to its medal total on Friday when Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson play for gold in women鈥檚 beach volleyball.

The Toronto duo scored a clutch 14-21, 22-20, 15-12 semifinal victory over Switzerland鈥檚 Tanja Hueberli and Nina Brunner at Eiffel Tower Stadium on Thursday.

鈥淲e had our goals pretty high, and I don鈥檛 think they are unreachable. We set our standards (in) early days, and we鈥檙e meeting them,鈥� said Humana-Paredes.

Canada will meet the top-ranked Brazilian duo of Ana Patricia Silva Ramos and Eduarda Santos Lisboa in Friday鈥檚 gold-medal match at Eiffel Tower Stadium.

Brazil edged Australia 20-22, 21-15, 15-12 in Thursday鈥檚 other semifinal.

After dropping the opener, the Canadians saved a match ball in the second set before forcing a decider on extra points.

Earlier, Canada qualified for both the men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 4x100-metre relay finals.

The men鈥檚 team of Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake, Brendon Rodney and Andre De Grasse ran a time of 38.39 seconds to finish third in Heat 2 on Thursday at Stade de France.

After failing to qualify for the men鈥檚 200-metre final, De Grasse had revealed Wednesday night he was battling a hamstring injury he re-aggravated a few days ago. He had also failed to advance to the 100-metre final on Sunday, his first time missing an Olympic final.

Canada took bronze in the men鈥檚 relay at the Rio Games in 2016 and silver at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

The women鈥檚 quarter of Sade McCreath, Jacqueline Madogo, Marie-Eloise Leclair and Audrey Leduc ran a national record of 42.50 seconds to finish fourth in Heat 2 and grab one of two non-automatic qualifier spots.

Also advancing to a final in her sport was Sarah Mitton in women鈥檚 shot put, with a top throw of 19.77 metres on her first attempt.

The nearest throw to Mitton鈥檚 was 19.25 by New Zealand鈥檚 Maddison-Lee Wesche. The qualifying standard was 19.15 or to be among the 12 top performers for Friday鈥檚 final.

The 28-year-old from Brooklyn, N.S., earned silver at the 2023 world championships and won the world indoor title in March. Mitton has a personal and season best of 20.68 metres from May.

鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be a dog fight,鈥� she said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 going to take 20 metres to earn any medal. I don鈥檛 know how much over 20 that鈥檚 going to be, but I know that I鈥檓 confident and can do that. There鈥檚 also quite a few other girls out there who can do the same, so it鈥檚 going to be fun. It鈥檚 going to be a battle.鈥�

Mitton looks to become the first Canadian woman to earn an Olympic medal in shot put.

Sprint canoeists Sophia Jensen and Katie Vincent advanced to the semifinals in the women鈥檚 single 200 metres. The two Canadians finished first in their respective heats Thursday morning.

The 22-year-old Jensen, from Chelsea, Que., clocked in at 46.80 seconds, followed by Spain鈥檚 Antia Jacome with 47.35. Vincent came in at 47.22, with Spain鈥檚 Maria Corbera just behind at 47.74.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press