Canada has had some outstanding female wrestlers over the last 30 years. They have included six-time world champion Christine Nordhagen of Valhalla, Alberta, two-time Olympic medalist Carol Huynh of Hazelton, British Columbia, three-time Olympic medalist Tonya Verbeek of Grimsby, Ontario, and reigning Olympic champion Erica Wiebe of Stittsville, Ontario.
At the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021, Wiebe is trying to do something that no Canadian wrestler has ever done before. That is to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals. This will be Wiebe’s final major international wrestling tournament, as she is planning to retire after the Olympic Games. Now the graduate from the University of Calgary, will be competing in the women’s 76-kilogram weight class on August 1 and 2.
In addition to winning the Olympic gold medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Wiebe also won the bronze medal at the 2018 World Wrestling Championships in Budapest, Hungary in the women’s 76-kilogram weight class. It should be noted that Wiebe won gold at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in a weight class that was 75 kilograms. It will be interesting to see if the extra kilogram in Wiebe’s weight class will impact her at all.
One more wrestler representing Canada at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021 is a medal contender. That is Danielle Lappage of Olds, Alberta, who won the silver medal in the women’s 65-kilogram division at the 2018 World Wrestling Championships in Budapest. She will be competing on the Olympic stage on August 2 and 3.
