Abigail Smith will be going to the World Judo Cadets Championships in Bulgaria in August. (Rick Conrad)

Abigail Smith is booking another international flight to wear the maple leaf.

The 17-year-old judo athlete from Queens County will be representing Canada at the World Judo Cadets Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, Aug. 27 to 30.

There are three divisions in judo: cadet for athletes under 18, junior for those under 21, and senior.

“I’m so excited,” she told QCCR.

“It’s been my dream for so long. Years now, I’ve been wantitng to go to a world event, and cadet worlds, it’s what I’ve been working for. I moved to the city to be able to train for this goal, so to know that all my hard work paid off and I’m actually getting to go, it’s such a surreal feeling.”

Smith decided five months ago to move to Halifax and stay with a family there so she can train full time at Nova United Martial Arts.

“When I was living in Liverpool, I was only able to train three days a week on the mats because it’s such a long drive — two hours there, two hours back. I was getting home at 11, and not getting to bed until 12. This is my last year to make the cadet worlds, this is the last year I could qualify, so I said I really wanted to go for it and I talked to my coaches and my parents and everyone that’s been helping me, and they said, ‘Yep, let’s go for it’.”

• RELATED: Read more about Abigail Smith’s journey here

Smith began judo lessons when she was four years old. She’s now ranked in the Top 10 in Canada.

She’s been racking up the frequent flyer points in the past few months, joining Team Canada for the European Judo Tour in March. 

And she grabbed two bronze medals, in her usual U18 or cadet division and the U21 division, at the national judo championships in Calgary in May.

Like the fierce competitor she is, though, she was disappointed because she had her sights set on a gold in the U18 division.

“I was very upset with the results actually. To get selected for worlds, you have to win nationals. I didn’t win, but Judo Canada has the option to select another (athlete). They selected me to go also.

“I went there to win. My first fight was a good fight. And I went into my second fight, it went into golden score which is overtime and I was dominating the whole fight controlling it and a few seconds into overtime I made a mistake, I got caught and I lost that fight. Then I was very upset. Then my coach talked to me, my dad talked to me and they said you can still podium, so I fought back up to the repechage and I won the bronze medal after a few more fights.”

She’ll have a big cheering section in Bulgaria for the worlds. Her coaches Jason Scott and Jamie Slaunwhite plan to be there, along with her parents.

“It’s special, it means a lot to me, they’re my biggest supporters, my mom and dad, for them to come it’s going to be great for them to see me fight.”

Smith says she’s excited to show, again, what she can do on the world stage.

“I think i just want to go out there and fight and show my judo and leave everything on the mat. I don’t want to have any regrets after this. I just want to go out there and fight and give it my all.”

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Abigail Smith displays her gold medal at a PanAmerican judo meet in Montreal in November. (Abigail Smith photo)

Abigail Smith has already made a mark on the Canadian and world judo stage, and she’s not done yet.

The Grade 11 student at Liverpool Regional High School will be competing against judokas from other countries yet again as she prepares for a tour of Europe with Team Canada in March. 

Smith will be travelling to Spain, Portugal and Croatia for European Cup tournaments and training camps as part of the European Judo Tour.

“I travelled with Team Canada one time last year which was for an event in Germany, and I was so excited for it,” Smith told QCCR.

“And now I got selected to be on a tour which is an even bigger deal. I didn’t think that would happen for me this year at all. My main focus was nationals, but now I’m spending a month in Europe. It’s crazy to me, I didn’t think it was going to happen to me this year. It’s really exciting.”

She said she’s looking forward to the more intense competition of the European tournaments.

“The training for me is the most important thing. Getting to train with different bodies. In Canada, you know everyone you’re training with and you’re getting familiar with different fighting styles. So getting to go outside of Canada, and fighting round after round with people from all different countries, you’re getting so much experience from it, it’s going to make my judo way better. Tournaments in Europe are a lot different than tournaments in Canada, there’s a lot more aggression, there’s a lot more people who want to win. So I’m getting so much experience.”

Two of the tournaments are in the older U21 or junior age division, while the third is in her usual U18 or cadet class. But Smith is no stranger to punching above her age.

In November, she won a bronze medal in the older division at the Quebec Open and followed that up with another bronze in the same age class at the Pan American Canada Cup. And she snagged two gold medals at the same meets in her usual division.

The 17-year-old Brooklyn resident, who began judo lessons when she was four years old, is ranked in the Top 10 in her age division in Canada. 

Smith says juggling the travel, training and tournaments with school and a social life are worth it. They’re all part of building toward her ultimate goal, which is to compete at the World Judo Championships and at the Olympics.

“Because judo is my life. The thing I love the most is judo and everything that comes along with it.

