SÃO PAULO, Brazil — Canada was well represented on the officiating crew at the World Wheelchair Rugby (WWR) Americas Championship in São Paulo, Brazil, with Joli-Anne Lévesque and Kevin Caldwell taking the court as referees.

The tournament marked a milestone for Lévesque, who earned her international referee certification — making her the first Canadian woman to do so. She joined veteran official Caldwell, who capped his week by working the gold medal match, an honour reserved for the top-performing referees at the event.

For Lévesque, from Québec, officiating wheelchair rugby began as an extension of her lifelong love of sport.

“My initial motivation when I started officiating wheelchair rugby was to discover a new sport,” she said. “I have always been a multisport athlete fascinated by sport strategy and performance.”

She began her journey in refereeing through her involvement as a basketball player, picking up refereeing as she transitioned out of the sport. Eventually, she moved into refereeing  wheelchair basketball before discovering wheelchair rugby.

“Adaptive sports have taught me a valuable life lesson; that life is all about perspective,” she said. “What I have come to discover is that the wheelchair is a powerful tool that gives individuals the freedom of movement. Seeing athletes expressing their freedom on the court and playing with heart and passion is something extraordinary.”

With mentorship from colleagues and support from Wheelchair Rugby Canada and Parasport Québec, Lévesque began refereeing wheelchair rugby in 2021 and quickly progressed to the international level.

“The wheelchair rugby community is like a big colourful family where everyone contributes by adding their special touch of personality,” she said. “During the game we all wear different uniforms but when the game is over, we all enjoy each other’s company with great discussion and great laugh.”

Lévesque plans to continue developing as a referee, and do her best to serve the wheelchair rugby community well.

“My goal for the future would be to become a reference for the community of Wheelchair Rugby Canada in terms of upcoming advancement in the sport and make rule knowledge more accessible and understandable for anyone,” she said.

Meanwhile, Kevin Caldwell gained valuable international experience as a referee. The veteran official not only worked the gold medal game but also shared the tournament experience with his brother Cody, who played for Team Canada, the bronze medallists of the tournament.

“I started officiating when my brother first started practicing wheelchair rugby,” Caldwell said. “We just came out to volunteer, started playing at practices and then working the table and time clocks and eventually learning the rules and refing practices and games. That would’ve been 15 years ago.”

His officiating career grew steadily, as he took on more assignments while his brother Cody became increasingly involved in the sport.

“ It just sort of happened,” he said. “We’d go to bigger tournaments throughout Ontario and Canada, to the west coast and, and east coast. And then the higher level referee community pushed us along that way to keep progressing. Eventually I traveled to some bigger tournaments in the US and one thing just sort of led to another.”

Caldwell’s first international experience came as a table official at the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima, Peru. He earned his international referee licence the following year in Vancouver and has since worked at the 2023 Parapan Am Games in Santiago, Chile.

“The people. From volunteers to players, to the staff. Everybody’s fun to be around” Caldwell said, when asked what keeps him coming back to the sport. “ You meet people from all over the world. Everybody welcomes you, encourages you to improve, and push each other to the next level.” 

International events often double as family gatherings for Caldwell, but one moment stands out for Kevin— travelling to Paris in 2024 to see Team Canada play.

“The coolest experience through wheelchair rugby was going to Paris last year to see Team Canada play. Of the three Paralympics that our family has been a part of, this was the first I could attend in person. It was quite fun to be in Paris and just see how big it is with a full stadium of fans and everything.”

Their achievements added to Canada’s success in São Paulo, where the national team secured bronze and a spot at the 2026 World Wheelchair Rugby Championships.

Find out more about how to get involved in officiating HERE