I've talked a lot about self-determination in the past and still believe that supporting the passions of your loved ones leads to healthier relationships. Whether your best friend is into archery, or your wife into training circus elephants, the best avenue of support isn't redirection, but encouragement.
Aaron Pico defeated Zain Retherford to make the FILA Junior World Team (Photo/John Sachs, Tech-Fall.com)Guidance and consultation are the foundation of promoting an individual's passion. As those who love and care for the sport of wrestling, we have to understand that wrestler's lives aren't ours to manage. Our job is to support our athlete's passion and hope that the return not only helps that individual, but the sport of wrestling.
To your questions ...
Q: Got to thinking, when was the last time that all three of these NCAA powerhouses were not ranked in the top five at the same time? Oklahoma State, Central Oklahoma and Wartburg. I would guess you would have to find some random fluke year in the 70s or something! I am sure there have been times when at least two of them have been out of the top five at the same time, but that is probably pretty tough to find too!
-- Aaron S.
Foley: Rankings, as we use them today, have not always been en vogue, leaving this question a tad flawed. However, the larger point remains that three powerhouse programs at three levels are, in your estimation, experiencing a "slump."
I'd agree. We've talked a bit about Wartburg and their rapid deceleration, but when you add in Central Oklahoma's drift from the top and the incredible competitiveness of the Division I level forcing Oklahoma State into unfamiliar territory a theme starts to develop.
Some of this has been in play for a while, namely that programs are incentivizing wrestlers to attend their schools based on a formula for success. Forty years ago a successful wrestler was almost forced to attend a major powerhouse as they were the ones with the name ID and financial and institutional support. Today, successful athletes have access to a multitude of programs via social media and those programs have additional funding.
What attracts students has also changed. With the premium of a good education increasing at six-times the rate of inflation a scholarship to college is at a premium. Walking on to Iowa for $2,500 a semester to prove you're worthwhile of some Dan Gable butt slaps no longer adds up. Kids are facing $25,000 bills PER SEMESTER, and that means when a coach of a mid-level program comes bearing dollars there is more incentive to accept. They'll even yell at you should the need arise.
Individual programs are also receiving the most generous level of support in the sport's history. Almost every team in the top 25 has a fantastic wrestling room, endowments, weight rooms, Olympic training programs and a number of accruements meant to add icing to the scholarship cake. That means more shiny things to distract and attract the best 18 year olds in the sport.
For me, parity among top programs is the biggest factor to the decrease in success of former powerhouses. This ever-increasing parity will help grow the sport, and though that's a tough pill for the traditional big guys, it's not game over. Oklahoma State still has as its head coach, arguably the greatest American wrestler to ever live, and no alumni purchase or recruiting pitch can overshadow that simple fact.
Q: Last Thursday (11/13), Josh Demas faced Ian Miller in an early season showdown at 157 pounds during the Kent State-Ohio State dual. During the first period, Miller knocked himself out after landing awkwardly while trying to throw Demas. After he came to, Miller jogged to the center of the circle and looked to resume the match. The referee correctly stopped the match, much to Miller's frustration. The call was absolutely correct, and despite his protests, Miller was endangering himself by trying to continue wrestling. Does the NCAA have a protocol on concussions that happen during a match? How long, if at all, will Miller have to be sidelined?
-- Patrick A.
Foley: The rule for USA Wrestling and United World Wrestling is to immediately end any match in which a wrestler loses consciousness due to a blow to the head. Wrestlers who are choked unconscious by an illegal hold are allowed to continue.
The NCAA has a similar rule, though I don't know how well it is applied throughout Division I competitions. With such a tight focus on concussions it's an issue that needs to be approached with caution first. There cannot be a rush to place a wrestler in harm's way simply due to coaching pressure to attain another win.
Q: NYC probably has the highest concentration of former wrestlers in the country. You've got Beat the Streets, Grapple in the Garden, NCAAs next year. With that momentum why take away the one event that's been there for the past few decades? Wrestling fans in LI will hop on the helltrain known as LIRR just as easily as they will drive to Hofstra to watch an event No chance I'm going to West Hempstead on a Sunday.
-- Conor M.
Foley: Yours is a popular sentiment. The appeal of the NYAC tournament was that so many former wrestlers had quick and easy access to some of the best wrestling action in the world. The move to Hofstra had an impact on which fans attended the match and why -- something that was always at the heart of this tournament.
