KOZUN Julie

Canada
Sitting Volleyball
23 Dec 1999
21
Female
VS1
MELFORT, SK
 
Canada
MELFORT, SK
 
Canada

Events and Medals

Discipline Event Rank Medal
VBS Sitting Volleyball Women
CAN
Canada
 4

Schedule

Change
Start Time Location Event Status
Makuhari Messe Hall A
Women's Preliminaries Pool A
#02
BRA
Brazil
3
CAN
Canada
2
Finished
Makuhari Messe Hall A
Women's Preliminaries Pool A
#05
ITA
Italy
1
CAN
Canada
3
Finished
Makuhari Messe Hall A
Women's Preliminaries Pool A
#12
CAN
Canada
3
JPN
Japan
0
Finished
Makuhari Messe Hall A
Women's Semifinals
#16
CHN
China
3
CAN
Canada
0
Finished
Makuhari Messe Hall A
Women's Bronze Match
#17
BRA
Brazil
3
CAN
Canada
1
Finished

Biographical Information

Highlights

:
RankEventYearLocation
World Championships
7Women2018Netherlands
:
Juls (Athlete, 15 Dec 2015)
:
Snowboarding, snowmobiling, horse riding, fishing, spending time outdoors, camping, swimming. (paralympic.ca, 01 Feb 2020; Athlete, 24 Aug 2021)
:
Student
:
Agricultural Studies - University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, CAN
:
English
:
Melfort Storm Volleyball Club [Canada]
:
Nicole Ban [national], CAN
:
She has played able-bodied volleyball for Melfort Storm in Saskatchewan, Canada. (cjme.com, 22 Apr 2016)
:
She fractured her right femur at age six in a tobogganing accident on vacation. (Athlete, 24 Aug 2021)
:
She began playing able-bodied volleyball while at school, and took up sitting volleyball in 2015 in Edmonton, AB, Canada. (melfortjournal.com, 15 Mar 2016; Athlete, 15 Dec 2015)
:
While she was in hospital after her accident, her friend's cousin Erica Gavel, a Canadian wheelchair basketball team member, visited her. She told her about sitting volleyball and introduced her to the Canadian team. "I love volleyball and because of my accident I'm limited on the amount I can play, so with sitting volleyball I can do what everyone else that's playing can do too." (Athlete, 15 Dec 2015; paralympic.ca, 01 Feb 2020)
:
To win a medal at the 2020 Paralympic Games in Tokyo. Outside of sitting volleyball, she would like to use her degree in agribusiness to become a chemical sales representative. (Athlete, 24 Aug 2021; paralympic.ca, 01 Feb 2020; worldparavolley.org, 01 Jan 2018)
:
Qualifying for the 2020 Paralympic Games. (Athlete, 24 Aug 2021)
:
Coaches Nicole Ban and Christine Biggs. (Athlete, 24 Aug 2021)
:
She listens to music to motivate herself ahead of matches. (Athlete, 24 Aug 2021)
:
"Hit ball hard." (Athlete, 24 Aug 2021)

General Interest

Classification
VS1 (worldparavolley.org, 12 Dec 2020)

Type of Impairment
Limb deficiency (Athlete, 15 Dec 2015)

Origin of Impairment
Acquired (Athlete, 15 Dec 2015)

Impairment Details
A lawnmower accident at age 15 in 2015 resulted in her left leg being amputated below the knee. "I got my first surgery, which basically cleaned [the wound] up, they took grass and stuff out of it, and assessed it. [Then the doctors said], 'We should probably amputate'. I could have kept it, but they said I probably wouldn't walk again." (Athlete, 15 Dec 2015; smeatondistrictnews.tripod.com, 01 Sep 2015; worldparavolley.org, 01 Jan 2018)

General
LEARNING THE SPORT
She played standing volleyball before and after her accident and says it took time to learn to love sitting volleyball. "I Googled it and I thought, 'Well, that looks weird. That does not look fun at all. I don't know if I'll like this. Sitting on the ground, how do you get on top of the ball?' The first time I tried it, it was almost faster and harder. I liked that about it. It was more of a challenge. When I first started sitting, I liked standing more, because I knew the game better. But now, I definitely like sitting more. I'm way better at it, I improved a lot this year [2018], and it's more fun when you know what you're doing." (worldparavolley.org, 01 Jan 2018)

BREAK AND RETURN
She became a member of the Canadian sitting volleyball team in 2015, before taking a break in the northern hemisphere spring of 2016 to focus on her high school studies. After a year away from the sport, she returned to the team in early 2017. (paralympic.ca, 01 Feb 2020)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
She has been an ambassador for Canadian non-profit organisation The War Amps, which supports people with limb deficiencies. In 2018 the mayor of Melfort in Saskatchewan, Canada, presented her with a Certificate of Appreciation, recognising her involvement within her community as a safety ambassador with The War Amps programme. She has also received a Gold Star for the creation of a Play Safe video she presented at an elementary school in Melfort on behalf of The War Amps. (paralympic.ca, 01 Feb 2020)

Legend
:
Gold Medal Event
:
Silver Medal Event
:
Bronze Medal Event
Content 1 (removed through CDN)
Content 2 (removed through CDN).
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