By: Wilson Wong - Manager, Communications and Sports Information (wilson_wong_5@sfu.ca)
BURNABY, B.C. – The Simon Fraser women's wrestling program is once again showing it is one of the best on the planet. It will have six alumni competing at the 2022 World Championships, which began Saturday, and will run to Sept. 18 in Belgrade, Serbia.
Justina Di Stasio, Ana Godinez Gonzalez, and Karla Godinez Gonzalez will represent Canada, while Helen Maroulis, Dominique Parrish, and Mallory Velte will look to win for the United States.
"Any year where there is not an Olympic Games, the World Championships become the premier event," says SFU head coach
Justin Abdou. "Having these six women represent their countries and SFU is exciting. It's exciting for our varsity athletes, our alumni, our fans and our coaches. Mallory, Justina and Helen have all been on the podium here before and are all capable of medal performances. Ana, Karla and Dom all had great college careers and have excelled at the age-group world championships. They are ready to make some noise at this level. It's going to be fun to watch."
All six have earned success on the international stage after decorated careers at SFU. Five are seeded (ranked in the top eight) for the World Championships.
Maroulis – an Olympic gold (2016) and bronze (2020) medalist – is the top seed in the women's 57-kilogram division. She has five World Championships medals to her name (three gold, one silver, and one bronze). Maroulis won three Women's Collegiate Wrestling Association championships with SFU (2011, 2013 and 2014).
The current Pan American champion, Karla Godinez Gonzalez is the sixth seed in the 55-kg weight class. Her university career culminated in March with her second individual title at SFU. She was also the Women's Collegiate Wrestling Coalition champion in 2020.
Her sister Ana is the seventh seed at 62 kg. The under-23 world champion last year, Ana Godinez Gonzalez followed up that accomplishment with gold at this year's Pan-Am Championships and silver at the Commonwealth Games last month. She won the WCWC 116-pound championship for SFU in 2020.
Parrish is the seeded seventh wrestler in the 53-kg class at the world meet. She won two-consecutive WCWA individual championships at 123 pounds as a university athlete on Burnaby Mountain. In 2019, Parrish was named the WCWA Wrestler of the Year, and the recipient of the Patricia Miranda Medal as the outstanding female collegiate wrestler who embodies the spirit of the sport's pioneers.
Velte is the No. 8 seed in the 65-kg competition. After completing a university career that included three WCWA titles as a member of Simon Fraser, Velte won bronze at the 2018 World Championships at 62 kilograms.
Justina Di Stasio. Photo by Ron Hole
Di Stasio, who is also an assistant coach with SFU, is looking to capture her second world championship after placing first in the 72-kg division in 2018. The year before, she took third (75 kg) at the 2017 world competition. This time, she will be competing at 76 kg, the same weight class she won at 2022 Commonwealth Games.
In the men's competition, alumnus Nishan Randhawa, who wrestled at SFU from 2015 to 2020, is the Canadian entrant in the men's freestyle 97-kg division.
Fellow alumni Dave McKay and
Raj Virdi will be coaching for Canada at the 2022 World Championships.
- with files from Wrestling Canada Lutte
For the latest information on SFU Athletics, visit
athletics.sfu.ca. You can also find us on social media at @SFU_Athletics.
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