What drives two women to meet for the first time in a wrestling ring? And what does an opera singer turned heavy metal frontwoman have in common with them? Brisbane-based Sam Wolstenholme and Eugenie Singh will meet with Sydneysider Tarlee Leckie at a metal and wrestling show in July. All three are professional women who have cultivated non-traditional artistic careers.
Wolstenholme was training to be an opera singer when her career took a turn. “I’m a classically trained vocalist and keyboardist. I was training to be an opera singer but dropped out to start a metal band.” Singh and Leckie are both professional wrestlers who grew up watching World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The show influenced Leckie’s decision to try out. “I googled how to be a wrestler and went to a try-out. That was 10 years ago, and I’ve been wrestling ever since.” What keeps her interested is “the adrenaline rush of performing. I freak out before the show but then when my music hits and I come out on stage, it’s like I’m a different person.” Singh started training during the pandemic and debuted in December 2020. “My love for wrestling and pushing myself keeps me going. I’m meant to be in wrestling.”
All three women work hard to be at the top of their game. They combine music practice or wrestling training with fitness activities, including scrambling, strength and power training, cardio, yoga, Pilates, and meditation. This is on top of their day jobs. Wolstenholme is head of communications for a charity. Leckie works as a women’s health expert in personal training and nutrition. Singh is an academic researcher in agricultural science and biotechnology.
Singh and Leckie are no strangers to injury. While training, Singh tore a knee ligament and went through rehab. “The first day back at training, I re-tore the same ligament and several others. I had surgery and a two-year rehab journey to come back again.” Leckie’s injuries include concussion, a ruptured knee ligament, and an ankle hairline fracture. “When I first started, I was trying to impress everyone. But wrestling at training and in a match are very different. After a major concussion, I decided to tone it back a bit.”
For Singh, her wrestling character is a chance to represent her Tongan Fijian background. She wrestles as the Golden Bati, a Fijian warrior, and leads a three-person group known as Kulture, along with Samoan and New Zealand wrestlers Toa and Moko. “We love representing Polynesian culture.”Even her signature wrestling moves include cultural representation. “I have the Samoan Drop, which I call the G-drop. I also have a Pasifika Punch which is like a Superman Punch.” Leckie’s wrestling character is always looking for love. “My signature move is the Rebound, a pendulum face-buster move. I developed that during a breakup storyline.” Their artistic careers have created travel opportunities for all three women, with Wolstenholme and Singh travelling across Australia for gigs. Leckie has wrestled across Australia as well as China, America, and New Zealand. Most recently, she was in Malaysia wrestling in front of the Crown Prince.
These women are comfortable working in male-dominated fields. Wolstenholme recalls the moment she decided to front a metal band. “Metal was a bit of a pipe dream for me until a couple of years ago when I heard Spiritbox. I realised, wow, women can do this too – wild!” She shared how she made that dream a reality. “I never thought I would get to a point where I could scream but last year I did. I got lessons to do it properly because that’s how I was trained, learned the technique for harsh vocals, and now I’m fronting the band of my dreams, Aeon Nexus.”
Singh would like to see more women in wrestling. She hopes “to encourage and let women know they belong in wrestling and there’s a place for them to grow.” Leckie recently featured in ‘HER’, a Starrcast Downunder production led by WWE Hall of Fame wrestler Bret Hart and six-time WWE Women’s champion Mickie James. “The event was so empowering. I got to be backstage and talk with people I had watched growing up, including Alicia Fox. I became a wrestler because of her.”
Tarlee Leckie, Sam Wolstenholme and Eugenie Singh will star in Slamageddon at the Mansfield Tavern on Saturday 27 July, with doors open at 6.30pm. The lineup includes Aeon Nexus, Regular Gonzales, Australian wrestling legend KrackerJak and his Brother Gore. Tickets start at $24 from Oztix: [https://avc.live/a1vq](https://avc.live/a1vq).
