When Eekeeluak Avalak was suplexing and pinning his way to a gold medal at the Canada Summer Games Aug. 11 in St. Catherines, Ont. his biggest fan was on the edge of his seat here in Inuvik.
“I told him later I was probably more nervous and excited than he was,” said Town of Inuvik Mayor Clarence Wood, who is Avalak’s grandfather. “I can’t really describe the feelings that I had. To be quite honest I felt like crying, I was so happy.
“He’s a good kid and he’s worked hard.”
But the 18-year-old Cambridge Bay grappler did his granddad proud, taking the gold after besting his opponent, Fred Calingay of Alberta, in a 10-1 match to take the men’s 52-kg weight class top spot. He came out in the match early with a quick six points and added one more after his opponent accidentally stepped out of the ring. Calingay was able to muster in a point before Avalik scored another three to finish the job.
This followed an opening match against Ontario’s Zubin Gatta, which Avalak won by technical superiority with 10-0 score. The match had to be temporarily delayed when Gatta injured his arm off a gut wrench by Avalak to determine if he could complete the match safely. When the match resumed, Avalak quickly finished the match to move on to the gold medal round.
Wood said Avalak gets his strength from his mother, who herself was an accomplished judoka who won a number of competitions across Canada.
“And of course his grandfather” joked Wood.
For Wood, the victory is made even sweeter by the fact Avalak is attending the University of Alberta next fall on a sports scholarship. With flights between Inuvik and Cambridge Bay closing in on $3,000 a ticket, Wood admitted he hasn’t seen his grandson as much as he would have liked. But with him attending school in Edmonton, the family can be together more frequently.
In the meantime, he’s still enjoying the euphoria of the win.
“He’s made me and all our family very proud,” he said. “Hard work pays off.”
- With files from James McCarthy
