Takedown Report

International Wrestling News — # 4

IOC, IPC, Tokyo 2020 announce Olympics set for July 23 – August 8, 2021
BY INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE | MARCH 30, 2020, 
THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC), THE INTERNATIONAL PARALYMPIC COMMITTEE (IPC), THE TOKYO 2020 ORGANISING COMMITTEE, THE TOKYO METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT AND THE GOVERNMENT OF JAPAN TODAY AGREED NEW DATES FOR THE GAMES OF THE XXXII OLYMPIAD, IN 2021. THE OLYMPIC GAMES TOKYO 2020 WILL BE CELEBRATED FROM 23 JULY TO 8 AUGUST 2021. THEY ALSO AGREED ON NEW DATES FOR THE PARALYMPIC GAMES, WHICH WILL BE CELEBRATED FROM 24 AUGUST UNTIL 5 SEPTEMBER 2021.
The leaderships of the key parties came together via telephone conference earlier today, joined by IOC President Thomas Bach, Tokyo 2020 President Mori Yoshirō, Tokyo Governor Koike Yuriko and Olympic and Paralympic Minister Hashimoto Seiko, and agreed on the new schedule. This decision was taken based on three main considerations and in line with the principles established by the IOC Executive Board (EB) on 17 March 2020 and confirmed at its meeting today. These were supported by all the International Summer Olympic Sports Federations (IFs) and all the National Olympic Committees (NOCs):
1. To protect the health of the athletes and everyone involved, and to support the containment of the COVID-19 virus.
2. To safeguard the interests of the athletes and of Olympic sport.
3. The global international sports calendar.
These new dates give the health authorities and all involved in the organisation of the Games the maximum time to deal with the constantly changing landscape and the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  …. story at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/March/30/IOC-announces-dates-of-Tokyo-Olympic-Games?mc_cid=864912e0e4&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

‘That fire is burning as strong as ever’: Penn State legend David Taylor is fueled by his desire for more greatness
It’s that tale of painful irony we’re all familiar with. Someone does something which, by all accounts, they’ve come to perfect and has become routine for them — only to have that very same thing lead them astray and contribute to downfall or hardship. This became the story of much of the last year of David Taylor’s life. He was on top of the wrestling world and one step closer to achieving his ultimate goal of being an Olympic champion. Then, the same sport which he admits has been his near-singular focus since he was eight, seemingly played a cruel trick on him. The 2018 World champion at 86 kilograms, Taylor was wrestling at a charity event at Madison Square Garden last year when he tore his ACL and couldn’t finish the match he was competing in. It was the first major injury of the 29-year old’s career and one which sidelined him from competition for nearly a year. “I’ve been wrestling at the highest level since I was eight years old. I was wrestling in national tournaments and I’ve wrestled in every big event since that time and I’ve been pretty serious with wrestling,” Taylor told The Daily Collegian. “Wrestling’s been the primary focus really every day since that time.” As much as there was a ‘Why me?’ moment that crept into Taylor’s thoughts after he got injured, it was his past experiences and the fact that he was never injured before that served as a counterbalance on that scale. “You look at it two ways. Man, why is this happening when I was at the top of my game coming off a world championship?” Taylor said. “But the other way it’s like, well, I’ve been pretty fortunate to progress at the level I have and never be injured. So, I didn’t really dwell on that.” …. story at https://www.collegian.psu.edu/sports/wrestling/article_a452f6f8-721f-11ea-94ab-c735c9fb4ffa.html?mc_cid=864912e0e4&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Wrestling postponed until 2021: information and directions for ticket holders updated
BY USA WRESTLING, PENN STATE, USOC AND BRYCE JORDAN CENTER | MARCH 31, 2020, USA Wrestling, Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics, the Bryce Jordan Center and U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee have collectively decided to postpone the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Wrestling, scheduled for April 4- 5, 2020 at the Bryce Jordan Center. The International Olympic Committee has set the new dates for the Olympic Games in 2021. At this time, organizers are working closely with local officials and health experts in hopes of rescheduling the event at the Bryce Jordan Center in 2021. Updated event information will be shared as soon as it is available.
 After a new date is determined, tickets will be updated to reflect the rescheduled dates/time
o Previously purchased physical tickets will be reissued to the original purchaser
o Previously purchased mobile tickets will be automatically updated
 For fans who are unable to attend future dates, refunds are available by request to the original purchaser now through June 1, 2020
 Deadline to request a refund: June 1, 2020
An email was sent to original purchasers notifying them of the postponement in early March. Stay tuned for additional information via email regarding rescheduling. …. full story at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/March/31/Olympic-Trials-to-2021-and-ticket-holder-information-update?mc_cid=1f2298c90d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Dake reflects on Olympic postponement
By Dan Doherty, ESPN Ithaca
Had the world not been turned upside down by the coronavirus, this would be a very busy weekend for Lansing’s own Kyle Dake. The U.S. Olympic Wrestling Trials were scheduled to take place on April 4 and 5 inside the Bryce Jordan Center at Penn State University. Instead, it is one of many events in the sports world to either be postponed or canceled in an attempt to minimize large gatherings. Two weeks after that, it was announced that the Olympics as a whole would be moved to 2021, still set to take place in Tokyo, Japan. Dake, who is seeking his first-ever spot on the Olympic roster, was not surprised by the news of the delay.
“I found out about the postponement pretty much the same time everyone else did,” Dake said. “I had a feeling it was going to be postponed, especially with everything going on. … We had some hope that it would be Memorial Day Weekend and we’d still be able to make a push for the Olympics and it would be on schedule.”
That hope waned quickly for Dake after he was part of a video conference call with over 300 United States athletes. He found out that athletes from swimming and track and field were not given a chance to qualify for the Olympics. The sailing team would have been unable to get their equipment to Japan. The United States had no choice but to come out in favor of not holding the games. Some athletes came out and said they would love to participate in the games this year, in spite of the pandemic. Dake would rather be on the safe side of history. …. story at https://www.tompkinsweekly.com/stories/dake-reflects-on-olympic-postponement,3775?mc_cid=1f2298c90d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

