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Marissa Papaconstantinou

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Marissa Papaconstantinou
Personal information
Born (1999-10-13) October 13, 1999 (age 25)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
EducationRyerson University
Sport
Country Canada
SportParalympic athletics
Disability classT64
Coached byBob Westman
Medal record
Women's para athletics
Representing  Canada
Paralympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2020 Tokyo 100 metres T64
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Paris 100 m T64
Bronze medal – third place 2023 Paris 200 m T64

Marissa Papaconstantinou (born October 13, 1999) is a Greek-Canadian Paralympic athlete who competes in the 100m T64 in international level events. She qualified for the 2020 Summer Paralympics, in 100m T64 and 200m T64.

Early life

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Papaconstantinou was born on October 13, 1999, in Toronto, Ontario[1] to parents Kathy and Bill.[2] Due to her Greek ancestry, she spent most of her summers with her family in Greece.[3] Having been born without her right foot, Papaconstantinou originally played football and basketball before committing to track athletics after being fitted with her first running blade at the age of 12.[4] Following the fitting, she set the Canadian T64 classification record for the 100 metres.[5] Papaconstantinou was later selected by Athletics Canada and was invited to Ottawa for a Paralympic Camp.[6] In 2014, Her running blade inspired an exhibit on 21st century bionics and prosthetics at the Ontario Science Centre.[7]

Career

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While training with the Phoenix Track Club, Papaconstantinou represented Canada for the first time at the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships.[8] The following year, she was named to Canada's 2016 Summer Paralympics team when she was 16 years old. Although she qualified for the 200m final, Papaconstantinou was disqualified due to a lane violation.[9] Following this, she competed at the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships where she finished the race with a torn hamstring. Due to this, she finished 58.06, 32 seconds behind Marlou van Rhijn.[10] Upon making her international debut, students at Bill Crothers Secondary School painted a mural of her on one of their walls inside the school.[11] Upon returning to North America, Papaconstantinou began her first year at Ryerson University and trained with the Toronto Varsity Blues.[6]

In 2019, Papaconstantinou ranked third in the world in the 100 and 200 metres for the T64 classification. She also signed with Nike, Inc. to become the first female Canadian athlete to be sponsored by them.[5] During the 100 metres T64 at the 2020 Summer Paralympics, Papaconstantinou set a personal best time of 13.07 seconds during the race to finish third behind Marlene van Gansewinkel and Irmgard Bensusan.[12]

Papaconstantinou won the bronze medal in the 200 metres T64 event at the 2023 World Para Athletics Championships held in Paris, France.[13]

References

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  1. ^ "Marissa Papaconstantinou". Athletics Canada. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  2. ^ Craig, Lindsey (November 2, 2021). "Paralympic sprinter Marissa Papaconstantinou on track, dreaming big". Ryerson University. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  3. ^ "Krinos Canada Announces Sponsorship of Canadian Paralympic Athlete Marissa Papaconstantinou". Greek Press. June 16, 2019. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  4. ^ "Marissa Papaconstantinou". Paralympics. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Zatzman, Louis (May 16, 2021). "Moment of pain has become point of purpose for Paralympian Marissa Papaconstantinou". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Vocino, Matt (March 19, 2019). "SPRINTING TOWARD STARDOM: MARISSA PAPACONSTANTINOU'S ROAD TO THE PARALYMPICS". The Eyeopener. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  7. ^ Mangione, Kendra (May 26, 2014). "Meet the teen athlete who's inspired bionics exhibit". CTV News. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  8. ^ "ATHLETICS CANADA NAMES TEAM FOR 2015 IPC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS". Athletics Canada. September 14, 2015. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  9. ^ Dickinson, Marley (September 3, 2021). "Marissa Papaconstantinou wins her first medal at the Paralympics". Canada's Running Magazine. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  10. ^ "Canada's Marissa Papaconstantinou finishes para worlds 200m with hamstring tear". Running Magazine. July 25, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  11. ^ Yue, Jonathan (October 30, 2019). "SPRINTER MARISSA PAPACONSTANTINOU ON WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AN INFLUENCER ON AND OFF THE TRACK". Athletics Canada. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  12. ^ "Papaconstantinou sets personal best en route to 100m bronze, 1st Paralympic medal". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. September 2, 2021. Retrieved December 25, 2021.
  13. ^ "2023 World Para Athletics Championships Results Book" (PDF). Paralympic.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2023. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
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