Canada's Chantal Petitclerc to be inducted into Paralympic Hall of Fame

Canada's mostdecorated femaleParalympian,ChantalPetitclercwill be one of five individuals inducted into theParalympicHall of Fame during the Rio 2016ParalympicGames inSeptember.

Team Canada'sChef de Mission in Rio will be joined by athletes Junichi Kawai, Franz Nietlispach and the late Neroli SusanFairhall, along with coach inductee Martin Morse.

Petitclerc, of Montreal, has collected21Paralympictrack medals, 14 being gold. Shemade herParalympicdebut at Barcelona 1992, and went on to compete in four further editions.

In her last Games at Beijing 2008,Petitclercclosed her athletic career with a statement, winning every track title from the100-metrethrough to 1,500T54, for the second time in a row, breaking world records along the way.

She still holds the world record in the200T54 and remains the most decorated female track Paralympian.

"It is a great honour to be inducted and join this group of amazing athletes,"Petitclercsaid. "Sport was a big part of my life as an athlete, and it was a privilege to achieve my goals as an athlete. To get recognition for this on top, it's even better.

"I believe in the power of sport to change lives, to make people better, and to empower. Sport has given me so much, I feel it is only fair that I give back to sport the best that I can."

TheParalympicHall of Fame aims to recognize retired athletes and coaches who have a track record of excellent athletic performance, history of fair play and participation in community activities.

With this year's induction coinciding with the Rio 2016ParalympicGames, only athletes and coaches involved in summer sports were considered.