Builder | Wrestling
Abbotsford Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2004
A wrestling coach, official, administrator and referee since 1978, Jim Mitchell is well known throughout the wrestling world.
Refereeing and coaching has taken Mitchell to the Olympics, World Cups, the Commonwealth Games, the Pan-American Games and more. On his wrestling travels, he’s visited such countries as Turkey (Junior Worlds 2003), Bulgaria (2002), Greece (Senior Worlds 2002), Colombia, China (2008) and the Czech Republic.
Mitchell was the Canada Summer Games sport chair in 1995, a finalist for Sport BC’s Coach of the year in 1998, and Sport BC’s PresidentsÂ’ Award winner and Canada’s coach of the year in 1999.
In the years since becoming a member of the Abbotsford Sports Hall of Fame, Mitchell officiated at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and was inducted into the Canadian Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2016. At the time of the latter induction, Mitchell’s officiating career included 10 World Championships, three Pan Am Games, two Commonwealth Games, 40 Canadian championships, and countless international tournaments.
Mitchell, a longtime teacher and athletic director at Abbotsford’s W.J. Mouat Secondary, retired from the school district in 2017. Beyond his international wrestling involvement, he’s been instrumental in hosting multiple B.C. high school wrestling championships locally, and played a leading role in establishing the varsity wrestling program at the University of the Fraser Valley.