An athlete in artistic gymnastics, René Cournoyer competed in his first Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020 at the age of 25.

Born in the Lanaudière region of central Quebec, Cournoyer has been doing gymnastics since he was 10 years old and made his foray onto the international scene at 15. As a member of the national team, he competed in the Pan-American Games in Toronto. That same year also found him at his first World Championships.

At the Commonwealth Games of 2018, the young athlete won the silver team medal and secured a fourth-place finish at the Olympics in vault and parallel bars. He surprised even himself a few months later by taking home a gold medal at the World Cup in Turkey.

In 2019, Cournoyer helped Canada win the bronze medal in the team event at the Pan-American Games – a first such win since 1999. His performance at the Worlds, which earned him his ticket to Tokyo 2020, made him the top Canadian in the all-around qualification.

The artistic gymnastics team has secured Olympic qualification for its 5 gymnasts for the Paris Games, a first since 2008. René will be competing in his second Games in 2024.