Justina Di Stasio

Early Years and Family

Justina Di Stasio is one of three children of Fiona and Tony Di Stasio. Justina is of Italian descent on her father’s side and First Nations descent on her mother’s side. Fiona Di Stasio is a member of the Norway House Cree Nation.

Justina first started wrestling when she was in grade six at Banting Middle School in Coquitlam, British Columbia. One reason she wanted to be a wrestler was that it was the only sport where boys and girls practiced together.

However, Di Stasio initially had a bad experience with the sport. She was told that because of her size she had to wrestle against girls who were two years older. Di Stasio was shy and disliked not being able to compete against her friends her own age. As a result, in grade seven she decided not to wrestle. However, when Di Stasio was in grade eight, her goal was to be the Banting Middle School athlete of the year. To accomplish this goal, she thought she needed to participate in every sport available, including wrestling.

High School Experience

Justina Di Stasio initially had no interest in pursuing wrestling in high school. However, the Port Moody Secondary School wrestling coach, Selwyn Tam, was very insistent. According to Di Stasio, “he changed my life.” Tam signed Di Stasio up for camps and encouraged her father to take her to wrestling camps at Simon Fraser University (SFU). Di Stasio excelled and became a provincial high school wrestling champion in 2009 with Tam as her coach. At the national level, Di Stasio won a silver medal in women’s wrestling at the 2009 Canada Games. She graduated from Port Moody Secondary School in 2010.

University Career

Justina Di Stasio attended Simon Fraser University from 2010 to 2014 and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English. While at SFU, she won three straight Women’s Collegiate Wrestling Association (WCWA) titles. She won gold in the women’s 170-lb division from 2012 to 2014. Di Stasio also guided SFU to a WCWA Team Championship in 2013.

While attending Simon Fraser, Di Stasio also won the Canadian National Junior Wrestling Championships in 2011 and 2012. Both national junior titles came in the women’s 72 kg division. Then, at the senior level while representing the Burnaby Mountain Wrestling Club, Di Stasio won a bronze medal at the 2012 Canadian National Senior Wrestling Championships and silver medals at both the 2013 and 2014 national championships.

International Success

Justina Di Stasio’s first international medal came at the 2012 Canada Cup, at which she won the bronze medal in the women’s 72 kg division. That was followed by a silver medal at the 2013 Austrian Ladies Open, a bronze medal at the 2014 Grand Prix of Germany and a gold medal at the 2014 Austrian Ladies Open. Di Stasio also won her first medal, a bronze, at the Pan American Wrestling Championship in 2014.

In 2015, Di Stasio won the gold medal at three international events, the Dave Schultz Memorial International in Colorado Springs, the Olympia Tournament in Greece and her first of three consecutive Pan American Wrestling Championships (and first of four overall). Di Stasio also won silver at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto.

Justina Di Stasio won the bronze medal at the 2017 World Wrestling Championships in Paris in the women’s 75 kg weight class. A year later, Di Stasio struck gold at the World Wrestling Championships in the women’s 72 kg weight class as she beat Nasanburmaa Ochirbat of Mongolia 4–2 in the first-place match thanks to two early takedowns. Di Stasio also won gold at the 2016 World University Championships, the 2019 Pan American Games and the 2022 Commonwealth Games. At the 2024 Olympic Summer Games in Paris, the 32-year-old Di Stasio finished 12th in her weight class.

Five National Titles

In 2015, Justina Di Stasio finally reached the top of the podium at the National Senior Freestyle Wrestling Championships, winning gold in the women’s 75 kg weight class.Di Stasio went on to win in 2016, 2017,2022and 2023.

Career in Education

Justina Di Stasio retired from wrestling in 2025 to work full-time as an Indigenous Resource teacher in Burnaby, BC.