York student Ohenewa Akuffo (right), won a gold medal at the World University Games in Izmir, Turkey, on Monday.
The 26-year-old member of the Canadian national team won three matches in the 72-kilogram class to cap her team’s six medal haul of two gold, two silver and two bronze. It was the first time women’s freeststyle wrestling was included as an event at a Universiade.
Akuffo, a third-year business administration student in the Atkinson Faculty of Liberal & Professional Studies, defeated Kateryna Burmistrova of Ukraine to win the gold. In her earlier matches the former North York resident defeated Kyung Mi Kim of Korea and Ayako Murashima of Japan.
In her international career, Akuffo has won a gold and two silver medals at the Pan-Am Games and competed for Canada in several world championships and international meets, winning the Canada Cup and Polish Grand Prix in 2001 and repeating as Canada Cup winner in 2003.
For more information on Akuffo, see the July 27 issue of YFile.