Rio 2016 gold medallist Erica Wiebe announces retirement. GETTY IMAGES

Canadian wrestling legend and Rio 2016 gold medallist Erica Wiebe has announced her retirement. The 34-year-old from Stittsville, Ontario, also won a bronze medal at the 2018 World Championships and was a two-time Commonwealth Games champion.

"Many of my fondest memories in wrestling have to do with the community, the friends and role models I have in this sport. Making my first Olympic Games with a team of six incredible, equally unique women and the bond we have between us is something I cherish more than anything," Wiebe told to CBC Sports.

"I have so many memories of the training camps, the challenging workouts, and the many coffees with my coach Paul Ragusa. I've been lucky enough to win a lot of big tournaments, and I think winning the Poland Open in 2013 and beating the reigning Olympic champion was probably the moment in my career where I realised I could really be something," she added.

Wiebe (red) finished 11th at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. GETTY IMAGES
Wiebe (red) finished 11th at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. GETTY IMAGES

Wiebe will remain active in the sport as a broadcaster, coach, and administrator. She is currently the manager of Athlete Relations, Safe Sport and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for the Canadian Olympic Committee. 

In addition to broadcasting with United World Wrestling, she was the voice of Canada's 2023 Team Trials and will be back behind the microphone in Ottawa for the National Wrestling Championships, which run from Thursday to Sunday at TD Place. Wiebe will be honoured prior to the Junior Final of the National Championships on Friday.