Born and raised in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island, former Rugby Canada International Robin MacDowell is an athlete-centered coach who has been coaching sports at all levels for over 27 years.

 

Robin grew up playing multiple sports, showing promise in more than one discipline. Robin made the choice to move from the Valley to Europe at 19 years old to pursue a professional rugby career in both France and Italy. After several years, he returned home to attend University, where he played on the University of Victoria varsity team, as well as to realize his dream of representing Rugby Canada on the World Sevens Series, including the 2006 Melbourne, Australia Commonwealth Games. 

 

As a former international athlete that travelled the world over as both player and coach, Robin has a strong understanding of what it takes to get to the next level and he knows how to help elite athletes achieve success. His true passion lies with helping athletes reach their goals at every level of the game – from grass roots to high performance. 

 

Robin has been highly successful in coaching various select teams, including: youth, club, provincial, national, and international programs. He has seen many of his players go on to play at the highest level of the sport, attending many international tournaments.

 

Robin also has vast experience coaching at the international level, most notably the five years he spent with the Mexican Women’s National Sevens team. He coached and lead the team through the 2018 Rugby World Cup 7s in San Francisco, as well as 4 multi-sport games.

 

For the past 6 years, Robin has worked with the Canadian Men's and Women's 7s pathway programs.