It’s an understatement to say that Civil Engineering PhD student Donna Vakalis, supervised by professors Heather MacLean and Jeffrey Siegel, has a busy couple of weeks ahead of her. The Toronto native who received her Master’s degree from U of T’s John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture in 2009, will be one of 36 athletes competing in the modern pentathlon at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
After finishing 29th at the 2012 London Olympics and then 4th at last year’s PanAm Games in Toronto, Vakalis will be fencing, riding, swimming, shooting and running her way towards the gold medal.