From Ryan after semifinals: Today was an amazing day. I just qualified for the A Final at the #rio2016#olympicgames. It has been a crazy summer with big ups and downs. With out the support behind me from my training group and coach it would not have been possible. Of course my family also plays one of the largest roles in my success to this point being supportive no mater what. But I can not help but think of my grandmother “Nanny” who passed away on July 11 of this summer. I believe that see was sitting up on the hill with #christtheredeamerwatching down on me and helping give me that edge I needed to get to this point. Today was for you Nanny. Tomorrow I get to proudly race for @teamcanada and the rest of my @canoekayakcan team. #gocanadago

As it happens Ryan and Hughes finished 8th in the final at the 2016 Olympics, which was excellent considering they had under two weeks of preparation in finding out they had earned a spot at the Olympics due to the doping scandal. Even more impressive considering most of the athletes stopped training after the last world cup thinking their careers were over.

Ryan said, it has been a great 4 years with a lot of good and bad moments. A few injuries and a lot of good racing. The support I received in the past 4 years has been great. I owe a lot to my training group back home and of course my family. But I also owe a lot of my success to my team 200 as well as Fred Jobin. Thanks for being a great leader for our team Fred#teamwork #teamcanada #canoekayakcanada can’t wait for the next strokes

I came home to an awesome package in the mail. Massive thank you to @CANFund if you want to support athletes get in contact with @CANFund it really makes a big difference

Below you can find images of the Olympics, messages of support and links to articles:

Hants Journal Final Thoughts
CBC Final Results
localxpress Berth Earned
localxpress For Gold
CBC Duo Advance
Olympian Fund Unites Family
CanoeKayak Team Grows
Ryan Olympic Profile