It’s been a standout summer on the mats for Torin Macfadyen – whether that’s competing in judo for the Takahashi Dojo or in wrestling for Tsunami Academy.
Macfadyen most recently became under-17 Pan American champion in Venezuela, and before that he repeated as 50 kg judo national champion at the same age category to earn a trip to the September Pan Am championships in that sport in Guatemala.
Excelling in two disciplines is one challenge, although the two sports align well enough since national competitions are in different seasons – except when an athlete earns the right to compete internationally in wrestling during the summer.
“It’s pretty difficult, but I like maintaining my training for both,” notes Macfadyen, who spent between 1.5-2 hours training for wrestling nightly in the lead-up to the Pan Ams before jumping into judo practice for another hour-and-a-half.
It proved to be the right combination as the St. Paul Catholic High School student made his first trip to South America. Macfadyen handled his first two opponents from El Salvador and Dominican Republic in consecutive rounds, although the gold medal final was a heart-stopper. Scoreless in the deciding round after splitting the two first two, Macfadyen won the toss and scored a point from the clench to secure his title.
“I was so happy,” says Macfadyen, who enjoyed the feeling of competing alongside Canadian teammates, and friends. “I’d trained so hard for it. I really wanted to win that tournament. It was my first Pan Ams, but I knew I could do it.”
Two athletes from the National Capital Wrestling Club also competed at the Pan Ams. Augusta Eve was winless in the women’s 40 kg category, while Magalie Rondeau won matches over El Salvador and Guatemala and lost to U.S. and Venezuelan competitors en route to the bronze medal.