Abbotsford Police Department officers returned from Winnipeg with significant hardware after excellent showings in the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu competitions at the 2023 World Police and Fire Games on Aug. 4 and 5.
Local officers took home three gold, three silver and two bronze medals in BJJ competition.
Const. Smith won gold in both Gi and No-Gi, while Sgt. Wood also earned gold in Gi. Earning silver was Const. Stoutenburg (Gi), Const. Toews (Gi) and Const. Gerbrandt – who also scored bronze in No-Gi. Const. Lesuk also collected bronze in No-Gi.
Athletes were categorized as Advanced, Intermediate and Beginner for BJJ and also in separate divisions for age and weight.
Manitoba hosted more than 8,500 athletes representing law enforcement, firefighters, and police officers from more than 50 countries across the world. They competed in 60 different sports at the event, which ran from July 28 to Aug. 6.
Winnipeg was originally set to host the event in 2021, but it was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year marked the first time that Canada has hosted the Games since Vancouver did in 2009.
For more information on the event, visit wpfg2023.com.