Julie Kozun (right) following her bronze medal win at this year's Paralympic Games in Paris (submitted photo)

By Ben Tompkins

Part of History

Julie Kozun: the life of a Paralympic medalist

Oct 10, 2024 | 6:00 PM

It’s been a month since Julie Kozun became a Paralympic bronze medalist in Paris, France.

Kozun, alongside the rest of her Canadian teammates, earned the third-place finish in sitting volleyball.

Now, the Melfort native is back in the northeast and resuming a normal life, but as a Paralympic medalist.

“I think making history with the team was the biggest thing for me,” Kozun told northeastNOW when reflecting on her time in Paris. “Being able to say that we were Canada’s first sitting volleyball team to win a medal is probably the part that has stuck with me the most so far.”

Julie Kozun (right) receiving her bronze medal in Paris (submitted photo)

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Kozun is still invested in the game, a month after her bronze medal win, but in a different light.

She is now head coaching a U15 standing volleyball club team in Nipawin this fall after being their assistant coach last year. Hopefully, her second time around coaching will be much like her second time at the Paralympic Games, with improvement and learning from past experiences.

Julie Kozun with her bronze medal in hand in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. (submitted photo)

“After finishing fourth in Tokyo and being back in a bronze medal match, all of us who were returners knew we had been in the situation before and we knew how it could go. I was just really happy and proud of everyone, that we were able to come out on top this time and just really show that we could be the better team. We put in a lot of hard work to get on the podium,” Kozun added.

“We were up 2-0 heading into the third set and for a moment my mind started to say we were going to win. I had to keep reminding myself to stay in the moment and really ground myself. We had some nerves creeping in but our coach shut those down and clearly it worked.”

Team Canada defeated Team Brazil in the bronze medal contest, as Kozun had plenty of family and friends in attendance.

Julie Kozun with her family in Paris (submitted photo)

When she returned, with a bronze medal in hand, she was able to share it with her coworkers and the rest of her family and friends.

“I got to bring it into a work event which was really great. Everyone’s very proud, so it’s been very nice,” Kozun concluded.

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Ben.Tompkins@pattisonmeida.com

On X @BenTompkins_8