THE LAST WORD
U.S. teams looking for strong showing
T
he U.S. World Team Trials in wrestling is always an important event. After all, the Trials set the American squad that com- petes in the World Championships in the three years before and three years after each Olympic Games.
But the year preceding the Olympic year takes on even more significance. The 2011 World Championships will serve as the primary qualifier for the 2012 Olympic Games in London, England. The top six finishers at the World Championships in the 18 Olympic weight classes - seven in freestyle and Greco-Roman, and four in women’s freestyle - qualify their countries for the Olympics. That’s what makes the U.S. World Team Trials, set for June
10-11 in Oklahoma City, so important. The U.S. needs to send a strong team to the 2011 World Championships in Istanbul, Turkey in order to qualify weights for the Olympics. In 2007, the U.S. fared well at the World Championships in
Baku, Azerbaijan. Americans qualified 12 of the 18 total weight classes for the Olympics. There will be three additional Olympic qualifiers following the
2011 Worlds. There will be a Pan American qualifier on March 23-25 in Orlando, Fla. The top two finishers in each weight class there will qualify their countries for the Olympics. Two additional Olympic qualifying tournaments will be held in
each style. The Pan Am qualifier was huge for the U.S. in 2008. Henry
Cejudo and Justin Ruiz both beat tough Cubans to win the qual- ifier. Cejudo, of course, went on to win an Olympic gold medal later that year. Adam Wheeler beat Ruiz in the Olympic Trials and went on to win a bronze medal in Beijing, China. T.C. Dantzler and Marcie Van Dusen came through in Olympic qualifiers after falling short at the Pan Am Olympic qualifier in 2008. As those wrestlers can attest, going through one of those
final qualifiers is one of the most pressure-packed situations you can imagine. You are wrestling for your country and trying to make sure your country is not left out of the Olympic Games. That’s what make the World Team Trials so important. The
U.S. needs a strong showing at the Worlds to qualify as many weight classes as possible for London. THE WORLD TEAM TRIALS will offer its share of compelling storylines again this year. The U.S. returns two World medalists - Elena Pirozhkova and
Tatiana Padilla - from last year. Pirozhkova won the U.S. Open over two-time World champion Kristie Davis. Padilla missed the event with an injury. The women will compete in just the four Olympic weights at
the World Team Trials. U.S. National Coach Terry Steiner is try- ing to put the strongest team on the mat in the four Olympic classes for this year’s Worlds. The other three weight classes for the Worlds will be determined in a tournament in July in
42 USA Wrestler
Colorado Springs. In men’s freestyle, the U.S. is
coming off a rough performance from the 2010 Worlds. 2009 World silver medalist Jake Herbert and 2009 World bronze medalist Tervel Dlagnev are looking strong again after winning U.S. Open titles. Hodge Trophy winner Jordan Burroughs looked very impres-
Craig Sesker
sive in winning the U.S. Open, but he could be pushed by 2009 World Team member Trent Paulson or 2010 U.S. Open champi- on Andrew Howe. Teyon Ware was a surprise winner at the U.S. Open, but
could face a challenge from 2010 World Team member Brent Metcalf or past World medalist Cary Kolat in the finals of the World Team Trials. In Greco-Roman, past World champion Dremiel Byers and
World medalist Justin Ruiz placed fifth in the World last year. The return of two-time World bronze medalist Harry Lester
has provided a huge boost to the Greco program. He could win a World title this year.
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