“So for me, doing all those things, like sacrificing time with friends, I want to go to the Olympics, I want to be world champion, and I know the goals that I want and that I’ve dedicated so much time to, they’re not going to come true unless I keep with it. So I keep with it. Everyone in my life is so supportive. They know I need to train.

“My family, my friends, my community, everyone is so on board with what I do, it makes it 10 times easier.”

Smith trains with Nova United Martial Arts in Halifax four days a week. She says she takes notes at every competition and training camp she attends. And she works with her coach Jason Scott on how to improve.

For the next couple of months, she’ll be focused on getting ready for the European tour in March and a February meet in Denmark, where she also competed last year.

“I want to win of course because it’s my first European tour. My biggest goal is to go out there and fight, do my best. Show the European tour me, show them me. I want to learn so much. You’ll never learn everything about judo. So each time I go away, I’m learning so much.”

After she returns from Europe, she’ll be getting ready for the national judo championships in Calgary in May. If she wins there, she’ll be on Team Canada for the world championships in Bulgaria in August.

But she doesn’t want to think too far ahead. She’s just hoping to do her best wherever she goes.

“I hope everything goes well so I can bring back good results for everyone supporting me.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Brooklyn judo athlete Abigail Smith is getting ready for the 2024 Canadian Open Championships in Montreal from May 23-26. (Rick Conrad)

Queens County judo athlete Abigail Smith is the first to admit she isn’t the best driver — yet.

Smith doesn’t have her drivers licence, but she’s learning. And if she takes the same approach to mastering the rules of the road as she does to racking up medals at national and international competitions, she’ll be motoring around in no time.

But first, the 16-year-old from Brooklyn is gearing up for what she calls her most important tournament of the year.

The 2024 Canadian Open Championships in Montreal are set for May 23 to 26. Smith will be competing in the U18 and U21 divisions. She’s been there twice before and won silver both times.

“My goal is to win,” she said in an interview this week. “I really think I can win this year. If I win in my U18 division, then I’ll be going with Team Canada to represent them at (World Championships Cadets), which is in Peru. So if I win, I’ll go to worlds, which is my goal. Still, if I don’t win, it’s a huge experience to be at nationals. It’s a big deal.”

So far, Smith seems to be on the right track. The Grade 10 student at Liverpool Regional High School captured two gold medals at the Eastern Canadian Championships in April. 

She won the top spot in the U18 division, and she also triumphed for the first time in the senior division.

“The senior division is always a lot harder, because I’m fighting women, and they’re more experienced and they have more knowledge of fighting. But knowing that I fit in in the senior division I know I’m on the right track for when I eventually am a senior, hopefully I’ll be medalling as well and hopefully I’ll keep winning.”

Her wins at the Eastern Canadian Championships were only a month after an impressive showing at the International Thuringia Cup in Germany in late March. She won two meets and lost two. But she says the experience was “next level, it was so amazing.

“When you’re training in Canada, you know most of your people so you’re all friends. But in Germany, everybody is there to win, even when you’re just training and doing a basic little practice fight, they’re going to try to kill you. So you have to fight like it’s the biggest fight of your life for every round you do. 

“It was really intense which is exactly what you need to train like if you want to get somewhere in judo.”

Smith was in Germany for a week and a half. She said she learned a lot.

‘The biggest thing I think it helped was my confidence, to be able to travel by myself, to be able to fight people who are not from Canada, to have no idea who the heck you’re fighting, that really boosted my confidence. … The competition of course was beneficial. But the training after, that was the reason I was there, for the training, it was amazing.”

Smith is doing more than making an impression on the judo mat. She is also Sport Nova Scotia’s True Sport ambassador for May. Twelve young athletes were chosen from around Nova Scotia to post about their experiences and to promote the values of fair, inclusive and safe play.

“Lots of ambassadors have been posting about one or two experiences. I’ve been posting about my experiences. But I’ve been involving my judo team and my coaches so they can share their experiences as well.

“Having a bond with my team is so important. We work as a team together so whatever I’m doing, I want them to be involved in, so I want them to be promoted too.”

Smith trains four days a week with her club Nova United Martial Arts, in addition to daily strength and cardio workouts. She also coaches young judo athletes two days a week in Liverpool and older athletes one day a week in Halifax. 

While Smith says she’s getting busier with school, training, coaching and competitions, she also has to find time to get behind the wheel. 

