Erica Gavel

Erica Gavel
	Team Canada – Erica Gavel
Personal information
Nationality	Canada
Born	May 25, 1991; Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Height	180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Sport
Sport	Wheelchair basketball
Disability class	4.5
Event(s)	Women's team
College team	University of Alabama
Coached by	Bill Johnson

Erica Gavel (born May 25, 1991) is a Canadian 4.5 point wheelchair basketball player who won a silver medal at the 2015 Parapan American Games in Toronto. In 2016, she was selected as part of the team for the 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Biography

Erica Gavel was born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, on May 25, 1991.[1] She attended Carlton Comprehensive High School, where she was a promising basketball player. She went on to play for the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. Towards the end of her first year, she suffered a serious knee injury that required surgery. Like most young and fit people, she recovered quickly, and was ready to play again at the start of her second year. She played foir most of the season but then suffered a cartilage tear in the same knee. This benched her for 18 months. She had no sooner recovered than she injured the knee a third time. This time it required microfracture surgery. There was no cartilage between her femur and tibia. Doctors told her that she would never play competitive sport again.[2]

Gavel remembered that a classmate played wheelchair basketball, and decided to give it a try. She was classified as a 4.5 point player.[2] On March 30, 2014 Gavel led Team Saskatchewan to their first Junior National Championship. Her passion and performance earned her a five-year athletic scholarship to play at the University of Alabama Crimson Tide, which was placed second in the National Intercollegiate Championship in 2014. Gavel was named the team's Most Improved Player.[3] That year she selected for the Canadian national team, which went on to win Silver at 2015 Parapan American Games in Toronto, Ontario). In 2016, she was selected as part of the side for the 2016 Summer Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.[1]

Awards

2015 – Silver at 2015 Parapan American Games (Toronto, Ontario)[1]

Notes

"Canadian Paralympic Team Media Guide - Rio 2016 Paralympic Games September 7-18, 2016 / Rio de Janeiro, Brazil" (PDF). Canadian Paralympic Committee. pp. 313–314. Retrieved January 15, 2018.
Leaderhouse, Dave (July 8, 2013). "Gavel's basketball career rolls forward as injuries force her to change gears". Prince Albert Daily Herald. Archived from the original on September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2016.
D'Andrea, Jeff (June 20, 2014). "'Your career is over' to making Team Canada: Erica Gavel's journey of never giving up". paNOW. Retrieved January 15, 2018.

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[Media_Guide-1] "Canadian Paralympic Team Media Guide - Rio 2016 Paralympic Games September 7-18, 2016 / Rio de Janeiro, Brazil" (PDF). Canadian Paralympic Committee. pp. 313–314. Retrieved January 15, 2018.

[Gavel's_basketball_career_rolls_forward-2] Leaderhouse, Dave (July 8, 2013). "Gavel's basketball career rolls forward as injuries force her to change gears". Prince Albert Daily Herald. Archived from the original on September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2016.

[3] D'Andrea, Jeff (June 20, 2014). "'Your career is over' to making Team Canada: Erica Gavel's journey of never giving up". paNOW. Retrieved January 15, 2018.