2022 Commonwealth Games Gold Medalists

Your 2022 Commonwealth Games Gold Medalists!

As cited from Wrestling Canada Lutte's Website:

Nishan Randhawa - FS 97kg

Nishan Randhawa, from Abbotsford, B.C., drew a tough opponent in the quarterfinal in Deepak Deepak of India. It was a back-and-forth match but Randhawa was able to pull out a late victory, with a force out in the final second. After a failed challenge by India, Randhawa’s win was confirmed 8-6.

Randhawa used that momentum in his semifinal match against Pakistan’s Tayab Raza. Randhawa never let Raza into this one, winning on points 7-0.

With the win, Randhawa went for gold against Nicolaas De Lange of South Africa. De Lange opened the scoring, but Randhawa cut to 2-1 and then scored a takedown right at the buzzer to lead 3-2 at the break. He added to his lead in the second making it 5-3, then 7-3. from there he applied a gutwrench to make it 9-3 and held on to win gold!

“This feels amazing! It has been a long road, I had a couple injuries along the way but finished off strong and I hope to keep this momentum into the World Championships in Serbia where I will give it my all and try to win another medal for my country,” said Randhawa after the win. He went on to elaborate about the grind to the gold medal. “I picked up some injuries in the first match, I fought through the semifinal and felt they caused me to be a bit more hesitant in the final match. As it went on, I feel like I picked up the pace and it all turned out pretty good," (Wrestling Canada).

Justina Distasio - FW 76kg

Burnaby, B.C.’s Justina Di Stasio opened her competition against Naomi De Bruine. Di Stasio had little trouble defeating the Australian by superiority 10-0.

In the semifinal, Di Stasio drew a tough match with Pooja Pooja of India. While it was a close match, Di Stasio was able to pull out a 6-0 victory.

That advanced her to the gold medal match against Hannah Rueben of Nigeria. This was a very even match with Nigeria up 1-0 at the break. In the second, Di Stasio earned a four-point takedown to go up 4-1. That was all she needed as she hung on to win the gold medal 4-2.

“We had a gameplan (for the gold medal match), I am trying to work on my two-on-ones and adjusting on the fly. Sometimes I abandon my gameplan but in that match when I heard my coach say something, I listened and was able to do it. I needed to know I could do that and now I do,” explained Di Stasio.

She went on to talk about the score that won her the match. “She was very strong, when I pulled her down, I could feel she was strong enough to pull back up, so I let her do it so I could sneak in. I had to be patient because if I missed, I knew she would know I was coming. I got her where I wanted three or four times, then I hit it," (Wrestling Canada).

Amar Dhesi - FS 125kg

Amar Dhesi, from Surrey, B.C., received a first round by and faced Jamaica’s Aaron Johnson in the quarterfinal. Dhesi was able to score big with an ankle lace and took the win 10-0. Dhesi drew a tough match up in the semifinal against Mohit Mohit of India. After a tight first period, Dhesi took over in the second and picked up the win 12-2.

That win pit Dhesi against Zaman Anwar of Pakistan for gold. Dhesi, who’s family immigrated to Canada from India in the 1970s, had the heavy India crowd behind him in the match and was able to feed off their energy. Dhesi scored early and then, after giving up his only two points, found himself in a dominant position. He was able to turn it into a pin and took the win by fall, securing the first gold for Canadian wrestlers.

“Accomplishing this feels really good. It was for the family and people back home. I know the Commonwealth Games are a big deal in Canada, so it felt good. I wrestled as hard as I could,” Dhesi said after the win. “Now, I just want to carry this momentum from here and at Pan Ams (where Dhesi also won gold) into the World Championships. I feel very carefree, I will wrestle as hard as I can and whatever the outcome is, it is," (Wrestling Canada).