Paralympic-bound Canada grabs silver medal at men's wheelchair rugby qualifier

With a Paralympic berth secured, fifth-ranked Canada suffered a 49-48 overtime defeat at the hands of No. 2 Australia in the gold-medal match at the men's world wheelchair rugby qualifying tournament on Sunday in Trentham, New Zealand.

The Canadians had booked their spot for the Paris Games this August with a 58-41 semifinal victory over Germany on Saturday.

Last October, the Aussies pulled out a 53-48 win over Canada in the final of the International Wheelchair Rugby Cup at Accor Arena in Paris.

The Canadians finished with a 4-1 record at the five-day tourney in New Zealand, having also defeated Brazil (57-39), Netherlands (55-35) and the host squad 54-39.

The top-ranked United States clinched a Paralympic spot with its gold-medal win over Canada last November at the Parapan Am Games in Santiago, Chile.

Also headed to Paris is defending champion Great Britain (No. 4), Denmark (7th) from the European championships. Japan (3rd) from the Asian championships and Germany (No. 9) while sixth-ranked France is awarded a spot as host.

Canada won gold on home soil in 2015 to earn its ticket to the 2016 Paralympics in Rio. The Americans got revenge in 2019, forcing Canada to win a last chance qualifier to get its ticket to Tokyo in 2021, where it placed fifth.

The Canadians, who were the 2022 Quad Nations champions dropped a 57-51 semifinal decision to the U.S. at the Parapan Am Games after going unbeaten entering the title game, including a win over the Americans in the preliminary round.