“I just turned 16, I want to be able to learn to drive now. So I have to make time for that. I have to make time for training. I’m getting to the age where judo needs to be my main priority, so I have to add in more hours for judo. It’s been a lot lately, school’s been getting harder as I’m getting older. But I’m doing my best to keep up with everything, and if there’s a point where I can’t handle it, I’ll cut back. But hopefully, I’m never going to have to do that because I never want to cut back on judo.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Athletes Sarah Mitton, Michael Moreau, Rebecca Delaney, Abigail Smith and Jillian Young were honoured with a homecoming meet and greet at Queens Place Emera Centre on Thursday. Earl Mielke (right) is the head coach of the snowshoe team for Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens. (Rick Conrad)

Queens County celebrated some of its most successful athletes on Thursday as national and international medallists were honoured at Queens Place Emera Centre.

Four athletes from Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens were joined by judo athlete Abigail Smith and recent world indoor shot put champion Sarah Mitton.

More than 100 people showed up to cheer on the athletes at a homecoming meet and greet organized by the Region of Queens.

Jillian Young, Michael Moreau and Rebecca Delaney made up half of Nova Scotia’s medal-winning snowshoe team at the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games which wrapped up this past weekend in Calgary. And Ben Theriau of Hunts Point was on the silver-medal-winning curling team.

Young won silver in the 100 metres and bronze in the 4 x 100-metre relay; Moreau captured the silver in the 4 x 100 men’s relay; and Delaney won gold in the 100 metres and bronze in the 4 x 100 relay.

Only six athletes were selected from across the province for the snowshoe team. And three of them are from right here in Queens.

“These are three snowshoe athletes that made it by competing at provincial games to get to national games,” said Earl Mielke, assistant coach with Special Olympics Lunenburg/Queens.

“That tells you something about the program and the commitment and the coaching.

“A huge thanks to the Region of Queens and the wonderful community we have being so welcoming and inclusive. It’s really important and this community is behind these athletes. They know it, we know it and it’s wonderful to be a part of it.”

It was a sentiment shared by all the athletes on Thursday. 

Sarah Mitton of Brooklyn won the gold last Friday in the shot put at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, breaking her own Canadian record twice in the final round on the way to the win.

She said having such solid hometown support has motivated her throughout her whole career.

“It means a lot,” she told the crowd. “So much of who I am is where I came from. And this community and where I grew up, I’ve learned so much. … Everybody that has been a part of my journey has shaped me into the human being I am and most of that comes from here.”

Mitton said financial support was also crucial when she was starting out. And she said that she hopes the community continues to be giving and supportive of athletes like the Special Olympians and fellow Brooklyn athlete Abigail Smith.

“There’s so much talent in this community on every level,” she said in an interview afteward. “And I think with Abigail, she’s up and coming and I think she’s going to be the next really big thing for Queens County. I just always want to make sure we’re continuing to support the next generation. Some day I’m going to retire and these athletes will be the ones carrying Queens County on their backs. And with the Special Olympians, their joy for the sport makes me remember that sport is supposed to be fun.”

Brooklyn judo athlete Abigail Smith is only 16, but she’s already made a mark on the national and international stage, placing on the podium at national competitions and at a recent meet in Denmark. She will be travelling to Germany this month representing Team Canada in an international tournament there.

She said that even though she and Mitton grew up near each other, Thursday was the first time they had actually met.

“It’s pretty cool and pretty crazy. Sarah came up to me and said, ‘Do you mind if I sit by you?’ And I was like, ‘Oh yeah, of course.'”

Smith said it was great to see all the support from the community for all the athletes.

“It’s really nice. Of course, I always know that my community’s been behind (me) supporting me, donations, constant messages and posts. But today was very real, it was very nice, everyone is here to help me and Sarah and our Special Olympics athletes. So it was really nice.”

Mike Ferguson of Milton was one of the people who turned out to show their support.

“They’re providing inspiration to other young people to get involved in their community, in athletics or in arts, or whatever it is that makes them happy,” he said.

“It’s about working together and doing something you love doing and having happy fun at it. That’s what I think is the most important message here. Yes, you can win. There are always winners. But it’s all the rest of it. The way they all talked was so wonderful and they showed that wonderful inspiration.”

If you couldn’t make it to the event in person, you can catch a replay of the livestream on the Queens Place Facebook page. 

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Abigail Smith with her coach Jason Scott at the Elite National Championships in Edmonton on Jan. 13 and 14. (Abigail Smith photo)

Another Queens County athlete is getting ready to represent Canada on the world stage.

Last Friday, Sarah Mitton of Brooklyn won her first international gold medal in the shot put when she beat the rest of the field at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow.

Now, 16-year-old judo athlete Abigail Smith of Brooklyn is training hard for the International Thuringia Cup in Germany on March 23. 

Smith trains four days a week after school at Nova United Martial Arts, her judo club in Halifax. And she’s getting ready for a sold-out fundraiser this Saturday at Route 3 Cellar Bar and Grill. It’s an ‘80s-themed bowling tournament at 3 p.m.

