COACHES CORNER
Women hope to build on ‘good’ performance
U.S. women’s freestyle program looking to improve on its third-place finish at 2014 World Championships
By Terry Steiner, U.S. National Women’s Freestyle Coach The 2014 World Championships are here and gone as I sit
and reflect back there are a lot of things to think about and get excited about. We had a great summer of training and travel- ing. I believe the girls were ready when we hit the mats in
Tashkent. We had a goal of winning and ended up in third place the same as last year. We crowned one champion in Adeline Gray, one silver medalist in Elena Pirozhkova and one bronze medalist in Helen Maroulis. We also lost two close bronze medal matches with Alyssa
Lampe and Alli Ragan. The thing I liked most about the Worlds is “how” we compet-
ed. We were for the most part very aggressive in what we were trying to do and believed in what we were doing. We had a confidence about us when we stepped on the mat. We talked a lot about this during camps, “HOW” we will repre-
sent not only ourselves but our country. We had some moments of brilliance during the competition. Adeline Gray’s come-from-behind victory in the first round of
the competition. Elena Pirozhkova’s win over Battsettsag of Mongolia, who
had beaten her three previous matches, was a great victory. Whitney Conder’s come-from-behind win in the second round
versus Mongolia. But we also had some heartbreak matches. Helen Maroulis’ semifinal loss against Japan. Alli Ragan’s and
Alyssa Lampe’s hard losses for third place. Both bouts were tied 4-4 when the final whistle sounded. We definitely had some ups and downs, as most competitions
do, but overall I think we have something that we can grab onto and be excited about with a third-place team finish, as we move toward the 2015 World Championships in Las Vegas. In 2012, after the Olympic Games, we really had to take a
hard look at the program. Every four years the U.S. Olympic Committee asks us to compile a four-year plan leading us from one Olympic Games to the next. After all this is a business, a lot of people and entities are put-
ting incredible amounts of time, resources, and knowledge into the picture.
34 USA Wrestler Olympic medals are not given
away, they must be earned, and to earn it we must have a plan. We will not fall to the top! I feel the plan is a very straight- forward, yet simple plan. Year #1
Focus on education in all areas,
“Filling the Backpack” Year #2
Process over product, learning
from competitive and live situa- tions, learning HOW to Win, Learning HOW to Wrestle. Year #3
Outcome Oriented, The Athlete
is 90 percent programmed in all aspects, Athletes MUST demonstrate consistency on the mat Year #4
Focus on Periodization. Rest, Recovery, Tweaking and Peaking! Being 100 percent ready when stepping on the mat. We are now heading into year three of the four-year plan. I feel that our performance at the World Championships was
a good but not great performance overall. We thought going in that it would take five to six medals to
win the Worlds. And looking back, that is what would have done it. So as we look to moving forward, I believe the biggest ques-
tion is, how do we move forward? We must have a plan. We cannot just be working hard, every
country in the world is working hard. We must be working smart. We must put ourselves in situations only if we are learning
and gaining from them. We do not want to go into situations just because. We must look at each camp, each competition and really ask ourselves as individuals and as a National Team, what do we want and need from the situation we are in? If we do this, if we can gain from each moment and each experience then we will be on our way. We must have a plan that will push us at times and let us rest
at times. We must have a periodization plan that makes sense for us. One that allows us to grow and challenges, but at the same
time keeps us fresh and always looking and ready for more. Although, the periodization plan is already set, it is important
for all of us to realize that a plan is always a living document. We cannot get too rigid in it, we must be willing to change
and adapt if necessary. We must stay focused and keep working and keep striving for
the top. The danger in being in the No. 3 spot in the World is that you think you are close.
Continued on page 35 Steiner
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