Cochrane wrestler Connor McNeice has joined his older brother Callum as a medalist in the Canada Summer Games.

McNeice faced Christian MacDonald, of New Brunswick, in the 65 kg semifinals before defeating Ontario's Pierre Arabadjian for the gold medal.

Winning the medal is especially treasured by McNeice because he's following in the footsteps of his older brother who won silver in 2013 and is currently a valued member of the U of C wrestling team.

"Ever since I watched Callum at the games.four years ago, it's something I have been working towards and knowing that I got it done is exciting."

It's been a long season for McNeice and he believes he came into the games at his peak.

"I think I wrestled smart. It's been a pretty busy summer and a lot of hard work so it was nice to be wrestling at my peak."

Gold is a common colour for the 17-year-old McNeice. He's had a fruitful 12 years in the sport and among his many honours are four consecutive national titles and a gold at the cadet Pan-American championships in Lima, Peru in 2016.

Cochrane Cowboy Hunter Smith, 16, finished fifth in the 85 kg class and had earlier beat the eventual silver medalist Justin Shannon, of New Brunswick. He won his only bout in the individual event against Julian Klinger, of Saskatchewan, but did not qualify for the medal round.

"The way the draw was drawn up I had the two best guys on my side. I didn't make it to the crossover and get a medal but that's okay. I enjoyed the team atmosphere and being with all the different athletes here. It was a great experience."

With only four years in the sport, he's already building an impressive resume. This year alone he is a provincial champion, was third in the Canadian National Championships and was second in the FILA Team Canada Trials.

Men's program head coach Vern McNeice said it was a bitter-sweet games. He was disappointed in Alberta's fifth place finish in the team event, but feels somewhat vindicated by Alberta's best performance in individual events in several summer games. The Alberta's men's team had four wrestling for gold and three of them won top prize.

Going into the games, McNeice said they knew it was going to be challenging because of their tough pool. The must win dual, though, was against Quebec and they fell just short, losing 28-23. Winning one of four close matches would have made the difference.

"We needed to beat Quebec to get in the bronze medal match.with the other pool. We came up shy and that was disappointment."

Going into the games he believed they had a strong chance of finishing second or third and knew Ontario, a team they pushed harder than any other province, was the strongest.

"No other team was even close to what we did against them. They were by far the cream of the crop; they were very deep and very talented team and well coached and well supported."

He was particularly impressed with the results of the individual bouts and how Alberta matches up against the rest of the country.

"We're very proud of the kids. We won in middle weight classes and those are the deepest pools so that was good for us. Our kids are right there with the best kids in the country."

Many people played a role in continuing to build wrestling in the province and preparations for the games is four years of development and hard work. He also praises the wrestlers who did not make Team Alberta but were right there helping the ones who did.

"A lot of kids are really truly a part of these medals that are hanging around some of the necks this week. That's really special, that's a wonderful reward. I'm proud of group and proud of what has happened here."

"Now we move forward and onward and look to get ready for the next cycle and continue to keep growing as a sport in our province."

In the meantime, though, wrestlers McNiece and Smith and the rest will be taking a well-deserved break and try to enjoy what remains of the summer before returning to class and the wrestling mats.

Other men's gold medalists were Jordan Wong, 56kg, and Adam Thompson, 75kg, and Magnus McCrakin, 70kg, won silver.

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