Havanna Demers, right, poses with her coach and father Quenten Demers. (submitted/Quenten Demers)

By Alyssa Rudolph

local talent

Young Saskatchewan boxer one step closer to Olympic dream

Dec 24, 2025 | 10:00 AM

One Saskatchewan boxer is seeing some dividends as years of hard work and dedication were rewarded with an opportunity few athletes her age ever experience.

Sixteen-year-old Havanna Demers said she was shocked when she learned she had been shortlisted to attend a training camp led by Canada’s top national and Olympic-level coaches.

“My dad got an e-mail, and he woke me up at 5:30 in the morning to tell me. I’m like, ‘what’s going on?’ He told me I am going to training camp and might get selected for the Olympics,” she said.

Demers will head to Montreal in January to attend the selection camp where fighters will be assessed and ranked. If selected, she will then head to Thailand for the Under 19 2026 Futures Cup. This is the first step on the pathway to the boxer’s goal of making it to Senegal for the Dakar 2026 Summer Youth Olympic Games.

The young athlete shared that although not being selected would be disappointing, she is most grateful for the opportunity to train alongside high-level coaches.

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“I want to hear what they have to say about me. They’re going to have so many different strategies and tactics and things that work for me and my style,” she said.

Quenten Demers, the athlete’s father and coach, said his daughter will be up against some of the best fighters in the country, so standing out is a top priority.

“I believe that with her physical traits, like her height, she’s going to get noticed right away. The rest is up to her.”

“She has to follow directions very quickly, she has to show that she’s willing to learn, and she has to be perfect. All her techniques and everything have to be perfect,” he said.

For the next month, Demers will shift her focus away from high-level skills, dedicating each day to building peak physical fitness and sharpening the sport’s essential fundamentals.

Despite the many hours of work still required, Demers’ father characterized her as a complete athlete and expressed confidence that she can go all the way.

“Every coach dreams of that one fighter. I’m just so blessed that God gave me my daughter as the one to be that fighter. It’s so special that I’m able to share this with her,” he said.

Demers and her father both expressed their gratitude to the Rapid View community for supporting her dreams.

“It’s really beautiful to see how the community is coming together. Everybody’s just been so great and I’m sure once this news comes out that it’s even going to be better.”

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alyssa.rudolph@pattisonmedia.com