Despite the pandemic and changing public health restrictions, Mansfield weightlifter Xavier Lusignan had a busy year competing in 2021, from winning three gold medals at the Canadian Junior Weightlifting Championships in March to making his international debut at the Junior Pan American Games in Colombia in July.

He spoke with CHIP 101.9 about how his year has gone and what he hopes to accomplish in the new year.

Lusignan said that despite only attending three events this year, at the level of competition he’s at, it’s good to have lots of practice time to work on perfecting technique.

He said that he was proud of the support he’s been getting from the community, adding that the recognition is really important to him, given all the sacrifices that he’s made to get to such a high level.

Looking ahead, Lusignan has his sights set on even higher levels of competition. He plans on winning the Canadian Junior Championships for the third year in a row, before heading off to the biggest stage he’s competed on, the IWF Junior World Championships. Born in 2003, he still has two more years to compete as a junior and said that he where he finishes would be less important than closely observing the competition.

He said that he would also be returning to the Junior Pan American Championships with the goal of improving on this year’s 6th place finish.

The full interview with Lusignan is available below: