For one more meet, three members of the Corbett family will stand together and wear their St. Thomas More colours with pride – and two of them will step onto the mat to compete.
The past few years head coach Doug Corbett and daughters Ciara and Caileen have worked, trained and practised as part of a large team.
The Knights wrestling squad is a family unto its own, but the last four years it has had its own bloodlines.
This weekend’s B.C. wrestling championships in Abbotsford presents the final time that the two older Corbett sisters will be on the same high school team. If they feel the emotion of the moment, it likely won’t overcome them until the final hold is completed.
“It’s a rollercoaster ride,” said Doug, who has spent 19 years piloting the program at the Burnaby private school. “As a coach you often get emotionally invested in your wrestler’s matches, but when it is your own kids it’s off the charts. You feel every win and every loss a little more.”
Like a Rubik’s Cube, an individual grappler’s success depends upon a lot of moving parts – some outside the wrestler’s control. Preparation is where the foundation begins, and STM’s stellar record at the provincials over the past few years displays how prepared its athletes have been when it comes to the season finale.
The Knights’ girls team has won the B.C. banner two years running, while the boys side captured its title two years ago. As a group, STM is three-time reigning champion.
Ciara enters her final high school meet hungry for that final win. A two-time silver medalist in 51-kilograms, the softspoken 17 year old has overcome an early season injury to elevate her performance just in time for the provincials. Her aim there is to wrestle her best and return with a gold.
“It’s definitely something I want. It drives me to want to finish (first) and I know if I put in my best, do my preparation that it is possible,” said Ciara. “In the end if I do my best I can be proud.”
At 16, Caileen has competed at two previous provincials and returned home with silver (in 2014 at 40kg) and gold (last year in Grade 11). She’ll be looking to make a similar grab moving this year into the 43kg division. A big part of her preparation is through visualization.
“I do a lot of visualization the week before a tournament,” she said. “I envision me wrestling my main competitors and trying my best moves, and then them responding with their moves.”
When it comes to their favourite sport, the hook was natural, having spent hours in the gym as their dad coached his teams and the girls watched, then tried it themselves.
“I’ve been wrestling competitively since Grade 8 but I’ve been goofing around on the mats and going to camps since, well, like my whole life,” said Caileen.
On the occasions where the two siblings lock limbs, Ciara’s taller frame and bigger size has given her an edge.
“They’re scrappy and they’ve had their battles for sure but they don’t (fight) – it may help that Ciara is that much bigger,” said Doug. “They know what each one is facing so they’re very supportive. Wrestling is a tough sport.”
A third Corbett – Kiela, in Grade 6 – will likely put on a singlet at STM in the coming years. Her two older sisters say being coached by ‘Dad’ is a great experience.
“My dad is a great coach, we all adore him,” said Ciara. “We want to impress him on what we’ve learned and what we can do… We went on a trip to a meet on the Island and all the kids were calling him ‘Dad.’”
Caileen agrees.
“It’s fun. It’s definitely a different experience to be coached by someone else, but I love having my Dad as coach. I feel he understands what I’m thinking, and works with me on improving every day.”
