Iowa - both HWC and IWWC?

[1032004]

Putting this on the college forum because there are very few posts on the women’s forum, and since HWC wrestlers rarely wrestle internationally (kidding, kinda) it probably didn’t deserve to be on the international board.

I had noticed awhile back that a lot of Iowa’s women’s wrestlers when they wrestled in non-college events technically competed under the “Iowa Women’s Wrestling Club,” not HWC.

However I believe Kennedy Blades is part of HWC?  Is she the only woman on HWC?  And If they’re going to have Blades on HWC, why the separation at all?   Does this have to do with the Park Merry situation?

 

[okokzach]

I think she wanted to be coached by the Brands 

[Jimmy Cinnabon]

What male wrestlers are competing for HWC other than Lee?  It's 1 man band over there...

[AgaveMaria]

Maybe they feel they can't compete with Penn State?

[funnyfletcher]

2 hours ago, Jimmy Cinnabon said:

What male wrestlers are competing for HWC other than Lee?  It's 1 man band over there...

I think right now it's him, DeSanto and Buchanan. Teemer and Parco I heard are sticking around and will compete when healthy. Definitely need to add more

[Tripnsweep]

10 hours ago, 1032004 said:

Does this have to do with the Park Merry situation?

 

Perry is trying to get his real estate license and coach MMA in Arizona. 

[Jimmy Cinnabon]

1 hour ago, funnyfletcher said:

I think right now it's him, DeSanto and Buchanan. Teemer and Parco I heard are sticking around and will compete when healthy. Definitely need to add more

Has Buchanan actually competed in a HWC singlet?  Desanto has but he’s not really a legit contender. 

[funnyfletcher]

1 hour ago, Jimmy Cinnabon said:

Has Buchanan actually competed in a HWC singlet?  Desanto has but he’s not really a legit contender. 

Buchanan has not yet

[rsotelo]

7 hours ago, okokzach said:

I think she wanted to be coached by the Brands 

Kennedy is coached by Izzy Martinez.  He was in her corner in Paris and in Budapest this past weekend.

[CHROMEBIRD]

On 7/20/2025 at 3:49 AM, 1032004 said:

If they’re going to have Blades on HWC, why the separation at all?

Just a guess, but the IWWC/HWC designation might just be the sponsoring organization that is funding the wrestler's travel, entry fees, etc.? Similar to the way some wrestlers are affiliated with a school/RTC but show up as TMWC at tournaments?

[1032004]

29 minutes ago, CHROMEBIRD said:

Just a guess, but the IWWC/HWC designation might just be the sponsoring organization that is funding the wrestler's travel, entry fees, etc.? Similar to the way some wrestlers are affiliated with a school/RTC but show up as TMWC at tournaments?

Yeah I guess my question is why wouldn’t they just pool all the funds together as part of HWC?  Does Bob not wanna support the women unless they’re Olympic medalists?  

[CHROMEBIRD]

12 minutes ago, 1032004 said:

Yeah I guess my question is why wouldn’t they just pool all the funds together as part of HWC?  Does Bob not wanna support the women unless they’re Olympic medalists?  

Bob is weird, so idk about him specifically, but the two organizations have two distinct missions even though there's some overlap and they share the same facilities. One is general participation specifically for women & girls in the sport, the other is specifically to develop senior level freestyle & greco wrestlers. RTCs also have their own requirements and compliance rules with USAW (and maybe the IRS?), so having two entities might provide flexibility in the way they operate

[ScottishSteel]

20 hours ago, CHROMEBIRD said:

Bob is weird, so idk about him specifically, but the two organizations have two distinct missions even though there's some overlap and they share the same facilities. One is general participation specifically for women & girls in the sport, the other is specifically to develop senior level freestyle & greco wrestlers. RTCs also have their own requirements and compliance rules with USAW (and maybe the IRS?), so having two entities might provide flexibility in the way they operate

On the old Iowa board (not an Iowa fan just like to absorb as much wrestling content as I can), there was a thread that insinuated that Brands Bros weren't thrilled about having to share a facility they did all the fundraising for w/ a women's team and that a fair number of prominent donors shared that view; no idea how true any of that is but if it is than it would imply it's distinctly a division and not flexible cooperation . . . doesn't explain Kennedy Blades singlet though

[1032004]

3 hours ago, ScottishSteel said:

On the old Iowa board (not an Iowa fan just like to absorb as much wrestling content as I can), there was a thread that insinuated that Brands Bros weren't thrilled about having to share a facility they did all the fundraising for w/ a women's team and that a fair number of prominent donors shared that view; no idea how true any of that is but if it is than it would imply it's distinctly a division and not flexible cooperation . . . doesn't explain Kennedy Blades singlet though

Ah, hadn’t heard that, thanks.  But it’s not just a singlet, Blades is part of HWC.

https://hawkeyewrestlingclub.com/newsletter/may-2025/

Interesting that they don’t mind having pretty much their entire NCAA men‘s roster listed as part of HWC, but Blades appears to be the only woman to make the cut.  Keep in mind the women’s team also includes World Medalist Kylie Welker and 2x World Medalist Macey Kilty.