BIOS

Name: Tom Mahoney
Role: Athlete/Volunteer
Number of Years with Club: Since the beginning!
How you got involved with Boccia: Through Debbie Willows. She took me under her wing and taught me a lot. When she retired, she thought that I was ready and wanted me take over. At that point, I was already playing for 10 years. I then ran into health problems, but I loved the adventures from boccia. I retired as a player for a few years and have been coaching some of the Cannonballs. However, in 2022, I came out of retirement and got selected to play as a Wildcard at the 2022 Canadian Boccia Championships that was hosted in London!
Favourite Quote: I am Boccia King!

Name: Jamie McKee
Role: Athlete
Classification: BC2
Number of Years with Club: 15 years
Greatest Boccia Achievement: When I made Team Ontario for the first time in 2009
Favourite Quote: It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get back up

Name: Sandra Regalo
Role: Athlete/Promoter of the Cannonballs
Classification: BC3
Number of Years with Club: 16 years
Greatest Boccia Achievement: Making Team Ontario twice!
Favourite Quote: Laugh everyday!

Name: Gord Kittmer
Role: Athlete
Classification: BC3
Number of Years with Club: 3 years
Greatest Boccia Achievement: Meeting new people. Got my ball from one side of the gym to the other. Improved during a pandemic.
Favourite Quote: There are no speed limits on the road to success!

Name: Justin Corriveau
Role: Athlete
Classification: BC3
Number of Years with Club: 3 years
Greatest Boccia Achievement: Improving my aim, even with my vision impairment! Making new connections with people. Doing new activities during training.
Favourite Quote: Say yes to new adventures!

Name: Joe (Joey) Spittal
Role: Athlete
Classification: BC3
Number of Years with Club: 19 years
Greatest Boccia Achievement: Just meeting the Team and having fun competing
Favourite Quote: How are you? Whatcha doing?

Name: Alison McKee
Role: Athlete/Volunteer
Number of Years with Club: 15 years
How did you get involved with Club: I got started through a friend of mine named Liza Worsfold, and also my husband Jamie.
Greatest Boccia Achievement: Got selected as a Wildcard to play at the 2022 Canadian Boccia Championships in London and won the GOLD medal in Pairs with Daniel from BC. What an awesome feeling that was!
Favourite Quote: If you are working on something that you really care about, you don’t have to be pushed. The vision pulls you.

Name: Logan Pennings
Role: Athlete
Classification: BC3
Number of Years with Club: 2 months
Fun Fact: Logan is our newest member! He is having so much fun getting to know Boccia and playing! He loves being able to be a part of a team!

Name: Tracey Carvell
Role: Sport Assistant
Athlete’s Name That You Work With: Sandra Regalo
Number of Years Being a Sport Assistant with Your Athlete: off & on for 16 years
Best Boccia Memory: When Sandra was told that she made the Ontario Team in 2019 and we went to Nationals in Victoria, BC.
Favourite Quote: It takes 10,000 hours of practice to be good at something – keep practicing! It doesn’t happen over night that you become a pro! Trust the journey!

Name: Rachelle Cadman
Role: Sport Assistant
Athlete’s Name That You Work With: Gord Kittmer
Number of Years being a Sport Assistant with Your Athlete: 1 year
Best Boccia Memory: When during the pandemic, Gord decided he wanted to go competitive and work even harder for his favourite sport.
Favourite Quote: *Fist Pumping* – everytime Gord gets closer to the Jack than his opponent

Name: Haley Mantero
Role: Sport Assistant
Athlete’s Name That You Work With: Justin Corriveau
Number of Years being a Sport Assistant with your Athlete: 2 years
Best Boccia Memory: When Justin hit someone’s ball and cancelled their point for the first time, and the celebration that followed! Getting to learn a new sport with everyone I support!
Favourite Quote: Any change, even change for the better, is always accompanied by discomforts!

Name: Vicky DaSilva
Athlete’s Name that you work with: Alison McKee and Jamie McKee

Name: Adam Dukovich
Role: Coach and President
Number of Years with Club: 18 years
How you got involved with Boccia: I am a 2-time Paralympian. I competed at the 2008 and 2012 Paralympic Games. I was looking for a summer sport and after trying a couple, a friend saw a boccia tournament at a Ontario Regional Meet and suggested I try it.
Favourite Quote: When you get knocked down, get right back up!

Name: Tammy McLeod 
Role: Coach and Vice-President
Number of Years with Club: 21 years
How you got involved with Boccia: I am a 4-time Paralympian. I competed in Boccia for 27 years. I competed at 4 Paralympic Games (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012). I got involved in Boccia when I was 15 years old (1991). I was competing in swimming at the time, but the classification that I was in wasn’t going places. My teammate and her parents knew a woman who was involved in Boccia and that she was hosting a tournament called Boccia Blast, so they thought that I should check it out. My parents and I went to check it out, and Debbie Willows (the woman who founded Boccia Blast and the London Cannonballs, let me try it. I was instantly hooked! I then started going to weekly practices with the London Cannonballs. I had attended my first Canadian Boccia Championships in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1992, and I played 9  games and won all 9 to win the GOLD! The rest is history! Went on to compete until I retired in 2018. I am now a Certified Coach!
Favourite Quote: If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it – Michael Jordan

Name: Christine Reid
Role: Volunteer
Number of Years with Club: 29 years
How did you get involved with Club: I was asked by Tammy to travel to Winnipeg with her for a tournament and things just continued from there. I travelled with Team Ontario in many different roles and did some refereeing for Team Canada tournaments. After I finished travelling due to a knee injury and work, I continued helping at the local level and assisting with fundraising.
Favourite Quote: Keep Smiling!