Colleen Cupido heading to London Olympics

It’s official – McMaster physiotherapist Colleen Cupido will travel to London next month with the Canadian beach volleyball team.

On Saturday, the national team earned an Olympic berth at the NORCECA Continental Beach Volleyball Cup in Mazatlan, Mexico, with both the men’s and women’s sides winning their respective finals.

Volleyball Canada first turned to the former CIS All-Canadian in May to help get its best beach volleyball players into this summer’s Olympic Games in London.

“I retired from the national team in 1994, so this is like coming full circle because I always dreamed about playing in the Olympics and this is a second chance to be part of the summer games,” said Cupido.

A McMaster alumna (’91, ’93 & ’10), Cupido was the first Marauder women’s volleyball player to achieve All-Canadian status, and also spent time on the Canadian national team. She is currently the Manager of McMaster’s David Braley Sport Medicine and Rehabilitation Centre, as well as a Registered Physiotherapist.

In London, she’ll be responsible for the coordination of medical coverage and therapy services for high performance beach volleyball athletes, identified by Volleyball Canada.

”It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to be part of the Olympic Games,” Cupido said. ”It just seemed like a great fit to combine my sports medicine background with my volleyball experience.”

Results from the weekend tournament in Mexico can be viewed at Volleyball Canada.