Gillian Florence is a Canadian

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

player who has participated in five world cups (

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson ...

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

, 2002, 2006, and 2010). Starting out as a

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...

on the national team, she became one of Canada's top flankers. Florence first started playing rugby in high school (1987–1992) in Grade ten and

John Abbott College John Abbott College (French: ''Collège John Abbott)'' is an English-language public college located in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec, Canada, near the western tip of the Island of Montreal. John Abbott College is one of eight English publi ...

(1992–1994). Her first cap was at the 1994 Women's Rugby World Cup, at the age of 18, and retired in 2011. She represented Quebec for eighteen years and played for Ste. Anne de Bellevue for twenty-two years. Having played one season with

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous ...

in 1995–1996, her national schedule conflicted with the university team's schedule. She was a member of the

World XV A World XV is a rugby union team organised on an unofficial, ''ad hoc'' basis and typically composed of invited players from various countries. Several World XVs have been arranged by various bodies, often to take part in celebration and testimoni ...

that played against the New Zealand Black Ferns in 2003. Florence became an assistant coach for the McGill Marlets in 2008, a decade after graduating. In 2011, Florence, along with Brooke Hilditch and Megan Gibbs protested Canada's "pay-to-play" system for women in non-World Cup years by refusing to pay the $2,900 to play in the 2011 Nations Cup. After retiring, she coached her club, Ste Anne de Bellevue, in 2012 and 2013. She is now on the Monty Heald Fund committee which aims to eliminate the "pay to play" experience. She returned to the rugby pitch in 2017 and suited up for the Nova Scotia Keltics.

Honours

* 1995 CIS All-Conference honours * 1998 named one of McGill's top 20 athletes of all time (McGill Tribune) *1994 World Cup game MVP at her test debut *2003 All World team * 2017

Rugby Canada Rugby Canada is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in Canada. Rugby Canada was incorporated in 1974, and stems from the Canadian Rugby Football Union, a body established in 1884 that now governs amateur Canadian football a ...

Hall of Fame inductee (first woman in the hall of fame) * 2018

Hall of Fame inductee An annual

award is named in her honour and is given to a "player who best represents the qualities of Canadian rugby as voted by her teammates." Recipients include Andrea Burk (2014),

Barbara Mervin Barbara Mervin (born April 1, 1982) is a Canadian rugby union player also known affectionately as Swevin Mervin. She represented at the 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup. She broke a bone in her right hand in 's first World Cup match against and mis ...

(2015),

Julianne Zussman Julianne Zussman (born January 23, 1987) is a Canadian rugby union player and referee. She represented at three World Cups. She was named as fullback on the dream team of the 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup. In 2016, she was the recipient of the G ...

(2016), Kelly Russell (2017), Laura Russell (2018) and

Olivia DeMerchant Olivia DeMerchant (born February 16, 1991) is a Canadian rugby union player. She has represented at the 2014, 2017 and 2021 Rugby World Cup's. Rugby career In 2011, DeMerchant played for the Canadian women's under-20 team. She represented at ...

(2019).

Personal life

In 1998, she graduated from McGill University with a bachelor's degree in Education. In Montreal she worked for Caterpillar, for Ultra Electronics in Nova Scotia, and now Kinduct in Halifax. She moved to rural Nova Scotia when she was eight months pregnant. She lives with her partner, firefighter Aaron Graham, is mother of two children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Florence, Gillian Living people Canadian female rugby union players Canada women's international rugby union players Sportspeople from Montérégie Year of birth missing (living people)