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TOKYO, Japan – Former Gonzaga men's rower Charley Nordin is representing the United States as part of the PR3 mixed four with coxswain crew at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, starting tonight (Aug. 26).
The crew – comprised of two men, two women and a coxswain – was chosen through a selection camp process earlier this summer.
The first race begins tonight at 7:30 p.m. PT (Aug. 27, 11:30 a.m. GMT) and events go throughout the weekend with medal races beginning on Saturday, Aug. 28 6:50 p.m. PT (Aug 29, 10:50 a.m. GMT).
Nordin rowed for Gonzaga for four seasons, rowing his final season almost exclusively with the varsity eight. The Oakland, Calif., native has been working toward a Paralympic appearance since his graduation from Gonzaga in 2019.
When Nordin was a junior in high school, he suffered a severe spinal cord injury in a rope swing accident, suffering burst fractures in his L3, L4 and L5 vertebrae. As a result, he has severe nerve damage in his right leg and lost most of his right calf. His right leg, he says, operates at about 35 to 40 percent of his left. Given the lasting effects of his injury, Nordin qualifies to row with the Paralympic crew.
"It's something I dream about and think about every single day," Nordin said back in 2019. "It's why I get up in the morning; it's why I work as hard as I can every workout, every weight lift…to represent your country. It's incredible. And to then be able to do that on the Paralympic stage, the biggest stage of all, words can't describe it. It's the dream."
Nordin is a two-time world's silver medalist in the event, most recently taking home silver at the 2019 World Rowing Championships in Linz, Austria. The U.S. has won six consecutive silver medals in the event at the world level, including the 2016 Paralympic Games in Brazil.
PR3 Mixed Four with Coxswain
Karen Petrik (Glastonbury, Conn./University of Rhode Island)
Charley Nordin (Alameda, Calif./Gonzaga University)
John Tanguay (Pennington, N.J./Columbia University)
Dani Hansen (Patterson, Calif./University of Washington)
Allie Reilly (North Kingstown, R.I./University of Rhode Island)
