EXECUTIVE NOTES By Rich Bender, USA Wrestling Executive Director
GREAT OLYMPIC TRIALS AND A BUSY SUMMER AHEAD As a sport and an organization, USA Wrestling is coming off the excitement of the record-setting 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials held at historic Carver-Hawkeye Arena at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, April 21-22. This event was a tremendous success and exceeded expectations in so many ways. The level of competition was spectacular all weekend. Congratulations go out to the athletes and their coaches who achieved their dreams by winning the U.S. Olympic Team Trials at their weight. This culminates a lifetime of training and prepa- ration and is an amazing achievement. We are all confident that we will have a talented and successful team representing our nation in London in August. We applaud each of the athletes who competed in Iowa City for their achievements and their efforts. We are proud of each of you. Thanks go to our partners from the University of Iowa, the Iowa City/Coralville Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the city of North Liberty, who helped raise the bar for all future Olympic Trials events. Their efforts gave us a first-class show- case for our athletes and our sport and will help us grow wrestling in so many ways. I also applaud the wrestling fans who came out in record numbers to support the event. It set records for single session attendance (13,784) and total atten- dance (54,766) for the competition, providing an electrifying environment for our athletes to perform on the raised stage. So much went on during the weekend of the Olympic Trials that made a big impact. The 1972 Olympic Team and the 1984 Olympic Team Reunion and the annual USA Wrestling Awards banquet was a memorable night. It was wonderful to bring together the great wrestlers from those famous Olympic Teams, as well as honor many athletes, coaches and volunteers for their achievements and service within USA Wrestling. Connecting our sport’s history with those who are currently leading our sport is something we must do to continue our nation’s great wrestling legacy.
Among the other successful activities in Iowa City during the weekend was the ASICS Fan Fest in downtown Iowa City, the
Friends of Freestyle Alliance Social, the USA Wrestling NCEP Silver Coaches College, the USA vs. Iowa Dream Team Classic and more. The wrestling family came together to celebrate our great sport, something we can truly build upon for the future.
The wrestling community should brace
itself for a very busy summer. Now that our Olympic Team has been formed, there will be so many other activities to look forward to. I’d like to touch base on a few of the things we should all be very proud of.
Our Olympic teams are busy preparing for London, and will also compete at events which our fans can enjoy. The Greco- Roman team will wrestle at the Curby Cup in Illinois and the freestyle team will compete in the Beat the Streets Gala in New York City. Our women’s team will wrestle in the Canada Cup. Both freestyle teams will attend World Cup events. Competing overseas will help the U.S. teams peak for the Olympic Games. After the final Olympic Qualifying event, the United States has the most wrestlers qualified to compete in the Olympics than any other nation. Almost 60 nations have earned the right to send wrestlers to London, but it is Team USA who leads the way in qualifying the most competitors. This shows that we con- tinue to be a World power in all three styles, an achievement which our entire organization has helped us to achieve. USA Wrestling is running ahead of projections in membership for the year, and is on pace to set new records for participation in all categories. The efforts of our volunteers on the local, state, regional and national levels are making a huge impact on the lives of young people. With big spring and summer events still to come, we have a lot to look forward to at all levels. Olympic years are very exciting. The fact that wrestling is an
important part of the Olympic community is something we can be most proud of. Let’s all get behind our U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team as it strives for Olympic glory in London.
Ken Chertow Wrestling
KENCHERTOW.COM 4 USA Wrestler
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