Postponed wrestle-offs

[BruceyB]

Being able to push the World Team wrestle off for more essentially three months seems absolutely absurd to me. I'm not even stating that a returning medalist shouldn't get some flexibility for the wrestle-off date, but it simply seems absurd to me that the "challengers" for the team spot have to spend the entirety of their summer and well into September training for the wrestle-off in hopes of making the world team. 

I don't know as much about the challengers on the WFS side, but if I'm Bo Bassett, I would really like to know what I am training for over the next 60 days. Am I in off-season training mode where I can relax on the intensity and not worry about being at competition shape until November for folk, or am I training to win a World Title the last week of October?

It feels like an incredibly ridiculous position to force on the healthy competitor who essentially has to spend what is generally considered the "off-season" in competitive preparation mode when they should know if they are on the team or not before July. In a sport as grueling as wrestling, knowing whether or not you can "relax" a bit before entering the grind of college season, I would imagine, would be pretty nice.

I get that USA Wrestling wants to send the best team, but the athletes are also humans that have training cycles, off-season programs, many athletes are competing in both folkstyle and freestyle, etc. Clearly USAW does not think waiting until the end of September to figure out who will be on the team is the best option since they chose the rest of the team in June. If Bassett wins the spot, he'll basically have 3 weeks of knowing he's on the team before he's hopping on a plane to Worlds. If he doesn't win the spot, then he spent an extra three months (while the rest of the losers from Final X can at least relax during the summertime off-season) preparing for a wrestle-off. Is this not crazy and far too much to ask of the "challenger" to deal with simply because their competitor won a co-bronze the year before?

[LJB]

Meh…

for Bassett specifically he has U20 worlds next month and U23 worlds a week and a half before seniors…

This is a non issue…

[Bigbrog]

Are we now just looking for things to be upset about??

Edited July 28 by Bigbrog

[ionel]

59 minutes ago, Bigbrog said:

Are we now just looking for things to be upset about??

You new to the board?  

[LJB]

being new to this forum...

having been here since the mat shut down and years before that...

it never ceases to amaze how some just can not see past their own noses much less down the block a couple of houses away...

 

[Bigbrog]

33 minutes ago, ionel said:

You new to the board?  

[Tyler Perry]

I get this sentiment, but in the end the goal is to put out the best team, and if this was Trent Hidlay I think the tone would be very different 

[juniorvarsity]

I think the duration of the delay is bullshit. It was an infection. It has been 6 weeks and still no announced date

It's hard to put guardrails around the situation of delays. And nobody has pulled out for an infection before. He gets the time allotted in the bylaws.

[Dogbone]

I don't think these guys really have an off season. 

It's late July. Worlds are not until late October.   

I actually think a better question is are we deciding the World Team too early?   Parker K was eliminated from being the US rep in late April at the US Open, 6 months prior to Worlds.   

I am not saying Parker would win the spot if the schedule was changed but I don't know how a guy is wrestling 6 months before the Worlds is the best data point either. 

Plus, the sports calendar is pretty lean right now.  Until football starts, its just baseball for another month.   Seems like a better time to determine our team from a viewing standpoint.  Of course, I wouldn't of held some of those events in the middle of the work work so what do I know.  

 

 

[LJB]

Dake could have just as easily been eliminated at the Open...

i have mixed feelings about the process overall, but, what can not be denied is everyone involved know the dates and the stakes months and months in advance... there is no excuse to show up 6 months earlier than worlds and not be in your best possible form...

and the simple fact our system is totally merit based, which, most around the world is not across the board...

it sucks you have one day (in some cases) to make a senior team... ask me how i know...

but, it is the same for everyone...

 

[bnwtwg]

The turnaround from 27 worlds to OTT is going to be interesting. Guys are going to go from peaking directly into peaking. Potentially will be a recipe for disaster if we want to send the best squad to LA. Reminds me of when Yazdani finally got one over on Taylor who just won an olympic gold - the body can only peak so much in this sport and same for the mind.

Long-winded way to say I hope they permanently tighten the delay window.

[LJB]

2027 Senior Worlds is in Vegas mid-september...

Olympic Trials has traditionally been mid April with the games in late july...

it will be fine...

Edited July 29 by LJB

[Dogbone]

I don't have any issues with our process.

