Hundreds of athletes competed all weekend at the Ag-Rec Centre when the Pacific International Judo Tournament made its Abbotsford debut.
Judo BC and the Abbotsford Judo Club hosted the event from Jan. 27 to 29 and age divisions represented at the event included: U10, U12, U14, U16, U18, U21, seniors, veterans and kata.
The Judo Canada points tournament is an important selection tournament for athletes who wish to compete at the 2023 Canadian Open Nationals.
The event was previously held at the Richmond Olympic Oval and the Steveston Community Centre in years past.
Abbotsford athletes in the U10 and U12 divisions taking home hardware were: Beau Cryer (gold – U12 male group eight), Tomoki Dennis (silver – U12 male group five), Olivia Giesbrecht (gold – U12 female group one), Jay Ji (bronze – U12 male group three), Quinn Kenny (gold – U12 female group three), Anna Rauch (silver – U12 female group one), Mohammed Smeisem (gold – U12 male group four), Saad Smeisem (silver – U10 group four) and Ashnavir Toor (silver – U12 group three).
Locals earning medals in U14 and veterans divisions were: Chris Cryer (gold – veteran male 100 kilograms-plus), Leo Ji (silver – U14 male 60 kg), Harsaya Khosa (gold – U14 novice female 52 kg), Mark Kotliarenko (gold – U14 novice male 35 kg), Dominik Maple (silver – U14 male 66 kg-plus), Matthew Rauch (bronze – U14 male 38 kg), Jude Torenvilet (bronze – U14 male 60 kg), Gabe Wiebe (gold – U14 novice male 55 kg).
Abbotsford competitors earning medals in the U18 and U21 divisions were: Kaleb Christen (bronze – U18 male 73 kg), Zachary Harris (bronze – U18 male 73 kg), Nova Rotbart (gold – U18 female 70 kg) and Nathan Thiel (bronze – U18 male 55 kg).
Abbotsford senior novice/intermediate and U16 athletes winning medals were: Dante Da Silva (silver – U16 male 73 kg-plus), Elvir Kadiric (silver – senior intermediate male 100 kg), Robert Lachlan (silver – senior novice male 73 kg), Brenden Reid (gold – senior intermediate male 73 kg), Nathan Thiel (gold – U16 male 55 kg) and Sarah Thiel (gold – senior novice female 57 kg).
Abbotsford senior advanced winners were: Carter Harris (bronze – male 73 kg), Payton Harris (gold – male 100 kg) and Nova Rotbart (gold – female 70 kg).
Saturday saw U10, U12, U14, veterans, U18, U21 and kata competitions, while Sunday featured senior novice/intermediate, U16 and senior advanced.
For a complete list of results, visit live.judobc.ca/2023-events/pacific-international.