Five Yukon Judokas were on the road and climbing podiums with some medal finishes at a tournament in British Columbia.
The Peak International Judo Tournament was held at Simon Fraser University from October 21-23 and Judo Yukon had five athletes registered: Jaymi Hinchey, Lia Hinchey, Liam Gishler, Leah McLean and Huxley Briggs.
Making the most of the stiff competition outside the territory, some of the Judokas competed in both their own age group and an older category.
Jaymi mounted the podium in both categories she competed in, winning gold in intermediate senior women’s -57kg and silver in U18 -52kg.
“It was really tough competition but it was a really good tournament and I learned a lot. In the match I lost, I’d try to stay on my feet more because the girl I faced was really good on the mat,” she said.
Gishler competed at -60kg in both U18 and intermediate senior men’s. He won gold in the men’s division and bronze in U18.
“It was my first time winning a tournament outside. It felt good. I had good groundwork throughout,” Gishler said.
Competing at -57kg, Lia earned silver in the U16 division and also took on U18 competition.
“I did well at attacking and going for some throws. I just need to continue working on my grip fighting,” she said.
Also splitting time between adult and U18 divisions was McLean, competing in -63kg U18 and -70kg intermediate senior women’s. Huxley Briggs competed at -42kg U16.
Also travelling with the team for the first time since 2019 was coach Penny Prysnuk who Judo Yukon announced is nearing completion of coaching certifications that will allow her to facilitate dojo assistant and instructor training.
Contact Jim Elliot at jim.elliot@yukon-news.com