Matt Gentry and Tonya Verbeek win Wrestler of the Year Awards

St. Catharines, Ont. – Wrestling Canada Lutte announced the winners of its Wrestler of the Year awards at a ceremony prior to the finals at the 2012 ASICS Canadian Wrestling Championships.

Matt Gentry of the Burnaby Mountain Wrestling Club was awarded the Men Wrestler of the Year award, while local hero and two-time Olympic medallist Tonya Verbeek received the Women Wrestler of the Year award.

Gentry earned the best individual men’s result for Canada at the 2011 World Wrestling Championships in Istanbul, finishing in 18th. He concluded the 2011 season with a bronze medal at the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. He also took the bronze medal at the Golden Grand Prix event in Georgia, a bronze medal at the Dan Kolov tournament in Bulgaria, and most recently a gold medal at the Yasar Dogu event in Turkey.

Tonya Verbeek, a two-time Olympic and multiple world championships medallist, topped her season with a silver medal performance at the 2011 World Wrestling Championships in Istanbul. This result and her win at the Canadian Olympic Trials have guaranteed Tonya a nomination on the 2012 Olympic Team. She finished the 2011 international season with only two losses, earning gold medals at the German & Spanish Grand Prix events, the Dave Schultz Memorial, and the Kyiv International, as well as winning a silver medal at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Wrestling Canada Lutte congratulates Matt Gentry and Tonya Verbeek on their accomplishments.