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MARK HALL from page 30


during the summer and has felt the OTC become more than just training site he would visit with his dad during summer vacation. “After the point where I moved out here by myself, I started to build relationships with the people and the other athletes,” Hall said. “Just last night, I went putt-putting with some Paralympic swimmers that are legally blind. It was an absolute blast. The OTC isn’t just a place to train anymore; it’s a home to me. Being at a place you enjoy will help your training even more. It has been an incredible experience.” Hall has received outstanding reviews, not only as an athlete, but as a tremendous young person. “Everyone talks about how amazing Mark Hall is and how tal- ented he is,” Slay said. “He is pretty amazing and has a ton of talent but he has also sacrificed the end of every high school year to come to the OTC. He trains with a 30-year old and they are the only two people in the room. There are plenty of high school wrestlers in the country that didn’t do that this morning. They are sleeping in or focusing on the weekend. Mark wants to be the best Junior in the world. He has continued to just chip away at it.”


Hall will continue to chip away at his craft at his next “home”


in State College, Pa. Hall will don the Nittany Lion singlet this coming fall after a long and difficult recruiting process. He announced his college choice on a live broadcast on Flowrestling, which was major news in the wrestling community. “You only get five visits so you want to make sure that you can picture yourself at all of the places you visit,” Hall said of his recruitment. “I felt very comfortable at all five of the schools I visited. At the end of the day, even outside of wrestling, even if Cael Sanderson isn’t there or leaves or if all of my training part- ners leave, I had the trust in myself, the University, the assistant


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Mark Hall gets in deep on a leg shot against Logan Massa in their 74 kg freestyle match at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials. Photo by Larry Slater.


coaches, the weightlifting coach, and even the sports psycholo- gist that Penn State was the right choice. It’s not like I couldn’t see myself being just as good at the other four places. It’s just that Penn State separated themselves.” Hall will also stay close to Coach Slay as the former Olympic champion moves on from his Assistant National Coach position with USA Wrestling to take over as the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Regional Training Center. Slay is looking forward to seeing Hall progress towards all of his lofty goals he set for himself.


“He wanted to be a six-time state champ, he did it. He wanted to be a part of a six-time state championship team. He did it. He wanted to make the Junior World Team last year. He did it. He wanted to win a Junior World medal last year. He didn’t. But he is back and wants it even more this year.” Slay said. With all the achievements on his bio page, it is easy to lose track of the fact that Hall isn’t just growing on the mat but he is just growing up as a man. Outside of wrestling, Hall describes himself as “kind of nerdy.” He doesn’t mind sitting in his room and reading by himself or playing on his Game Boy for hours before bed.


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“I like to play a lot of video games,” Hall said. “I played a lot of Pokémon during this wrestling season. When I am done with homework I like to just go relax and play on my Game Boy for like three hours before I go to sleep. I don’t have a problem being inside and being by myself. I got really into reading this year. I had to finish school early so I had to take three English classes. We had like four or five novels to read so I have learned to read the right way.” Even his Twitter handle, BaybeeMarky_PSU, insists that he is still just a kid. However, the world better prepare for “Baybee Marky,” because Hall is ready to make a larger than life statement on world stage this summer and in the years to come. “Now that I have that experience, knowing that feeling to lose with just seconds left, I don’t want to feel that ever again,” Hall said. “Last year, I wanted to win but I didn’t believe in myself enough to dominate. This year, I believe enough in myself to dominate the Junior World Championships. I will have that atti- tude of, not necessarily being full of myself, but wanting to go into a tournament and light it on fire. That mentality is something I will take with me throughout my career.”


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