Granted, the NYAC wasn't the best venue, but in being cramped it offered an appeal that can't be replicated. I think it was distinguishable from other events, and agree that moving it to Hofstra sterilized it and eliminated what had been a vocal and supportive fan base in the city.
MULTIMEDIA HALFTIME
Cage Fighter: I am Wrestling by Russ Hellickson
Whoa! Do NOT mess with chimpanzees.
BJJ highlight video
Link: Bourdain vs. Cyborg
Link:
Cornell is leading the way in creativity this season ...
Q: Foxcatcher was supposed to be released 11/14. Can't find any showtimes anywhere!
-- William H.
Foley: Be patient and keep checking the site http://sonyclassics.com/foxcatcher/for more details on when the movie will be in your local theater.
Q: Am I jerk to be disappointed my 6 almost 7-year-old doesn't want to wrestle this year? Worried he'll be behind when he starts! Sorry to ask. I know you probably get asked this a million times a week
-- Ryan H.
Foley: No, you're only a jerk if you make him wrestle, or tell him you're disappointed.
I doubt you've done either.
Support his passion, no matter what it is or where it develops and he'll be a happy kid, and you a less worrisome father!
Q: What do you think of Aaron Pico signing will Bellator? How will this affect his Olympic and amateur wrestling eligibility? Lastly do you think more and more wrestlers will go this route?
-- Gregg Y.
Foley: Pico signing with Bellator in no way affects his Olympic status. If Michael Jordan can play in the Olympics, Pico can wrestle.
The contract, so far as I've been told, is developmental and allows for him to focus on making the Olympic team in 2016. That's a tall order, and even if Pico does make the team he'll be facing a loaded international field.
So what motivated him to not look toward 2020 where he'd be 25 years old? Maybe he realizes the climb and that any missteps could ruin years of profit he might otherwise be making in MMA? The decision to go into MMA is smart if for nothing else but to keep his name in the media. Pico is talented, but as a wrestler is not the best guy in the developmental program for the United States. Still, more people know his name than know Adam Coon or Kyle Snyder.
Something to consider when speaking of Pico's future in MMA is the difference in his training and that which has helped make American wrestlers the most dominant fighters on the planet: college wrestling. There is a significant difference in skill and learned aggression that comes with a college wrestling room, and that doesn't occur in international freestyle. I tend to favor the latter, but the former is without question the better cauldron by which to develop the mentality for fighting.
What will become of Aaron Pico? Unclear. He has talent, work ethic and a determination to succeed -- though where he uses that talent, how he applies that work ethic and in which sport he wants to succeed is left to argument.
Q: A few weeks backed you mentioned that American training methods are different than Russian training methods. I was wondering if you would be able to elaborate a little on the key differences between the two? Also, do you have any knowledge on how Iranian training methods compare to Russian and American?
-- Mark R.
Foley: The main difference in training method comes from desired output from an early age. Rather than focus on the medal count of 7-year-old wrestlers the Russian system focuses on building athleticism and creating fundamental techniques.
It comes as no surprise that the American style of wrestling and training is focused first and always on output -- win and you're great, lose and you are not. In other countries, namely those that use a Russian system (i.e. Russia, Cuba) the early stage training methods are not winning and losses but preparing the body and the mind for a career of competition.
There is burnout all over the world of wrestling, but there does seem to be less in the Russian style of wrestling and that is a consequence of teaching youngsters to enjoy their time on the mat.
My nephew and godson recently started wrestling. He's bright and sensitive and eager to please his father and uncles on the wrestling mat. There's talent to be developed in his 11-year-old frame, but when he goes to wrestling practice it might be tough for him to see progress and stay motivated since those he's with have five years of prior wrestling experience.
That difference in training, and that he couldn't simply mesh into a skills-based program rather than the competition-based program, means he's less likely to break through and become a lifelong member of the wrestling community. I'm not advocating that those with lesser skills be rewarded, only that there should be some logical development of talent in the states for youngsters that isn't so output based.
I didn't wrestle until a few months after my 14th birthday. In my freshman year I won one match and my sophomore year I won maybe a dozen. Fortunately for me I was self-delusional and believed that through either divinity or drive I'd become something more. For me, there was output, but for many others on my team after a year of two of not seeing gains they simply quit. I fear that is a circumstance occurring nationwide.
All this pressure to succeed means specialization, and for those not yet in high school results-based systems can and will lead to more burnout for a sport that should be looking to welcome more participants rather than bullying them off the mat.
Recommended Comments
There are no comments to display.
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now