| Marie-Claude Dion | |
| Fullname: | Marie-Claude Dion |
| Birth Date: | 1974 4, mf=yes[1] |
| Birth Place: | Quebec City, Quebec, Canada |
| Height: | 1.65m |
| Position: | Defender |
| Youthclubs1: | Dynamo de Quebec |
| Youthyears1: | 1991–1993 |
| Collegeyears1: | 1994–1998 |
| Clubs1: | Dynamo de Quebec |
| Years1: | –2000 |
| Clubs2: | Ottawa Fury |
| Years2: | 2000 |
| Clubs3: | Laval Dynamites |
| Years3: | 2001 |
| Nationalteam1: | Canada |
| Nationalyears1: | 1996–2001 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 27 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
Marie-Claude Dion (born April 25, 1974) is a former Canadian soccer player who played as a defender. She made 27 appearances for the Canadian national team and was part of the squad that won gold at the 1998 CONCACAF Women's Championship.[1]
Born in Quebec City in 1974, Dion started playing soccer in Beauport at the age of eight.[1] She was first noticed by the Canada Soccer Association in 1989, during a tournament played in Edmonton. In 1991, she joined the newly-founded Dynamo de Quebec, who played in the Ligue de soccer élite du Québec (LSEQ).[2]
Dion started studying at Laval University in the fall of 1994; at the time, the school did not have a women's soccer programme. Later that year, a team was finally established, led by Head Coach Helder Duarte, who also coached the Dynamo de Quebec.[3] In her first year playing for the Rouge et Or, Dion finished first in team scoring with 12 goals and was named to the U Sports All-Canadian Second Team.[4] [5] Additionally, she was named to the RSEQ First Team All-Star and voted the RSEQ Rookie of the Year.[6] In her second season, she won the Chantal Navert Memorial Award, which is awarded annually to the U Sports women's soccer Player of the Year,[7] and was named to the U Sports All-Canadian First Team for the first time. She also won the RSEQ Player of the Year award and was included in the RSEQ First Team All-Star for the second consecutive season.[8] In her third year, she received RSEQ First Team All-Star and U Sports All-Canadian Second Team honours again. In her final season with the team, she was once again named the RSEQ Player of the Year and received RSEQ First Team All-Star honours for the fourth straight year.[9] She was also named to the U Sports All-Canadian First Team for the second time. Thus, in April 1999, she was one of six athletes to be honoured at the annual Gala du Mérite Sportif Rouge et Or.[10]
After graduating from Laval University, Dion briefly relocated to British Columbia to pursue her soccer career.[2] From 2000 to 2002, she played in the USL W-League.[2] In 2000, she played for the Ottawa Fury.[11] The following year, she signed for the Laval Dynamites.[12]
Dion was the first-ever female player from Quebec to be invited to a Canadian national team camp.[2] She was part of the team that represented Canada at the 1993 Summer Universiade in Buffalo, New York, coached by Sylvie Béliveau.[2]
On May 12, 1996, at the age of 22, Dion made her debut for the national team in Worcester, Massachusetts, playing the full 90 minutes in a 6–0 loss to the United States at the 1996 Women's U.S. Cup.[13] In 1997, she played again at the 1997 Women's U.S. Cup.[6] [1] One year later, she was part of the team that won the 1998 CONCACAF Women's Championship, which served as a qualifier for the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup.[1] In 2000, she participated at the 2000 CONCACAF Women's Gold Cup, where Canada finished in fourth place.[1] She made her 27th and final national team appearance on March 15, 2001, in a 2–1 victory over Portugal at the 2001 Algarve Cup.[14]
Dion officially retired from the national team in the summer of 2002, at the age of 28.[15]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | 1996 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1997 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 1998 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 1999 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2000 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2001 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 27 | 0 | ||