From roughhousing on the living room floor to competing nationally in Las Vegas, it’s been quite the journey for two young lakecity wrestlers.
Sisters Klay-Lynn Pare, 9, and Kai Pare, 7, competed in Las Vegas late April at the 2016 Open Wrestling Championships.
The duo began their wrestling careers as members of the Williams Lake Wrestling Club for a few seasons and, enjoyed the sport so much they started training year-round at Coast Wrestling Academy in Burnaby where they regularly travel to tournaments in Washington.
Among other wrestling achievements, Kai is ranked seventh in Western Washington, while Klay-Lynn is currently ranked fourth in Western Washington and has earned the title of Western Canadian champion in her division.
In Las Vegas, the pair got to test their grappling skills against wrestlers from around the globe,
“I enjoyed the experience,” Klay-Lynn said.
“We had some really good matches,” Kai added.
Kai placed first in two tournaments and fourth in another.
Klay-Lynn, meanwhile, won her dual meet while facing off against wrestlers from Norway, Utah and Nevada.
At the tournament, Klay-Lynn and Kai competed in folk style, freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling.
As part of their training the girls travel to Burnaby for at least one week a month.
They attend Mountview elementary school where, along with their parents Tovi and Ian, were influential in starting a wrestling program.
“Ever since the girls were little and able to horse around they’ve always enjoyed wrestling around with their dad in the living room,” Tovi said. “They caught on quickly and it soon became quite exciting and competitive.
“They’ve travelled to many tournament in the U.S., attended training camps and have made new friends, as well as special bonds with coaches and teammates.”