P.E.I.'s Hannah Taylor heading to Olympics after wrestling win in Mexico
'It's so cool that I was able to prove everyone right,' wrestler says of her supporters
With a win at the Pan-Am Olympic Qualifiers in Acapulco, Mexico, Hannah Taylor of Summerside, P.E.I. became the first Canadian wrestler to qualify for this summer's Olympics in Paris.
Taylor entered the qualifiers as the third seed in the 57 kg class. The 25-year-old wrestled her way to the final on Thursday, where she took an early lead over Alma Valencia Escoto of Mexico and held on for an 8-4 win.
On Friday, Taylor told Mainstreet P.E.I.'s Matt Rainnie that she's "never felt better in her entire life."
But she said her ranking going in — and knowing that a loss in either of her final two matches would spell the end of her Olympic dream — had led to some nerve-wracking moments.
"Knowing that I was two matches away… and then one match away from going to the Olympics was a lot of pressure, but something that I have trained hard for. It also felt like a great opportunity to try to go out there and be my best," she said. "Regardless of what happened, I just wanted to walk off the mat happy, and I did just that."
Taylor has been competing internationally since 2013, when she was in the cadets age group. She earned a bronze medal at the under-23 world championships in 2021, a bronze at the Commonwealth Games in 2022, and silver at the Pan-Am Games last year.
Despite all of that previous success, qualifying for the Olympics was a very different feeling.
"This was a little bit harder to describe. I actually just broke down and started bawling my eyes out crying because for so long I wanted to go to the Olympics, so when that match ended I knew that I'm going to the Olympics and that was my final step in this journey to get me there," she said.
Taylor was one of three Canadian women who qualified at the event. Ana Godinez Gonzalez and Justina Di Stasio, both from B.C., are also on their way to Paris.
'Yes, Hannah Taylor is going to the Olympics'
Taylor said her Olympic dream began a lot earlier than some might think, dating back to when she was a child and watching the Olympics on TV with her dad.
Her ambition has always to make the games, even if she didn't initially know in those early days what sport would get her there.
"Once I tried wrestling and my first-ever coach said, 'You're going to the Olympics,' I said, 'Well, if that's going to be my chance, I'm going to take it,," Taylor said. "Everyone was saying that they knew I was going to do it and… it was a matter of time.
"It's so cool that I was able to prove everyone right that yes, Hannah Taylor is going to go to the Olympics.'"
With files from Mainstreet P.E.I.