By Martin Cleary
Erica Wiebe officially retired as a high-performance freestyle wrestler in March, 2024, closing the book on an exceptional decade of achievement at home and around the world.
The former Stittsville resident felt it was the proper time as there were no more interesting challenges for her to grapple with in the world of sports … and she has played many sports in her life.
While Wiebe has taken herself down many constructive avenues in the past few years, the closed door on her amateur wrestling career has led to open doors for situations where she is being honoured for her past achievements.
When the Sacred Heart Catholic High School and University of Calgary graduate won the women’s 75-kilogram class gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, there was plenty of recognition – podium ceremony, media interviews and celebrating with family and friends.
She also competed in a salaried wrestling league in India, was invited to explore World Wrestling Entertainment and spoke to thousands of students about her Olympic journey.
But what Wiebe accomplished almost nine years ago has resurfaced during the past five months from various aspects of the Ottawa sports community.
Last November, she was inducted into the rejuvenated and renamed Stittsville Sports Hall of Fame. Her wall plaque hangs in the CardelRec Recreation Complex Goulbourn only a few steps away from the gymnasium, which bears her name, which is another Olympic reward.
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On May 28, Wiebe will be welcomed into the Ottawa Sport Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2025 along with the Barrett Family, Erwin Budge, Jo-Anne Polak and Don Campbell, the 2012 Ottawa Fury women’s soccer team, Jacques Martin and Pat Stoqua at the sold-out event.
Commonwealth Sport Canada joined the lineup of honourees by announcing on April 9 Wiebe would return to the multi-sport games not as an athlete but as the Chef de Mission for Team Canada at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.
One of 15 applicants for the high-profile position, Wiebe earned the right to provide overall leadership for the national team and support the athletes by creating an on-site environment to achieve optimal performance. She also will encourage and motivate the Canadian mission staff, supply necessary services to the team through innovative and creative leadership, and be the primary spokesperson for the team.
Wiebe is fully aware of the Commonwealth Games and, in particular, Glasgow.
Glasgow will serve as the host of the Games for a fourth time, but it will be a scaled-back version of what the sports festival has been in the past. Instead of the 21 sports at the Birmingham Games in 2022, Glasgow stepped forward to save the Games in August, 2024 on the conditions it would stage 10 sports using existing venues. The Games were originally awarded to the State of Victoria in Australia, but escalating costs forced it to withdraw as the host.
The 2026 Commonwealth Games will have a reduced competition schedule: athletics, 3×3 basketball, boxing, artistic gymnastics, judo, lawn bowls, netball, swimming, track cycling and weightlifting. The sports calendar also will have six fully integrated para sports.
Pushed to the sidelines were rugby 7s, field hockey, badminton, triathlon, twenty20 cricket, squash, diving, table tennis, beach volleyball, para powerlifting and freestyle wrestling.
Unfortunately, Wiebe won’t get to support Canadian athletes in her sport of freestyle wrestling. She won her first of two Commonwealth Games gold medals in Glasgow in 2014 with four straight victories. Wiebe added her second Commonwealth gold with three wins at the 2018 Gold Coast Games.
“It’s an incredible honour to be entrusted with the role of Chef de Mission for Team Canada at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow,” Weibe said in a press release by Commonwealth Sport Canada.
“The Commonwealth Games embody the ethos of sport with a social purpose, which is a powerful driver. I cannot wait to support the team as they experience the joy of competition at these Games – the same feeling of joy I felt at the 2014 Games in the same city.”
Wiebe, who has earned B.A. degrees in sociology and kinesiology as well as an executive MBA from Queen’s and Cornell universities, has remained in sport after her athletic career, serving in a variety of areas. She works full-time with the Canadian Olympic Committee as manager of athlete relations, safe sport and diversity, is a volunteer youth wrestling coach in Montreal and is the vice-chair of the Canadian Sports Institute Alberta board of directors.
“The 2014 Games were a turning point in my career – experiencing the beauty of cultures and abilities within the athletes’ village, and competing were moments I will never forget,” Wiebe added. “Our team in 2026 will be in good hands with an incredible mission team delivering an athlete-centred experience.”
“We are confident that, for these streamlined Games, Erica’s commitment to sport, DEI and athlete advocacy will bring exceptional value and leadership to Team Canada for 2026,” said Team Canada 2026 director Kelly Laframboise.
Martin Cleary has written about amateur sports for over 52 years. A past Canadian sportswriter of the year and Ottawa Sports Awards Lifetime Achievement in Sport Media honouree, Martin retired from full-time work at the Ottawa Citizen in 2012, but continued to write a bi-weekly “High Achievers” column for the Citizen/Sun.
When the pandemic struck, Martin created the High Achievers “Stay-Safe Edition” to provide some positive news during tough times, via his Twitter account at first and now here at OttawaSportsPages.ca.
Martin can be reached by e-mail at martincleary51@gmail.com and on Twitter @martincleary.
