Canada won three more medals today at the Lagoa Rowing Centre, site of the 2007 Pan Am rowing regatta.
The women's double of Cristin McCarty (Saskatoon, Sask.) and Peggy Hyslop (Kamloops, BC.) picked up a silver medal for their effort this morning.
"We were a little slow off the blocks, but as soon as we got organized the boat moved well," said Hyslop. "A start can make a huge difference, as we experienced today."
"This event has been amazing - the sport has been so well-received by the fans. It's very exciting to win a medal here."
The U.S. won in 7:06.49, followed by Canada in 7:09.01 and Cuba in the bronze-medal position in 7:12.72.
The lightweight double of Camille Brillon (Edson, Alta.) and Amber Cuthbertson (Harrowsmith, Ont.) picked up a bronze. Cuba won in 7:25.8, followed by Mexico in 7:30.8 and Canada finished close behind in 7:31.18.
"Our race was the most solid piece we've had while training in Rio. We decided to focus on staying in our boat and taking each stroke at a time," said Brillon. "The first 700 metres, there was crosswind, but we handled it technically well. After we got through that, executing the race plan came naturally. We were out-sprinted in the end, but still had a good race."
The men's four of Brent Holmes (Peterborough, Ont.), David Lamb (Berwick, N.S.), Vincent Goodfellow (Dorval, Que.), and Todd Keesey (Saskatoon, Sask.) will also come home with a bronze medal.
The four had a slow start, but picked it up during the race. "We were fifth at the 500 - Argentina was very quick off the start," said Lamb. "We were side by side with the Americans close to the 1250 metre mark, and then they made a move and we couldn't stay with them. We were so focused on the US that we didn't see Mexico, but fortunately we held them off."
Argentina won in 6:11.59, the U.S. was second in 6:11.71 and Canada finished in 6:17.56.
"They tend to build their speed in the middle," said coach and Pan Am team leader, Allison Dobb. "They raced flat out and did everything as we planned in training. I'm proud of the way they approached their race and of the result today."