‘Never seen anything like that’: B.C. fighter with disability competes against non-disabled fighters

After four bullets pierced through Leo Sammarelli in 2017 in a targeted shooting and paralyzed him from the waist down, the boxer and Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighter is now garnering attention for competing in a mixed martial arts tournament against non-disabled fighters.

“I think they’ve never seen anything like that or that they never even thought it was possible for someone like me to compete and hold my ground against some of these opponents,” Sammarelli said of the response of the crowd and some of his competitors.

Sammarelli competed in the All versus All Grappling Tournament in early October against two non-disabled fighters.

“It’s pretty rare, we’ve never seen it in B.C.,” said Sammarelli’s coach, Meego Ward-Yassin. “I’ve never heard of it, and I can easily say I’ve never seen it in Canada.”

Sammarelli lost both his matches, but considers it a victory that he was able to compete on the mat at that level — even receiving a standing ovation from the crowd.

“We all got emotional, I’m getting choked now even thinking about it,” said Ward-Yassin.

“At the moment it felt good, it felt like I made a difference,” said Sammarelli.

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“I think that’s the biggest victory I came away from that day … showing people that no matter what has happened to you, that shouldn’t stop you.”

Sammarelli was an aspiring pro boxer when a 2017 targeted shooting resulted in one of the bullets piercing his vertebrae and leaving him paralyzed. RCMP called the attack a case of “mistaken identity.”

The North Vancouver native decided to continue with his passion by taking on an adaptive form of boxing. The mixed martial artist started a not-for-profit called Westcoast Wheelchair Adaptive Boxing to help other adaptive athletes hone their craft.

Without the use of his legs, Sammarelli kept pushing his physical limits by climbing the Grouse Grind on his hands in 2020.

Now, both he and his coach are working on creating an adaptive form of Brazilian jiu-jitsu that would allow fighters with disabilities to compete against non-disabled fighters in tournaments.

“I wouldn’t say it was difficult, it was challenging and I would need to get creative,” said Ward-Yassin.

“We had to depend on his grips and upper body because that’s the only thing he’s got.”

Ward-Yassin’s gym, HERO Athletics, is now opening its doors to all athletes with disabilities and offering training scholarships for fighters with adaptive needs.

Meanwhile, Sammarelli’s next challenge is to notch a historic win in his next competition against non-disabled fighters — and inspire other adaptive athletes to try and accomplish the same goal.

“It’s rare to find people like me but there are people out there,” said Sammarelli. “There’s some people hidden, you don’t really see them, but there are some people out there.”