And understandably so.

Confirmed Wednesday evening, the two-time OFSAA gold medalist will be joining fellow Miltonian Alan Moffat at the upcoming world junior championships in Istanbul, Turkey.

But any excitement the 19-year-old E.C. Drury graduate is feeling about the high-stakes opportunity that lays ahead is tempered with a measure of empathy, since his berth comes as a result of a serious injury to University of Guelph grappler Cody Airdie.

The fact that the two are regular sparring partners makes the circumstances even more difficult.

"I'm happy to be going, but Cody's my teammate so it's kind of tough. I've got mixed emotions about it," said Iwasa-Madge, referring to Airdie's knee injury, which the national team coaching staff felt could be career threatening if wrestled with prior to surgery. "It's a sensitive situation."

The world junior championship marks the third taste of international competition this summer for the 60-kilogram wrestler, who late last month delivered a promising performance at the Junior Pan-American Games in Cuenca, Ecuador.

Finishing fifth with a 1-2 showing, Iwasa-Madge began with a solid two-round decision over a Peru opponent and ended things off with a pin-fall defeat to a strong counter-wrestler from Venezuela late in the second round after dropping the first frame 2-0.

The University of Guelph-bound grappler nearly scored on a number of occasions before being put down.

Sandwiched between these hard-fought matches was a rather decisive pin-fall loss to last year's world bronze medalist and the eventual Junior Pan-Am champion from Cuba.

Accompanying his now former Drury star to his international junior debut, coach Larry Jaroslawski believes Iwasa-Madge was one of the Canadian team's most offensive wrestlers at the tournament.

"And that (offence) is the most important thing at this level," he noted. "The national coaches felt that due to his offence and movement, Kevin has perhaps the best chance of anyone on the (Junior Pan-Am) team to develop into a member of the senior national team in the future. As a first-year junior, he stands a good chance of making the Canadian Pan-Am and/or world team next year."

Added Iwasa-Madge, "I was on par with everybody but him (gold medalist). I had a lot of good chances to score against the guy from Venezuela, but his defence was quite strong.

"At this level the intensity's much higher. You can't hesitate at all. You've really got to be on your game at all times."

He certainly seemed to be back at Guelph Saturday, with a formidable effort resulting in a fourth-place finish in Canada Cup's senior division.

Following a first-round loss to an American opponent, Iwasa-Madge scored back-to-back victories -- the latter a spirited three-round decision over the national junior silver medalist whom he defeated this past spring to qualify for the Junior Pan-Ams.

The bronze-medal showdown would see him edged 1-0, 2-0 by a far more experienced wrestler from Georgia, who was nearly twice his age.

"When you're facing older guys like this, strength is really the key," he explained.

Recently invited to join the national junior and Olympic team training camp in Guelph, Iwasa-Madge appears ready for his probable trip to the world championship, but unlike most other tournaments doesn't go in with any specific expectations.

"Being one of the younger guys, who wasn't even expected to go originally, there's no pressure on me. I'm really just going to try and do my best and get as much experience as possible."