Nicholas Bennett wins Canada's 1st silver medal at Paris Paralympics in S14 200m freestyle

Canadian swimmer Nicholas Bennett captured the country's first silver medal of the Paris Paralympics on Saturday in the men's 200-metre freestyle S14 final.

The 20-year-old from Parksville, B.C., native touched the wall in one minute 53.61 seconds at Paris La Défense Arena, earning his first career Paralympic medal and Canada's fifth medal of these Games.

Bennett, who lives with autism, is the reigning world champion in the event.

Great Britain's William Ellard won the Paralympic title in a world-record time of 1:51.30, while Australia's Jack Ireland finished right behind Bennett for bronze (1:53.77).

WATCH l Bennett claims 200m freestyle silver in Paris:

Bennett advanced to the final with the top qualifying time of the day.

He made his Paralympic debut in Tokyo, finishing sixth in the final.

Two other Canadian Paralympic swimmers will compete for medals later on Saturday.

The 25-year-old Routliffe, who originally hails from Auckland, New Zealand, claimed silver in the event at the 2016 Games in Rio.

Dorris, a 21-year-old from Moncton, N.B., is the defending Paralympic gold medallist and world-record holder in the SM7 butterfly event, which kicks off Sept. 7.

Canadian track cyclist Mel Pemble narrowly missed the podium in the women's C1-3 500-metre time trial on Saturday, finishing 0.3 seconds away from her first career Paralympic medal.

The 24-year-old from Victoria clocked a factored time of 38.610 seconds in the six-rider final at the National Velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France.

Pemble started strong and never looked back while racing alone against the clock in the two-lap event, giving her the lead with three cyclists to go.

Germany's Maike Hausberger (C2) followed Pemble and ultimately bested her for