And most years, Worlds are held mid September so the timing isn't as bad.  It's probably more of a 1 year oddity. It just seems odd we didn't adjust the schedule when Worlds was later and the OP seems upset we don't know the full team 3 months before the event, which is closer to when we normally determine the team. 

 

 

[bnwtwg]

Olympic Team Trials is very likely to be in December 2027

[LJB]

6 minutes ago, bnwtwg said:

Olympic Team Trials is very likely to be in December 2027

If history has proven anything it would point towards Olympic qualifier being in December of 2027…

not trials…

trials has taken place in April of the last 4 quads…

absolutely no reason to think 2028 would be any different…

[juniorvarsity]

15 minutes ago, LJB said:

If history has proven anything it would point towards Olympic qualifier being in December of 2027…

not trials…

trials has taken place in April of the last 4 quads…

absolutely no reason to think 2028 would be any different…

Qualifying the spot for the Olympics is changing. So our reps needs to be set so that we can send them to the events. I think that's the thought behind the earlier process. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

Total Olympic Quotas Per Weight Class: 16

 ├── Phase 1: 2027 World Championships ---> 4 Quotas

 ├── Phase 2: UWW World Rankings ---> 3 Quotas

 ├── Phase 3: Continental Qualifiers ---> 8 Quotas (2 per region)

 └── Phase 4: World Olympic Qualifier ---> 1 Quota

[LJB]

That is not wildly different from the past…

[LJB]

Should be noted the qualifying spots are not per individual but per country…

[bnwtwg]

15 minutes ago, LJB said:

That is not wildly different from the past…

It's not the allocation system that is different, it's the schedule and rankings invites + only two total competitors per country across six weights and three styles allowed to go participate in last chance. I'm telling you for a fact that December 2027 is being very heavily considered. The goal is to get the best squad asap in order to qualify the weights asap by sending the best wrestler, in return USAW has a better idea of how to stack-rank who gets to go to the oly last chance tourney. As a greco guy, this works heavily in your favor because GR is the least likely to qualify at any given olympic weight.

Edited July 30 by bnwtwg

[LJB]

Ok

[bnwtwg]

56 minutes ago, LJB said:

Ok

[LJB]

The simple fact of the matter is nothing has changed in the qualification process significantly…

and no matter what, those who are watching will find out in mid to late 2027 what the process will be…

[nhs67]

On 7/29/2026 at 10:58 AM, Dogbone said:

I don't think these guys really have an off season. 

It's late July. Worlds are not until late October.   

I actually think a better question is are we deciding the World Team too early?   Parker K was eliminated from being the US rep in late April at the US Open, 6 months prior to Worlds.   

I am not saying Parker would win the spot if the schedule was changed but I don't know how a guy is wrestling 6 months before the Worlds is the best data point either. 

Plus, the sports calendar is pretty lean right now.  Until football starts, its just baseball for another month.   Seems like a better time to determine our team from a viewing standpoint.  Of course, I wouldn't of held some of those events in the middle of the work work so what do I know.  

Why use PK as the example?  He is something like 0W-5L over the last year against the guy who has the spot at 86 KG.

[mspart]

On 7/27/2026 at 10:53 PM, BruceyB said:

Being able to push the World Team wrestle off for more essentially three months seems absolutely absurd to me. I'm not even stating that a returning medalist shouldn't get some flexibility for the wrestle-off date, but it simply seems absurd to me that the "challengers" for the team spot have to spend the entirety of their summer and well into September training for the wrestle-off in hopes of making the world team. 

I don't know as much about the challengers on the WFS side, but if I'm Bo Bassett, I would really like to know what I am training for over the next 60 days. Am I in off-season training mode where I can relax on the intensity and not worry about being at competition shape until November for folk, or am I training to win a World Title the last week of October?

 

First, I think these guys at this elevation don't do wrestle offs in hopes of making a world team.   It is just a necessary step to get there.   They have every confidence they will make it.  

Second, Bo is training to be a World Champion period.   He is training to win the wrestle off and then to win the WCs.   That's how these guys tick.   If not, then they are not going to prevail in the wrestle offs and if they do, certainly not the WCs.   He will train normally and peak at the right time for both.  That's the way these guys roll or they wouldn't be where they are.  

mspart

[LJB]

What is the prevailing wisdom in what woods is training for???