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Paralympic Games gold medalist Katarina Roxon of Kippens will be honoured with a motorcade when she returns to her hometown next week.
The golden girl from Kippens returned to Newfoundland and Labrador Tuesday afternoon.
During a reception held for her at Confederation Building in St. John’s, Premier Dwight Ball unveiled a traffic sign for Roxon Way, the new name for Route 490 in western Newfoundland.
Route 490, known until now as White’s Road, is one of two roads leading from the Trans-Canada Highway towards Roxon's hometown of Kippens.
Roxon won the gold medal in the 100-metre breaststroke at the international games Sept. 14. She also finished seventh in the 200-metre individual medley event at the Paralympics and helped Canada to a fifth-place finish in the 4x100-metre freestyle relay and in the 4x100-metre medley relay.
“Naming Route 490, which leads into the region of her hometown, is a way to celebrate Katarina’s outstanding performance and the exemplary way in which she represented this province,” Ball said in a statement prepared for the occasion. “She is an inspiration to all of our young athletes.”
During her impressive swimming career, Roxon has won numerous international medals, including six medals at the 2015 Parapan Am Games. This was Roxon’s first gold medal in her third time competing at the Paralympic Games.
“Not only is Katarina Roxon a leader within her sport, she's also a community leader and a role model to residents of the Bay St. George region, the province and the country,” John Finn, the Liberal legislature member for Roxon’s home district of Stephenville-Port au Port, said in the same press release.
To learn about Ms. Roxon and her achievements, visit: http://paralympic.ca/katarina-roxon.
