Alison Levine (boccia)

Last updated
Alison Levine
Personal information
Born (1990-05-11) May 11, 1990 (age 34)
Home townCôte Saint-Luc, Quebec, Canada
Website alisonlevine.ca
Sport
Sport Boccia
Disability class BC4
Medal record
Boccia
Representing Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
Parapan American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2023 Individual BC4
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2023 Pairs BC4
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2015 Pairs BC4

Alison Levine (born May 11, 1990) is a Canadian boccia competitor.

Contents

Early life and education

Levine grew up in Côte Saint-Luc, Quebec. She attended JPPS Elementary School and Bialik High School. [1] [2] She was diagnosed with idiopathic muscular dystrophy as a teenager. [3] She graduated from Vanier College's Special Care Counselling program in 2013. [4]

Career

Levine threw boccia for the first time in December 2012. [1] Her first medal was won in pairs with Marco Dispaltro at the 2013 national championship in Montreal. [5] In 2014, she won a bronze medal in pairs at the Masters in Portugal. She won an individual silver medal at the European World Open in Poland in 2015, [1] where she also won silver in the pairs competition. That same year, she won pairs silver at the Parapan American Games in Toronto. [5] Going into her Paralympic debut in 2016, Levine was ranked 15th in the world in individual mixed BC4 boccia. [6] She placed fifth at the 2016 Summer Paralympics in individuals BC4 boccia and sixth in pairs BC4, [5] with Dispaltro and Iulian Ciobanu.

She won her first gold medal at a Boccia World Open event at the Montreal World Open in 2019. [7] In 2019, she was ranked number one in the world by the Boccia International Sports Federation in the BC4 division, the first woman to be ranked first in the world in her disability class in the then mixed-sex sport. [8] [9] She entered the 2020 Summer Paralympics as the top ranked player in the world in the BC4 class, as well as being the top ranked female in the world. [10] Levine competed in the boccia mixed BC4 individual event at the 2020 Summer Paralympics. She did not qualify for the quarter-finals after the group play stage. [11] Levine and Ciobanu did not advance to the semi-finals in pairs BC4 at the Paralympic s.

In 2022, Levine won gold she won at the São Paulo Americas Regional Championships, silver at the Rio de Janeiro World Cup, and Povoa de Varzim World Cup. [12] She placed fourth in singles BC4 [13] and won bronze with Ciobanu in BC4 pairs at the Rio de Janeiro 2022 World Boccia Championships. [14] At the 2023 Parapan American Games, Levine won gold medals in BC4 pairs with Ciobanu and BC4 singles. She was chosen as Canada's flag bearer for the Games' closing ceremony. [15] [16]

Levine will compete in pairs and singles boccia at the 2024 Summer Paralympics. [17]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Arnold, Janice (2019-07-03). "Boccia champion Alison Levine has eye on 2020 Paralympics". The Canadian Jewish News. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  2. Arnold, Janice (2021-07-26). "Paralympian Alison Levine to defend title at Tokyo games". The Canadian Jewish News. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  3. "Alison Levine gains independence through Para sport". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2019-05-27. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  4. "Vanier Graduate Alison Levine heads to the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics". www.vaniercollege.qc.ca. 2021-08-20. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  5. 1 2 3 Strong, Gregory (2019-01-23). "Six years into her boccia career, Canadian Alison Levine is a Paralympic medal threat". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  6. Matheson, Keegan (2016-09-16). "Alison Levine shares successful Paralympic debut with her No.1 fan". CBC. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  7. "Canadian boccia player Alison Levine wins first international gold". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2019-05-03. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  8. "Alison Levine ranked number one in the world in boccia". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2019-10-08. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  9. "Tokyo 2020: Alison Levine looks to make history". International Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  10. Sumner, Rory (2021-10-02). "Canadian boccia team's close bond bodes well for future in sport". The Toronto Observer. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  11. Sumner, Rory (2021-08-30). "Early exits for Canada's Alison Levine and Iulian Ciobanu in Paralympic boccia". The Toronto Observer. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  12. "Weekend recap : Levine wins third straight international boccia medal since Tokyo 2020". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2022-07-11. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  13. "Weekend recap: Alison Levine back in the mix with fourth place at boccia world championships". Canadian Paralympic Committee. 2022-12-12. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  14. "Canada's Alison Levine, Iulian Ciobanu claim pairs bronze at World Boccia Championships". CBC. 2022-12-14. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  15. "Boccia double gold medallist Alison Levine carries Canadian flag into closing ceremony". CBC. 2023-11-26. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  16. "Alison Levine named Canada's closing ceremony flag-bearer at Parapan Am Games". Times Colonist. 2023-11-26. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
  17. Daignault, Louis (2024-07-18). "Four Canadian boccia athletes nominated to Paris 2024 Canadian Paralympic Team". Canadian Paralympic Committee. Retrieved 2024-08-11.