ORILLIA – Two Mount Forest teens are hoping to land some kicks and bring home some wins from the Ontario Winter Games.
Kennedy Ray and Weston Dirksen are training hard at Mount Forest Rise Combat and Fitness in preparation for the games in Orillia from Feb. 19 to March 1.
“This prestigious accomplishment is a first for women in Wellington North,” said Ray’s mom Trina Reid.
The Ontario Winter Games, the largest youth multi-sport event in the province, aims to prepare amateur athletes for national and international competition, including the Olympics, according to provincial officials.
Though kickboxing has not yet appeared in the Olympics, it was among the top contenders for new sports included in the 2028 Olympics, and World Association of Kickboxing Organizations (WAKO) president Roy Baker has said the sport is destined for a place in the Olympics.
Ray is a mixed martial artist and kickboxer who has won back-to-back provincial championships and is a silver national title holder and belt title holder.
She dreamed of competing in Olympic kickboxing before learning the sport is not included in the games, but is hopeful it could happen one day.
Dirksen is a national champion too. He attends Norwell District Secondary School and lives near Harriston.
He hadn’t considered the Olympics as a possibility until after WAKO officials asked him to compete in the Ontario Winter Games last year.
Ray has been kickboxing for almost five years, and Dirksen since 2022, though he’s been competing in Taekwondo for more than 10 years.
Ray trains six days per week, usually for at least two hours at a time, and Dirksen three to five days a week.
Training includes cardio, drills, partner work and sparring with teammates.
Dirksen said he’s motivated to train hard because of how much he enjoys the sport, especially the competition and how it challenges him.
Ray agreed, adding, “This sport is better than all the others, to me at least.”
She enjoys competing against other people – especially when she wins, she added.
Both athletes were asked to compete in the Ontario Winter Games after officials saw them fight – Ray at two training camps last year and Dirksen after fighting at the provincial championships.
Dirksen said his goal for the Ontario Winter Games is to “win and have fun.”
Ray, of course, is hoping to win too, and “hopefully learn something out of it and see where it takes me.”
Asked about their goals after the games, Dirksen said he’s still figuring things out, so he will see where things take him.
Ray agreed, adding, “I do want to go somewhere with this … I’ll keep training and fighting and see how far I can make it.”
“These young athletes have extraordinary talent, drive and perseverance,” Reid told the Advertiser.
They have been “selected to represent their sport and will be watched by scouts and coaches from the world stage.”
