The McNeice brothers have done it again. The brotherly duo of Callum and Connor McNeice took part in the 2019 Senior and Junior Canadian Wrestling Championships on March 22 to 24 in Saskatoon with Callum taking home the crown of national champion and Connor bringing back a bronze medal.
In the senior men's 79 kg division, Callum defeated Miles Kent in round one, Sam Barmish in round two and Brayden Ambo before taking a 6-5 decision over Ontario's Juwan Burgess in the final match to take the gold.
McNeice said this is something he's been thinking about for a long time.
"Man, it's awesome. It's something I've always dreamed of. This is the first national gold medal I won so it's pretty special," McNeice said of his tournament win. "I certainly couldn't have done it without my family, teammates and coaches. It's an unreal feeling."
McNeice has a lot of illustrious medals and tournament wins in the past such as being named Canada West champion, most outstanding wrestler for Canada West and high school provincial championships but he said that becoming a national champion might trump them all.
"Being a national champion is something I've always wanted to become," McNeice said. It was extra special that my whole family was there to watch. It was a surreal experience to say the least ... however, I still have a lot of things to work on both mentally and physically. It's a process."
It's been a grind. Since September we've been having four to five on mat practices a week and three weight sessions early in the morning. It's not easy being a student athlete, time management is key. There's days we leave the house at 5:30 a.m. and don't get back until 8:30 p.m. which means it's a busy lifestyle."
"Not only does this hard work pay off with wrestling, but I believe it's what sets us student athletes apart from everyone else. Accountability, hard work, perseverance, commitment; I could go on and on, these values are engraved into those who are a fully-committed student-athlete. It's not easy being constantly sore or studying after a hard practice, but those that do reap the rewards."
Connor on the other hand was no slouch. He just missed out of the gold medal match finishing behind Ontario's Daniel Coles and B.C.'s Jacob Tizoc Alexander Torres to claim the bronze.
With both McNeice brothers competing and winning a medal at the event, Callum said it made the experience that much more special.
"It was special for sure. This year in general has been a lot of fun because he's first year varsity so we train with each other on a regular basis," McNeice said. "It's an advantage not many people have."
With the national championship win, you would expect the McNeice's to take a couple weeks off right? Wrong.
"The Pan American Championships are in three weeks. I put my name in for that and am hoping they choose me," McNeice said. "No guarantees though ... a tournament and camp in Italy is also a possibility and then hopefully the world championships. There's no guarantees, as I have to be chosen by Wrestling Canada but that's the hope."