Smith has had a busy year already nationally and internationally.

She finished third at the Danish Open in early February. She captured two bronze medals in her class at a national judo meet in Edmonton in January. And in November, she captured silver and bronze at the Pan American Cup in Montreal, her first international competition. 

She is ranked in the Judo Canada Top 10 in the U-18 division. Sport Nova Scotia has chosen her to be one of 12 Nova Scotia True Sport Athlete Ambassadors for 2024. 

And she is one of only two members of her club representing Canada at separate events in Germany.

Smith told QCCR in January that she’s lucky to have such great family, community and team support.

“People think judo is an individual sport and it is an individual sport, but it’s a huge team sport because you can’t get anywhere without your team, your training partners,” she says. “And having a good team you can rely on in sport and outside of sport is really important and that’s what’s helped me get so far in judo.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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Abigail Smith, 16, of Brooklyn, stands with her coach Jason Scott, displaying one of the two bronze medals she won at the Elite National Championships in Edmonton on Jan. 13 and 14. (Photo via Abigail Smith)

By Rick Conrad

Abigail Smith credits a lot of people for her success so far and so young in national and international judo meets. 

Her parents, her coaches, her teammates, her teachers. 

But what really gets her into a competitive frame of mind is some good ol’ country music. 

“A lot of people like to listen to pump-up music before a fight, but I like to listen to my country music to keep my calm and not thinking about judo before I do judo. That helps me to not think about what I have to do and then do it.”

So far, listening to the likes of Sam Barber and Luke Combs has helped keep the 16-year-old Brooklyn resident on the straight and narrow.

She won two bronze medals at a national judo meet in Edmonton last weekend, just before her 16th birthday. And in November, she captured silver and bronze at the Pan American Cup in Montreal, her first international competition. 

The medals at the Elite National Judo Championships in Edmonton were especially sweet, she says, because it featured the top judo athletes from across the country. 

“This is the biggest event in Canada. It’s a lot of work to get selected. So this year this was my favourite medal. Of course, I’m never happy with a bronze medal but this medal meant something to me so I was very happy with that. It means a lot.”

In Edmonton, she had her sights set on beating a rival judoka she hadn’t defeated yet. When they met in the U-18 division on Saturday, Smith lost to her. But on Sunday, in the senior division, Smith came back with a vengeance.

“She was my first fight and I had a very hard fight but I beat her, so winning that bronze medal meant a lot to me because I had been training specifically to beat that one person. So it was a big moment, we’d been working a while for that, me and my coach.”

Smith has been working at judo for 11 years. Based at Nova United Martial Arts in Halifax, she trains three to four days a week for up to two hours each session. That’s in addition to regular cardio and strength workouts. 

She said her father Troy Smith first got her interested in the sport.

“My first coach worked with my dad and my dad was like, ‘I have a crazy daughter at home that needs to get some energy out,’ and he brought me to judo with his co-workers.”

Smith, who is in Grade 10 at Liverpool Regional High School, hasn’t looked back. She is ranked in the Judo Canada Top 10 in the U-18 division. Sport Nova Scotia has chosen her to be one of 12 Nova Scotia True Sport Athlete Ambassadors for 2024. True Sport emphasizes fair, inclusive and safe play. 

She’ll be travelling to Denmark in early February to compete in the Danish Open.

And she just found out that she was selected to be part of Team Canada at the International Thuringia Cup Judo in Germany on March 23.

Competing nationally and internationally does cut into her school work, Smith says, but her teachers have been very supportive.

“I’m able to do what I’m doing, missing a lot of school because the teachers are very understanding and help me with my work to help me catch back up. So it’s nice to have teachers supporting me.”

She also credits the community support she’s received from the Region of Queens, Folk Law, Main and Mersey, Best Western Plus Liverpool and Sport Nova Scotia, as well as her coach Jason Scott and her teammates.

“People think judo is an individual sport and it is an individual sport, but it’s a huge team sport because you can’t get anywhere without your team, your training partners,” she says. “And having a good team you can rely on in sport and outside of sport is really important and that’s what’s helped me get so far in judo.”

She says she’s learned a lot of valuable lessons from the sport.

“That what you put in comes out. Whatever you want, it can happen. But you just have to put in that work and that extra effort and if you don’t, you’re not going to see the results you want, but if you do, then you’ll see results. And to be patient.”

With that frame of mind, she says she’s on track for her next big goal.

“I always say that I will be competing at Olympics and representing Canada at worlds one day so what I want to happen, I always say is going to happen. So hopefully, it will happen one day, Team Canada and the Olympics hopefully. We’re on track for that now.”

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

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