Around 100 young wrestlers stepped onto the mat at the Centre Communautaire gymnasium last Friday for the fourth annual Conseil Scolaire Centre-Est elementary wrestling tournament.
The event saw elementary-aged athletes from École du Sommet, École des Beaux-Lacs, École Voyageur and École Beauséjour go toe to toe, and tournament organizer Troy Gratton said it's great way for student athletes to engage in a physically competitive atmosphere.
“Kids love to play-fight and wrestle, and this is a healthy way and a safer way to get that energy out. We wanted something for those elementary kids so that they could have a school activity that would be competition based . . . and wrestling in particular is a neat activity.”
Gratton added while wrestling can result in tears for some, many learn to deal with the adversity, and keep returning with a smile.
“(Kids) keep coming back, and the ones that do come back are having a lot of success,” he said. “It's so intense, and that emotion is raw. Sometimes a little tweak and they can get a little bit of tears, but they're smiling at the end. They're happy to get their ribbons and they keep coming back, so obviously that's just in the moment.”
Keane Doody – Beauséjour
Nolan Chamzuk – Beauséjour
Alex Lessard – Sommet
Patrick Dulmage – Beauséjour
Nicolas Beaudoin – Sommet
Marc Deucharme – Beaux-Lacs
Jacob LeClerc – Sommet
Kwayd Turgeon – Beauséjour
Alexandre Cardinal – Beaux-Lacs
Wolke Cueva – Sommet
Peter Grzela – Voyageur
James Wilson – Beaux-Lacs
Leah Brousseau – Sommet
Mélanie Plamondon – Beauséjour
Anik Leclerc – Beauséjour
Madison Leroux – Sommet
Cheyenne Leroux – Sommet
Alyssa Bernier – Beaux-Lacs
Halle Stybel – Sommet
Morgan McKale – Voyageur
Brooklynn Malbeuf – Beauséjour
Annabelle Culham – Sommet
Tialandis Guinard – Beauséjour
Emally Bloom – Beaux-Lacs
