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Born: December 30, 1979 in Toronto, Ont.
Hometown: Toronto, Ont.
Coaches: John Hawes (national); Ross Ristuccia; Nicole Stevenson (run); Igor Tikhomirov (fence); Patrick Haynes (shoot); and Byron Macdonald (swim).
Vakalis started in modern pentathlon in 1993 and is one of only two Canadians to qualify for the World Cup final this September in Brazil. She has competed internationally since 2006 and this year won a bronze medal in the relay event at the Hungarian World Cup. Last year, she took silver medals at German and Swiss competitions. Her goal is to make the Canadian Olympic team and compete at the London OIympics in 2012. Vakalis has a bachelor of arts and science degree from McMaster University and just defended her master’s thesis in architecture at the University of Toronto. She holds a variety of teaching and research positions at the University of Toronto and the Ontario College of Arts and Design in software design. |