The Brock Badgers will host the 2022 Ontario University Wrestling Championships on Saturday, April 2.Brock University will host the 2022 Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Wrestling Championships for the first time in four years this spring.
The OUA announced Thursday, Feb. 10 that Brock would host the provincial championships on Saturday, April 2 in Bob Davis Gymnasium.
With U SPORTS also announcing the cancellation of the 2022 national championships Thursday, Brock Wrestling head coach Marty Calder said competition would be magnified for this year’s OUA championships.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Brock women’s wrestling team won its sixth-consecutive OUA title, and the men’s side secured its fifth-straight title during the 2019-20 season.
“We are extremely excited about the new schedule’s opportunities for this year,” Calder said. “The OUA preparatory events will culminate with a highly-competitive OUA championships, which will allow our student-athletes the opportunity for intense, quality competition. We will use this to restart our programs in hopes of more consistent training and a top-level U SPORTS Championship in 2023.”
The OUA’s decision on the provincial championships was delayed to allow for more discussion and consultation with members.
“OUA members brought forward concerns with respect to the complexity of the high-contact sport of wrestling and its effect on student-athlete health and safety,” the OUA wrote in a statement. “Noting the need for sufficient training time and competitions before any championship experience.”
U SPORTS decided to cancel the 2022 wrestling championship due to the safety and security of student-athletes.
“We regret to announce the cancellation of the 2022 U SPORTS wrestling championships,” said Dick White, Interim U SPORTS Chief Executive Officer. “Working with all stakeholders, we determined that cancelling the championships would provide the greatest number of student-athletes in wrestling the opportunity to participate in more high quality, secure competitions via longer conference schedules. We thank the University of Saskatchewan for offering to host this year’s event and look forward to bringing the U SPORTS wrestling championship back in 2023.”
