Over the past few years, Olds' Danielle Lappage has tried qualifying for the Canadian senior national wrestling team only to finish second to the same competitor.But on May 3 in Calgary, Lappage defeated her rival in World Team trials, earning a spot on the national team. The taste of victory left her speechless.“There's no words really that can describe it. Probably tied for the second-best day in my life so far,” Lappage said. “Something I've been trying to attain in my career for a long time now. Finally being able to do it is just indescribable. It was just an amazing feeling. I was bawling right after I raised my hand. That was only the second time in my life I've ever cried from being happy before.”At team trials, Lappage had four matches in the 63-kilogram weight class. She won them all.As a result, she's punched her ticket to a number of competitions overseas.In mid-June, she will compete in tournaments in Germany and Austria; the beginning of July, the University Worlds in Hungary; and at the end of July, she will wrestle in the Commonwealth Games held in Glasgow.After the summer, Lappage will attend the world championships, held in Uzbekistan in September.Lappage, 23, is working toward her master's degree in criminology at Simon Fraser University. She started wrestling when she was about 12 years old at Ecole Deer Meadow School.She has won the Junior World Championships in the past but a spot on the senior national team puts her on the biggest stage of her career.After finishing as the runner-up to the same woman in recent years, it's an opportunity Lappage is looking forward to.“It's the first time I've ever won or ever beat her actually in my career, so it was really exciting.”[email protected]
