Abbotsford's Jaskaran Khela brought home a bronze medal from the Pan American cadet wrestling championships in Recife, Brazil last month.
Khela, a 17-year-old Grade 11 student at Abby Traditional, was competing in the 54-kilogram Greco Roman division.
"It was a whole different experience," said Khela, who finished atop the 54 kg Greco draw at the FILA cadet national trials to earn the opportunity to compete in Brazil. "The competition was much harder than it was here in Canada, and I gained a lot of experience and knowledge going there. Now I know how much harder I have to practice for next year."
Khela says he's "more of a freestyle guy," but he took a crack at Greco – which forbids holds below the waist – and had instant success.
"In freestyle a lot of the points that were scored on me were from my legs," he said. "So I decided to try Greco and no one scored a point on me (at the Canadian FILA trials)."