As Sara McPhail of Hazelton, B.C., dropped her opponent to the mat one last time in the final seconds of the contest, McPhail knew she had just won first in the Under 17, 69 Kilos girls division at the 2023 Canadian Wrestling Championships in Vancouver.

“It feels pretty amazing,” McPhail said in an interview as she headed home following the late March competition.

McPhail’s victory comes after months of training and competition that took her to regionals, provincials, and then the B.C. Summer Games to qualify for the nationals. At only 14, she is one of the youngest Under 17 wrestling champions in the country and is only getting started.

Her final opponent at the 2023 Canadian Wrestling Championship was familiar to her. It was Cassidy Pace, the former U17 title holder. The two had wrestled before at a tournament earlier in the season, and McPhail had triumphed. Still, she wasn’t sure what to expect going into the championship match.

Despite not having the best facilities or access to competition like other communities across the province, Hazelton is known for turning out wrestling greats like Olympic gold medalist Carol Huynh and Lyndsay Belisle. Although it’s a few years off, McPhail could be next.

“I can’t go to the Olympics until 2028 because you have to be 17,” McPhail said. “I’m only 14, and it’s only every four years, so I got to wait quite a bit for that. So I’m just going to go to nationals each year and keep trying to improve.”