Billings hosts more than 300 for provincials

After having a packed gym at Howard S. Billings High School on February 14 for the Greater Montreal Athletic Association (GMAA) wrestling championship, Billings and Kanien’kehá:ka Tehontatie:nas Mohawk Wrestling Club (MWC) head coach Peter Montour knew to expect another crowded day for provincials on Saturday.

But what happened exceeded even the first-time provincial host’s expectations.

“We prepared for 200, and we got 300,” said Montour.

“The last time I saw provincials this size was in the early-to-mid 90s, where we went off to two-day events. Here we are trying to pack it all in one day.”

Montour said that the provincials have had a jump in the number of wrestlers for the past three years, going from less than 150, to 200 last year, to over 300 this year.

He said that the end of the COVID-19 measures as well as the relatively low cost of the sport can explain the sudden jump in popularity.

Despite starting an hour late, Montour said the event ran well and finished essentially on time.

Prior to the event, Montour solicited volunteers on Facebook to help run the tournament smoothly, and they delivered.

“It really came down to the hard work of the volunteers, the hard work of the coaches, the officials, everybody,” said Montour. “It’s all a learning progress. But it was really great for us to host this.”

Results-wise, MWC-Billings performed pretty well, finishing eighth overall in the 19-team field; especially considering the boys’ side was depleted due to injuries and illness.

Kahnawa’kehró:non Ava Hamelin won gold in the U19 girls 90-KG category for MWC-Billings, one of seven golds for the girls of the combined team.

Sydney Hoshowatiuk won gold in the U17 boys 125-KG category.

While he is proud of his whole team, there was one performance that, while not medal-winning, Montour made sure to acknowledge: his son, assistant coach Otiohkwanoron Montour, who had not wrestled competitively in 16 years prior to participating in the men’s 97-KG category, finishing fourth.

“He decided that he would be working on himself, and he lost a lot of weight. He got back into training, and although he’s only been training with the high school kids, he decided, ‘You know what, I’m going to wrestle,’” said Montour.

“The last time he wrestled, some of these kids were either in diapers or weren’t even born yet.”

Along with his son, Montour said their results and the work the wrestlers put into the day for MWC-Billings would not have been possible without assistants Wenhniseriiostha Goodleaf, Kiana Boschitch, and Mich Stepp.

Another factor for the higher number of wrestlers at provincials was the growing presence of high school teams.

Among them was Kahnawake Survival School (KSS), who brought along three wrestlers for provincials: Lennox Deer, Slade Two Rivers, and Lanuhsisas’as McComber.

KSS did not medal, but head coach Brandon Stalk was glad they got to experience provincials nonetheless.

“At provincials, every match is going to be one of the best opponents they face all year. They showed up to win and they tried their best, had some good moments, and gained a lot of experience. I’m really proud of them for how well they showed their pure grit and determination to win even when things weren’t going their way,” said Stalk.

He is hoping to continue to grow the program at KSS next year and aim for nationals, but he said that without a dedicated training facility in town, it will be difficult to do so.

“I can’t bring kids to nationals who aren’t getting the proper amount of practice time. I want them to be able to train in Kahnawake with our coaches,” said Stalk.

Nick Tritton, head coach of Tritton Performance, said that they will be working with KSS to try to provide that sort of year-round facility for wrestlers looking to train outside of the school season.

Tritton Performance is one of the very top teams at provincials, and this year was no different, with their 41 wrestlers coming home with 28 medals.

“I was coaching Saturday and it was nice to see the growth of wrestling throughout the province with new clubs popping up and old ones sending out more athletes,” said Tritton.

Tritton Performance had a few athletes from town who medalled – many of whom are Tritton’s children and stepchildren, making wrestling a family sport for the head coach.

Grayden Diome won gold in the 42-KG category and silver in the 48-KG category; his sister Claire Diome won gold in the 53-KG category; their stepsister Kelita Tritton won gold in the 26-KG category; Nick Cross won silver in the men’s 125-KG category; and Kanerahtens Bush won silver in the 60-KG category.

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