4 sisters, 2 varsity teams: LaBelle sisters to play for University of Calgary’s rugby, wrestling teams

The LaBelle sisters have a term for what happens to opponents who go up against them.

“Now that there’s four of us, everybody’s just going to be out there getting LaBelle’d,” Kayel LaBelle told CBC Radio’s The Homestretch Friday. 

Kayel and her twin sister Austyn, both 18, will join older sisters Jai, 22, and Danyka, 20, playing for both the University of Calgary women’s rugby and wrestling teams come the fall.

If that’s not enough, the sisters are also all pursuing the same degrees — French and education — and they have a cousin on the rugby team as well.

Jai joined Danyka on the team last year, after transferring to U of C from the University of Alberta, while Kayel and Austyn signed on after recently graduating high school. 

“I look up to them so much,” Austyn said of her older sisters. “They help me through everything in life and so I’m so glad to get to take on this next step of life and have them by my side.” 

This will be the first time all four have competed on the same varsity team. They all began playing rugby as children, influenced by their mother who coached the sport and father who grew up playing it. 

Jai plays scrum half, while Danyka plays centre. The twins are both props.

The girls began wrestling when a friend of their father’s started a wrestling club in Cochrane, and asked dad if he had any sons who might want to come try it out.

He replied that he didn’t — but he had four daughters. 

“We went there once and just forgot to leave, I guess, because we’re still doing it now,” said Austyn.

Jai said she and Danyka faced off only once at a tournament (Jai won, for the record, in about 10 seconds.)

The twins, on the other hand, have been wrestling each other for most of their lives, given they are both in the same weight class.

“We try our best to be competitive with each other, but honestly, it’s so hard to actually try and go full out against each other,” said Austyn. “Refs had to tell us to stop laughing at each other, because we’re just always giggling and having fun.”

The tight-knit siblings are excited to play as teammates next year, and the two vets have some advice for their younger sisters.

“Be confident, don’t doubt yourselves,” said Danyka. 

“It’s hard to kind of go into something when you don’t know if you’re going to have a good result,” said Jai. “But just taking every possible opportunity and just running with it at full speed, because it’s over fast.”