Charity Williams (born October 20, 1996) is a Canadian rugby sevens player.[1]

Charity Williams
Date of birth (1996-10-20) October 20, 1996 (age 27)
Place of birthToronto, Ontario
Height1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)
Weight68 kg (150 lb)
Rugby union career
National sevens team
Years Team Comps
2015–Present  Canada 124 (350)
Medal record
Women's rugby sevens
Representing  Canada
Olympics
Silver medal – second place 2024 Paris Team competition
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team competition
Youth Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2014 Nanjing Team competition

Career

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Williams participated in gymnastics during her childhood and wanted to compete on the Olympic stage.[2][3] She soon realized that her goal of going to the Olympics could not be achieved in gymnastics.[2][3] In Grade 10 a friend introduced her to rugby, so she decided to attend practice and fell in love with her new-found sport.[2][3]

In 2016, Williams was named to Canada's first ever women's rugby sevens Olympic team.[4]

Alongside teammates Pam Buisa and Caroline Crossley, Williams represents the national women's sevens team on the Rugby Canada Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour Working Group which was established on July 17, 2020.[5]

In June 2021, Williams was named to Canada's 2020 Summer Olympics team.[6][7]

She was chosen for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.[8] The team won a silver medal, coming from 0-12 behind to defeat Australia 21-12 in the semi-finals,[9] before losing the final to New Zealand.[10][11]

Achievements and honours

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  • 2017, Canada Sevens Langford dream team.[12]
  • 2024, Silver Medal (Canada), 2024 Olympics (Paris)

References

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  1. ^ "Charity Williams". Olympic.ca. Canadian Olympic Committee. 8 July 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-07-13. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Dymock, Alan (2021-07-30). "Charity Williams: "Gymnastics wasn't going to take me to the Olympics"". Rugby World. Retrieved 2022-08-20.
  3. ^ a b c "Charity Williams". www.thegistsports.com. 2020-03-18. Retrieved 2022-08-20.
  4. ^ MacDonnell, Beth (July 8, 2016). "Historic first Canadian women selected for Olympic rugby at Rio 2016". Olympic.ca. Canadian Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on 2016-07-09. Retrieved July 10, 2016.
  5. ^ "RUGBY CANADA ESTABLISH BLACK, INDIGENOUS, AND PEOPLE OF COLOUR (BIPOC) WORKING GROUP AND ADOPT ZERO TOLERANCE ENVIRONMENT". Rugby Canada. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 2021-05-06.
  6. ^ Awad, Brandi (25 June 2021). "Team Canada names women's and men's rugby teams for Tokyo 2020". Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  7. ^ Davidson, Neil (25 June 2021). "Veteran trio to lead Canada's rugby 7s squads at the Tokyo Olympics". Canadian Press. Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  8. ^ "Team Canada reveals women's rugby sevens squad for Paris 2024". Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Team Canada shocks Australia, will go for gold in women's rugby sevens". Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  10. ^ "Canada wins silver in women's rugby sevens after narrowly losing to All Blacks in Olympic final". Toronto Star. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  11. ^ "Gutsy Team Canada earns silver in women's rugby sevens". Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  12. ^ "Canadians dominate Langford Dream Team". Americas Rugby News. 2017-05-29. Retrieved 2019-05-13.
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