Women’s Rugby World Cup | Karen Paquin wants to take her chance

Karen Paquin is riding the last miles of her prodigious career. She therefore wants to leave an indelible mark on her sport in what could be her last major competition on the international scene.

Nicholas Richard
The Press

At 35, Paquin has lived the finest moments in the history of Canadian rugby. And she helped a lot.

Playful and passionate as on the first day, the one who commands immense respect in the team for which she has fought body and soul for almost a decade was impatient on the eve of a long two-month trip. First Vancouver to train, then Fiji to play a preparatory match, then finally New Zealand to compete in the Women’s World Cup from October 8 to November 12.

“I have the same butterflies as the first time and maybe even a little more, because I know what I’m getting into. And with experience does not necessarily come less nervousness,” said the Quebecer just before her departure.

Victories and setbacks

The attacker will be at a third World Cup. The first two ended very differently. In 2014, Canada won the silver medal thanks to a historic run. Then, in 2017, the team had to settle for fifth place. “There, I wonder what will happen, what it will look like. »

Through these two World Cups, there is also the exhilaration of victory when the team won the bronze medal at the Rio Olympics in 2016, and the agony of defeat at the Tokyo Games in 2021 with a disappointing ninth place.

The team is now counting on more stability and consistency, and that can only take its toll: “I think we can do something great and I can’t wait to experience it. »

The team that will represent Canada in the Mecca of rugby will notably count on 11 Quebecers, but above all on a happy mix of young players and veterans. This is one of the greatest qualities of this brigade, according to Paquin.

Experienced players will still have their say, since they’ve been through so much together. The native of Quebec evokes “resilience and a collective desire to move forward”. “I think that’s what could be our strength during this World Cup. »

Leave your mark

Paquin, a model of authenticity, has proven to be a real fighter both on and off the field since her debut, and that’s how she made her mark.

Her biggest battle was arguably overcoming a serious knee meniscus injury at the 2017 World Cup, which sidelined her for a year and a half. She was even uncertain of being able to turn back the field one day.

That’s why what could be his final lap is so significant.

Paquin has always gone headlong, but since this injury, she has nothing to lose. She approaches the World Cup with the same state of mind. “Every time I get on the pitch, I tell myself that this may be the last time I play, so I have to take advantage of it. It was a turning point in my career, in my approach, in my way of seeing things and every time I set foot on the pitch, I have gratitude and I tell myself that if this is the last time, I will have given everything. »

It is also this image that she wants to leave behind.

There is still big rugby to be played and Paquin is determined to do everything in her power to win, but also to show the youngsters how to do it.

“I want to do something good, to show rugby in its best light for future generations. So there’s a kind of external pressure that I didn’t have before or didn’t really think about. »

She will have the opportunity to seize her chance. That of winning the title, that of guiding the next generation, that of leaving their mark. She will manage to tick all these boxes only if she follows what has guided her since day one: be herself and keep smiling.