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Okotoks wrestler backs into a silver medal

A former Canadian wrestling champion is looking for the silver lining after finishing second at a national tournament in late March.
Spencer Watkins tries to gain control over an opponent at the Junior National wrestling championships in Edmonton on March 27.
Spencer Watkins tries to gain control over an opponent at the Junior National wrestling championships in Edmonton on March 27.

A former Canadian wrestling champion is looking for the silver lining after finishing second at a national tournament in late March.

Okotoks’ Spencer Watkins finished second at the Junior National tournament in Edmonton after losing to Montreal’s Riley Otto in the 84kg men’s final on March 27.

“I have mixed feelings about it,” the 19-year-old Watkins said. “I am pretty happy with second, but it’s always the same. You win your match for your gold and bronze and you lose to get the silver… It’s never great to lose your last match of a tournament.”

Watkins was the Juvenile champion two years ago at 76kg as a Grade 12 student at Holy Tinity Academy. Last year he finished second his first year as a Junior (18-19).

This year, he was hoping for gold despite not competing too much on the mat this season.

“I didn’t really start training until the end of January and I went all over the place,” Watkins said. He trained with the Univesity of Saskatchewan, Simon Fraser University, the University of Calgary and the Rebels Wrestling Club in Calgary.

“What made me better this year was traveling and training with all those teams,” Watkins said. “Saskatchewan, especially. There are some top notch wrestlers in Saskatchewan.”

Watkins considers the nationals the top tournament in Canada because it is open to all wrestlers, from those wrestling at clubs to Canadian university athletes.

He opened the tournament by beating Tony Ambros from Saskatoon 6-0, 6-0.

“Before nationals I was in Saskatoon for about a week and I was able to scrimmage against him,” Watkins said. “We knew each other pretty well and I thought I had a good chance to beat him.”

Watkins then beat Kevin Barrett from Hamilton.

“He is a big strong kid, so I focused more on moving his arms,” Watkins said. “The arms are his main force of power — if he couldn’t get his arms on me, I didn’t think he could beat me.”

The win over Barrett put Watkins in the semifinal where he blanked Sanjay Rekhi from British Columbia in two rounds.

Against Rekhi Watkins wrestled defensively using countermoves to score his points.

“If he shot I would score off of his shots,” Watkins said. “After a while he doesn’t want to shoot as much, so that’s when I would go to work (and start shooting).

“To me that’s what makes nationals such an interesting tournament because you always have to adjust, you don’t wrestle the same each match. In high school, I didn’t have to change at all to win.”

He ended up having to make a big change in the finals against Riley Otto. A back injury, which Watkins has battled in the past, flared up.

“Having my back injured isn’t why I lost, it just meant that I had to wrestle more defensively,” Watkins said. “Riley wrestled very smart. I have wrestled him five or six times before and this time he owned the centre of the mat and beat me.”

Watkins lost both rounds, 2-1, 1-0.

His second-place finish was good enough for him to make Team Canada. However, he will not be competing for the national team because he will be leaving for his mission to Australia for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in June.

Young lessons

Spencer’s younger brother had to make some adjustments to his wrestling style when he made the jump up to the Junior level. The biggest adjustment was watching his opponent have their arm raised in victory, instead of his own.

Reid Watkins, 16, wrestled at the Junior level in Edmonton in order to gain some experience.

The Holy Trinity Academy wrestler lost both of his matches at 74kg in Edmonton — the first time he has lost a match this wrestling season.

“I got beat up, which is a change for me,” Reid said. “But it is a good learning experience for me.”

Watkins was not only going up an age category, he was wrestling at 74kg, a weight class higher than what he plans to wrestle this weekend.

“The weight class was a little heavy for me,” Reid said.

“These guys cut weight from 80 to get down to 74, so they are much bigger than me.”

Although Reid won a gold medal in his age group at both nationals and the Pan-Am Games last year, he knew he was in over his head against the Junior wrestlers.

“I didn’t think I would have a chance,” he said. “I learned there is a lot more to wrestling — setting up your shots, being more dynamic. In high school, I can get away with just being a two-dimensional wrestler, just having my two go-to moves and that’s it.”

His go-to moves are single and double leg takedowns.

Although he lost both of his matches, Watkins pointed out he wasn’t pinned — he was never looking up at the roof.

“I did not have to go into a bridge, thank goodness,” Reid said with a laugh. “Most kids my age don’t go (to Junior nationals) because they know they are going to get killed but you learn more from losing than you do from winning.”

Reid will compete in the Juvenile (16-17) championships in Windsor, ON this weekend. He will cut down to 69kg.

“I want to win so I can make the national team and wrestle world championships at Hungary,” said Reid who won the national championship as a Cadet last year.

Reid will leave for England to play for Canada’s U-17 rugby team immediately after the national wrestling championships.

Abi Watkins, a Grade 9 student at John Paul II Collegiate, will wrestle at 51kg in the Cadet girls championships in Windsor.

Cassidy Barnert will wrestle at 63kg in the Cadet girls division. Barnert recently won a silver medal at the high school provincial championships and a gold at the Cadet provincial championships.

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