For this tight-knit family of brothers Chanmit and Jasmit Phulka and cousin Jobanjit, it's all about supporting each other on and off the wrestling mat. And they've had a lot of practice.

As the elder statesman of the group, Chanmit at 20 is leading the way as a mentor for the rest of the clan.

He recently took gold at the World University Team Trials where he wrestled the CIS champion in the final and pinned him in the first minute of Round 1.

"I was prepared to wrestle anyone in my weight class. I was really confident. It didn't matter who I wrestled; I knew I'd come out on top."

A Rick Hansen Secondary grad, Chanmit is the 2011 Junior National Champion in 96kg, and is also the 2010 Junior Pan American Champion and 2011 Resita Junior International Cup Champion. He just graduated with a diploma from Kwantlen Polytechnic University (Nursery Production and Management).

Along with this accomplishments in competition, Chanmit sees himself as a mentor

of sorts to his brother and cousin, as someone who has 'been there, done that.'

"I have knowledge of competing in different countries. I can pass on to them what it takes to win at these competitions," he said from the Miri Piri wrestling centre in Abbotsford.

"It takes away that nervous feeling and the pressure."

Chanmit will represent Canada at the Wrestling World University Championships on Oct. 2-7 in Kuortane, Finland and is eying the Olympics in Brazil in 2016.

Close on his heels is younger brother Jasmit, who at 18 is a five-year member of Team Canada and just returned from a one-week national training camp in Toronto.

"I trained three times a day with Olympic coach Dave McKay," he said.

Jasmit just completed his first year at the Justice Institute of B.C. and also graduated from Rick Hansen grad in 2011. He is a twotime B.C. high school wrestling champion, 2010 Youth Commonwealth Games Champion and also the 2012 Junior National Wrestling Champion in 84kg.

"My goal is to go to the Olympics and win a medal," he said.

He's shooting for the 2016 Summer Games in Brazil along with his older brother, and he likes his chances of making the team, as Olympic wrestlers are usually at their peak in their 20s.

"I am now No. 1 in Canada," he said. "I've got a lot of time."

Jasmit will be representing Team Canada at the Junior World Wrestling Championships in September in Pattaya, Thailand.

Cousin Jobanjit, 16, will be going into Grade 12 at Hansen in the fall. He's the 2012 provincial wrestling champion and recently finished second at the Fila Cadet National Wrestling Championship trials in 76kg.

This week Jobanjit is in Maracaibo, Venezuela representing Team Canada at the Cadet Pan American Wrestling Championships July 10-15.

He's excited about his first international competition. "If I wrestle smart, I have a pretty good chance," he said.

"[That means] only attacking and sticking to my own game plan."

All three Phulkas currently train at Miri Piri Wrestling Club in Abbotsford under coach Sucha Mann. They also give a lot of credit to their parents, who support them both financially and in their training, with their dads often travelling with them to competitions to facilitate everything from schedules to nutrition.

"I'm not working," said Jasmit, who's thankful for his parent's support. "Training is my full time job."

JKonda-Witte@abbotsfordtimes.com