Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson named Canada's Pan Am Games flag bearers
The beach volleyball duo will carry the maple leaf at the opening ceremony tonight
The Canadian Olympic Committee announced Friday morning that beach volleyball partners Melissa Humana-Paredes and Brandie Wilkerson will be Canada’s flag bearers for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games opening ceremony.
With the opening ceremony set for Friday night at Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Prádanos in Santiago, Chile, Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson are tasked with carrying the Canadian flag and leading the Team Canada delegation into the venue.
“When we decide who will carry the Canadian flag at the Pan American Games, we look not only to athletes’ sporting achievements, but the values they demonstrate and their impact on others,” said Canada’s Santiago 2023 chef de mission Christine Girard in a press release.
“Brandie and Melissa are both incredible athletes and inspirational role models. The way they carry themselves both on and off the field of play makes them the perfect choice for this role. I can’t wait to follow them into the Estadio Nacional as they proudly lead the way for Team Canada in the Opening Ceremony.”
This is the first season in which Humana-Parades and Wilkerson are competing together on the international stage, and they have already established themselves as one of the better teams in the world — ranked fifth at the moment.
Formerly indoor volleyball teammates at York University, the duo teamed up in February to compete on the Beach Pro Tour, after splitting with their former partners. Humana-Parades was competing with Sarah Pavan — a duo that won two Commonwealth Games gold medals as well as the 2019 world championship — while Wilkerson spent the last year with Sophie Bukovec, where they won a silver medal at the 2022 worlds.
Together, Humana-Paredes and Wilkerson have won two events this season on the Beach Pro Tour — the Jurmala Challenge in Latvia in June, and the Montreal Elite 16 event at the end of July on home soil. They also finished third in the Ostrava Elite 16 event in June in the Czech Republic.
Wilkerson will be competing at the Pan Am Games for the first time, while this is the second appearance for Humana-Paredes after competing in her hometown at the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games.
Both of them made their Olympic debuts at Tokyo 2020, tying for fifth place, although on separate teams with their aforementioned former partners. Now, together, they are looking to continue their journey toward Paris 2024 with a good performance in Santiago, where they are considered among the tournament favourites.
“I’m extremely excited and honoured to have this role, to share my story as well as the story of my sport and federation,” Wilkerson said in a press release. “Honestly I’m just overjoyed. I’ve never experienced an Opening Ceremony before so to be able to do this, and with the person I’d want to do it with the most, is exciting. I’m so extremely proud to be Canadian!”
For Humana-Paredes, going to Chile and having this opportunity is even more special, as both of her parents are Chilean.
“This is something that as an athlete you want to do one day and you hope you have the privilege of doing,” she said in a press release. “The fact that I can do it in Chile, which is where my family is from, and that my family will be able to witness it, is extremely meaningful.
“At multi-sport events like this, I think it’s so important to share stories and to be models of different representations and different body types and different sports and different backgrounds and how we all come together and are united here as one. It gives you a lot of perspective and reminds you of why you’re doing this, and the power of sport.
“We’ve been part of Team Canada a couple of times, and every time it’s extra special to feel like you’re part of something bigger than yourself.”
The beach volleyball tournaments at Santiago 2023 take place October 21 to 27 (Days 1 to 7) at the Parque Peñalolen.
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