By Jim Morris

RIO DE JANEIRO – They just didn’t break the record, the Canadian women’s 34-point 4×100-metre medley relay smashed the old mark.

The team of Aurelie Rivard of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., Katarina Roxon of Kippens, NL, Danielle Dorris of Moncton, N.B., and Morgan Bird of Calgary swam a Canadian record five minutes, 1.13 seconds to finish fifth in the final race of the night Friday at the Rio Paralympics.

That shaved 6.43 seconds off the old mark set by Stephanie Dixon, Jessica Sloan, Elisabeth Walker and Darda Geiger at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics.

“We wanted to go under 5:05,” said Rivard, who has won three gold and a silver medal in Rio, plus set two world records. “It’s really good.

“We really wanted to finish on a good note. It’s pretty great.”

Showing how fast the world has become, the old Canadian record won gold in Sydney. Great Britain won Friday’s race in a world record time of 4:45.23.

Earlier in the evening, Bird and Tess Routliffe both broke individual Canadian records but no one wearing a Maple Leaf was able to climb on the podium.

Bird finished seventh in a lightning fast S8 women’s 50-metre freestyle. Routliffe of Caledon, Ont., was sixth in the S7 100-m freestyle and Zack McAllister of Lethbridge, Alta., was eighth in the men’s S8 50-m freestyle.

Canada has won seven medals _ four gold, two silver, one bronze _ in the pool at Rio.

Bird’s time of 31.29 seconds in the S8 50-m free broke the Canadian mark of 31.49 she swam in the morning preliminaries.

“I’m happy with that swim,” said the 23-year-old who was born with cerebral palsy. “My goal was to improve on my time from this morning.

“I feel like I had a great swim tonight.”

Australia’s Maddison Elliott won in a world record time of 29.73.

The torrid pace of the race was fuel for Bird.

“I feed off that,” she said. “I’m a big racer. That’s how I get myself pumped up.”

Routliffe failed in her bid of collecting a second medal in Rio. Her time of 1:13.97 in the S7 100-m freestyle broke the record of 1:14.50 she established at last year’s IPC Swimming World Championships.

“I’m very happy with how I swam,” said the 17-year-old dwarf. “A best time is all you can really ask for.”

American McKenzie Coan won in 1:09.99.

Earlier this week Routliffe won silver and set a Canadian record in the S7 200-m individual medley. Collecting a medal still seems like a dream.

“I still don’t think it’s set in,” said Routliffe. “I still don’t believe it.

“I’ve learned a lot. I’ve learned to love the sport even more. I didn’t know that was possible.”

Routliffe will move to Montreal this fall where she will attend Concordia University and train at the Para-Swimming Intensive Training Program – Quebec under coach Mike Thompson.

McAllister swam 27.73 seconds in the men’s S8 50-m free, just .04 off his personal best time.

“It kind of sucks that that I got exactly what I went at trials and I was so close to my best time,” said the 22-year-old who has a condition where he has too many bones in his limbs.

“I wish I could have gone a little smidge faster.”

The last few months have been an emotional rollercoaster for McAllister.

He wasn’t selected for Rio after the Olympic and Para-swimming Trials in April. He was one of four swimmers added to the Canadian team late last month after the International Paralympic Committee banned the Russian Federation from the Games.

“It’s been important to re-evaluate how I swim,” said McAllister, who competed at the London Paralympics. “I had to find my enjoyment in swimming again.”

In other results Friday:

_ Tyler Mrak of Surrey, B.C., was 22^nd in the S13 100-m freestyle in 1:00.01.

_ Jean-Michel Lavalliere of Quebec City was 12^th in the S7 100-m freestyle in 1:10.27.

_ Abi Tripp of Kingston, Ont., was 10^th in the in the S8 50-m freestyle in 32.39 while Sabrina Duchesne of St.-augustin, Que., was 13^th in 34.87.