North Bay's Rob Shaw's Tokyo 2020 Paralympic journey came to an end this morning as he lost in two straight sets 6-3, 6-3, at the hands of Great Britain's Andy Lapthorne in the opening round of the Wheelchair Tennis competition at the Ariake Tennis Court in Tokyo.
Shaw was the only Canadian who qualified to participate in Wheelchair Tennis. He qualified due to his #9 ranking in the quad category.
“These are the types of moments you dream of as an athlete; representing your country on the largest stage possible,” said Shaw prior to the event.
He currently lives in Kelowna, BC where he is completing his PhD in addition to training.
See related: Rob Shaw heading to the Paralympics
The 31-year-old was making his Paralympic debut in Tokyo, which also marked his official return to competition for the first time since the fall of 2019.
He captured a total of eight singles title on the International Tennis Federation wheelchair tennis tour in 2019.
That included a gold medal at the Lima 2019 Parapan Am Games, which was Shaw’s first multi-sport Games appearance. Quad tennis made its Parapan Am debut in Lima and with the victory Shaw became the first Canadian tennis player, stand-up or wheelchair, to win a medal in singles at a multi-sport Games.
