A Penticton karate star helped make B.C. history at the 2023 Canada Winter Games in Prince Edward Island.
Ciara Browne, 16, won a bronze medal for Team BC on Feb. 22, in the province鈥檚 debut at the games for karate.
Browne ousted athletes from Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan, before capturing one of B.C.鈥檚 10 medals in the sport.
鈥淪he fought with such a presence and was so confident,鈥� said Ashtin Callaghan, Browne鈥檚 coach and Team BC鈥檚 manager at the games. 鈥淓veryone on Team BC rose to the challenge and made us proud, including Ciara.鈥�
Browne鈥檚 performance last week helped put B.C.-based karate on the map, Callaghan added.
鈥淭o be able to send a karate team there is super historic for the province, and for all of Canada,鈥� the 麻豆精选-based coach said. 鈥淔or Ciara, the hard work she put in was just so amazing鈥 want to thank her for being an inspiration for our academy and all the other kids in B.C.鈥�
Browne won handily in her four preliminary-round matches, before advancing to the semifinals against Alberta鈥檚 Donya Movaffagh, the eventual gold medalist.
The Penticton athlete defeated her opponents by a combined margin of 18-2, according to the judges鈥� scorecards.
Karate was in the spotlight at the Canada Winter Games, with Vancouver鈥檚 Oonah Gamboa carrying the B.C. flag during the event鈥檚 opening ceremony.
This year鈥檚 edition of the games marked the debut of karate.
According to Team BC, many of its current karate stars have their eyes set on representing Canada at the Pan-American Games.
Although it won鈥檛 be featured at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, there has been a recent push for karate to be included in the 2028 games in Los Angeles.
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