Godinez Gonzalez earns top finish for Canada with fifth at 2023 World Championships

September 23, 2023

BELGRADE, SERBIA — The 2023 Senior World Championships were held Sept. 16-24 in Belgrade, Serbia for the second year in a row. It was a familiar name that picked up the top result for Canada as defending bronze medalist, Karla Godinez Gonzalez finished fifth, just narrowly missing out on a second consecutive bronze medal.

Women’s results

Godinez Gonzalez, from Surrey, B.C., and the Burnaby Mountain Wrestling Club, began the event with a 5-1 win over Poland’s Katarzyna Krawczyk in the round of 16. She advanced to face Japan’s Haruna Okuno in the quarterfinal, where she was beaten 5-2. Okuno would eventually reach the final and win the gold medal, meaning Godinez Gonzalez was brought back into the repechage. She defeated Otgontuya Chinbold of Mongolia 5-1, setting up a rematch of last year’s bronze medal contest between Godinez Gonzalez and Mariana Dragutan of Moldova. However, it would not be the same result as a year ago. Dragutan took the win 3-2 and the bronze medal.

Other women’s results included: Burnaby, B.C.’s Justina Di Stasio eighth at 76kg; Brantford, Ontario’s Madi Parks 10^th at 50kg; Fredericton, New Brunswick’s Samantha Stewart 10^th at 53kg; Surrey’s Ana Godinez Gonzalez 13^th at 62kg; McKellar, Ontario’s Shauna Kuebeck 14^th at 72kg; Summerside, P.E.I.’s Hannah Taylor 17^th at 57kg; Swift Current, Saskatchewan’s Aleah Nickel 17^th at 65kg; Orillia, Ontario’s Olivia Di Bacco 18^th at 68kg; and Montreal’s Laurence Beauregard 22^nd at 59kg.

Men’s results

On the men’s side Brampton, Ontario’s Tejvir Boal was 20^th at 92kg; Komoka, Ontario’s Adam Thomson 22^nd at 74kg; Abbotsford, B.C.’s Jasmit Phulka was 22^nd at 79kg; London, Ontario’s Treye Trotman 23^rd at 57kg; Edmonton’s Mike Asselstine 26^th at 70kg; Montreal’s Alexander Moore 29^th at 86kg; Abbotsford’s Nishan Randhawa 33^rd at 97kg; and North York, Ontario’s Lachlan McNeil 43^rd at 65kg.

For complete tournament information, including schedule, brackets and match video archive visit the tournament website at: https://uww.org/event/world-championships-49/results