As strong as Hunter and Carson Lee are physically, they might be even more robust mentally.
Years of dedication to their grueling sport of choice have propelled the Flin Flon brothers to Manitoba’s wrestling team for the upcoming Western Canada Summer Games.
“I’m a little bit nervous about going because I haven’t seen any of the wrestlers,” says Carson, 14. “I’ve only wrestled in Manitoba. Other than that, I don’t any of the other guys outside of Manitoba.”
At 15, Hunter is both older than his brother and a more experienced wrestler. In recent months, he has competed in other tournaments, including a second-place finish at the national level.
He’s not anxious about the Summer Games, he says, because at a tournament following nationals, he defeated the wrestler who denied him top spot at the Canada-wide level.
“So I feel like I’m top in Canada in my weight class right now,” says Hunter. “So I don’t feel like I have anything to worry about.”
At the Summer Games, which begin Friday in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Hunter will represent Manitoba in the 85-kg weight class for wrestlers born between 1999 and 2002. Carson is Manitoba’s hope in the 63-kg class.
Giving wrestling’s limited reach in Manitoba, Hunter faced no challengers to earn his spot on the provincial team. Besides, his success at past tournaments speaks for itself.
Carson, however, matched up against a handful of wrestlers in his weight class. He came out on top in tryouts for the provincial team held in Winnipeg in May.
The brothers follow a grueling training schedule that would put some professional athletes to shame.
Hunter notes that he trains four hours a day pretty much year-round. He and his brother run, work out and practice with each other.
All of those physical demands burn fuel, so Hunter must consume upwards of 4,000 calories a day – down from 5,000 earlier this year.
So what motivates him to keep it up day after day, year after year?
“I just do,” Hunter says. “I don’t know what else I would be doing.”
Hunter has been wrestling for about six years now. Carson picked up the sport four years ago, with his brother showing him the ropes.
The brothers have always been athletic. When it came time to choose between the more mainstream sport of hockey and wrestling, they opted for the latter precisely because it was more challenging.
“I played pretty much every sport that is in Flin Flon and wrestling was the hardest one that I could find,” says Hunter.
So what makes it so difficult?
“Mentally, like pushing yourself and everything,” Hunter explains. “With running and those kind of things, you could slow down and no one would even notice. But with wrestling, if you slow down, the other guy is still going the same speed and then he’ll just beat you. And then everyone’s watching you because there’s only two matches at the most going on at once.”
Cindi Lee, the brothers’ mom, had no idea her sons would achieve so much success in wrestling, though she observes they always had the right attitude.
“They’re both very personally driven. They do their own stuff, they find their own ways,” she says.
As the lesser experienced of the brothers, Carson is at a loss to describe how he will prepare mentally before hitting the mat at the Summer Games.
“I have no idea,” says Carson.
Then he agrees that he will just have to do his best. And considering how far the brothers’ best has taken them, that’s a pretty good approach.
