Alison C. Bonner (born 27 June 1962) is a British former

rower Rowing, often called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars (called blades in the United Kingdom) are attached to the boat using rowlocks, while paddles are ...

who competed in the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...

. She is also an Associate Professor of

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

History in the Medieval period at the Department for Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, and a Fellow of

Queens' College, Cambridge Queens' College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Queens' is one of the 16 "old colleges" of the university, and was founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou. Its buildings span the R ...

. Bonner is a specialist on

Pelagius Pelagius (; c. 354–418) was a British (Celtic Britons, Brittonic) theologian known for promoting a system of doctrines (termed Pelagianism by his opponents) which emphasized human choice in salvation and denied original sin. Pelagius was accus ...

and the manuscript transmission of his writings, as well as ascetic literature on fourth and fifth century CE.

Rowing career

Bonner was part of the coxed four with Sarah Hunter-Jones, Tish Reid, Ann Callaway and Lesley Clare (cox) that won the national title, rowing for A.R.A. squad, at the 1985 National Championships. The following year, she represented

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and won a silver medal in the eight at the

1986 Commonwealth Games The 1986 Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, between 24 July and 2 August 1986. This was the second Commonwealth Games to be held in Edinburgh. Thirty two of the eligible fifty nine countries (largely African, Asian and Caribbe ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. In 1987, Bonner was part of the coxless pair with

Kim Thomas Kim Susannah Thomas (born 10 October 1967) is a former competitive rower from Great Britain. Early life Thomas was born in 1967 in Wandsworth, Great Britain. She grew up in Ottershaw in Surrey. She is a member of the Leander Club at Henley-on-T ...

that won the national title, rowing for a

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

and Weybridge Ladies composite, at the 1987 National Championships. In 1988, she was selected to represent Great Britain in the women's coxless pair event at the

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

. The pair which consisted of Bonner and Thomas finished in eighth place.

Academic career

Following her Olympic career, Bonner undertook doctoral research in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic at Cambridge, receiving a PhD in 2012. Her doctoral thesis was titled ''The Scale, Context, and Implications, of the Manuscript Transmission of Pelagius ''Ad Demetriadem.'' Bonner has been a lecturer in Celtic History in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic at the

since 2016. She joined

as a Fellow in 2019. She studied for her Ph.D. in Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic at

Hughes Hall, Cambridge Hughes Hall is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The majority of students are postgraduate, although nearly one-fifth of the student population comprises individuals aged 21 ...

Research

Bonner published a monograph, '' The Myth of Pelagianism'', with the British Academy in 2018. The volume was reviewed by Professor Josef Lössl as 'important and valuable' and can 'be recommended as a substantial contribution to the study of Pelagius and his works and thought.' Bonner wrote the article, 'In Praise of Pelagius', for the

Church Times The ''Church Times'' is an independent Anglican weekly newspaper based in London and published in the United Kingdom on Fridays. History The ''Church Times'' was founded on 7 February 1863 by George Josiah Palmer, a printer. It fought for the ...

on the publication of her monograph.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bonner, Ali British women classical scholars Living people Alumni of the University of Cambridge Alumni of the University of Oxford Pelagianism Year of birth missing (living people) Fellows of Queens' College, Cambridge Patristic scholars 1962 births British female rowers Olympic rowers for Great Britain Rowers at the 1988 Summer Olympics Rowers from London Commonwealth Games silver medallists for England Commonwealth Games silver medallists in rowing Rowers at the 1986 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1986 Commonwealth Games