Chatham-Kent (CK) was well represented at a jiu-jitsu tournament in Niagara.
The 2026 Great Lakes Open was held over the weekend, with hundreds of athletes travelling from across Ontario to take part.
All the CK martial artists who took part are members of Armstrong Academy of Martial Arts, with 11 of the 13 coming back home with at least one medal. In total, the academy finished the competition with seven golds, eight silvers, and three bronzes.
Thomas Armstrong, who runs Armstrong Academy of Martial Arts, was one of two local competitors to win two golds. He told CK News Today that he was extremely proud of the gold he won in the open weight class, taking down the man who won gold in the master male category at the 2026 national jiu-jitsu competition.
"It was a really good match, he's really good. I was pretty happy it worked out," he said.
Andy Cikatricis also won two golds at the 2026 Great Lakes Open.
Armstrong's youngest daughter, Keira, took home a bronze medal despite facing boys much bigger than her.
"I was most proud that she was able to keep going and continue to fight," explained Thomas.
His other daughter, Isabelle, who's won medals at multiple international competitions, left with a gold and two silvers.
Others to win medals include Grace Millar (gold), Katelyn Deryck (gold and silver), Zane Gauthier (silver and bronze), Daved Guenther (silver and silver), Lance Therrien (silver), Bella Browning (bronze), and Kevin Deschenes (silver).
Also at the competition were Millie Malcolm and Ollie Cikatricis.