N.J. Olympian Frank Molinaro announces retirement from wrestling
By Bill Evans | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
There won’t be another miracle run to the Olympics for Frank Molinaro. The three-time state champion from Southern Regional High School and 2016 Olympian announced his retirement from wrestling on Tuesday morning in an interview on FloWrestling. Molinaro had qualified for the Olympic Trials with a fifth-place finish at Senior Nationals and was planning to either qualify for the Olympics or retire at the Trials which would have been held this weekend at Penn State – where Molinaro was a four-time All-American and NCAA champion.
But the Olympics were postponed – and on Tuesday USA Wrestling announced the Trials wouldn’t be held until 2021 as well – because of the coronavirus.
LATEST CORONAVIRUS UPDATES FROM NJ.COM
“There wasn’t a date set (for the Olympics) when they first canceled the (Olympic) Trials,” Molinaro told FloWrestling. “When they postponed the Olympics a year, I really took some time to download the information and process it, I thought it through and decided to hang them up.” The 31-year old Molinaro has been a college coach at Rutgers, Penn State and Virginia Tech. He left Virginia Tech at the end of 2018 to give his competitive career one last chance and he hooked on with the Oklahoma RTC. …. story at https://www.nj.com/sports/2020/03/nj-olympian-frank-molinaro-announces-retirement-from-wrestling.html?mc_cid=1f2298c90d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

USA Wrestling suspends sanctioned events and national events through May 10
BY USA WRESTLING | MARCH 31, 2020, – With unanimous support of the USA Wrestling COVID-19 Advisory Committee, USA Wrestling has suspended all sanctioned events and national events through May 10. This is an extension of a previous suspension of activities announced on March 16, which discontinued sanctioned events through April 6 and postponed or canceled national events through April 20. For USA Wrestling, our number one priority is always the safety of our athletes and their families, all our members, our national staff and the entire U.S. wrestling community. This decision aligns USA Wrestling with the U.S. Center for Disease Control’s guidance from March 16 that no gatherings of 50 or more people take place for the following eight weeks. …. story at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/March/31/USA-Wrestling-suspends-sanctioned-and-national-events-through-May-10?mc_cid=1f2298c90d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

USA Wrestling for Peace sets up in the Middle East, with Dan Russell living in Jordan for months so far
BY USA WRESTLING FOR PEACE | APRIL 03, 2020
USA Wrestling for Peace Ambassador Dan Russell moved to Amman, Jordan about six months ago to establish Wrestling for Peace in the region. He has formed a joint committee with the Jordanian Wrestling Federation to serve the needs of those in the wrestling match of life. Everyone wrestles. For the people of Jordan, the Middle-East and throughout the Asia region, wrestling bridges the gap to greater understanding and respect that can positively impact local communities. Why would we establish a USA Wrestling for Peace base in Amman, Jordan? With ongoing war in the region and animosity, Jordan is one of the few countries that has remained focused on keeping peace and living in harmony. Jordan is the poorest Arab country with widespread unemployment. Refugees from Syria and Iraq have flooded its borders and much of its resources and attention are directed toward the refugees, while Jordanians suffer as well. Plagued with water shortages, Jordan ranks second in the world with least access to clean water. With tremendous partners like “Make it Rain,” we can also provide much needed Humanitarian Aid where the needs are great and develop grass roots wrestling programs that can play a big role in teaching character and values. …. story at https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Wrestling/Features/2020/April/03/USA-Wrestling-for-Peace-in-Jordan?mc_cid=1f1b7bdc6e&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Top Canadian wrestlers urge community to stay home
Canadian wrestlers Erica Wiebe, Danielle Lappage, and Sam Stewart are encouraging Canadians to stay at home and practice social distancing and Canada works to minimize the spread of the COVID-19 virus. “I’m at home doing my part to physical distance,” said Wiebe, 2016 Olympic Champion and qualifier for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, now set for 2021. “That means no wrestling for a little while. I know it sucks for everybody at home who feels like their season has ended and all the hard work they put in is gone. I just want to send a reminder that the hard work you put in this season will stay, it will always be there. You are the athlete you’ve always been.” …. story at https://wrestling.ca/top-canadian-wrestlers-urge-community-to-stay-home/?mc_cid=91538a90c1&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Alumni Spotlight: Ashnault’s Olympic Goal Continues Despite Postponement
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – As a professional athlete vying for a spot in the next Olympic Games, Anthony Ashnault has access to some of the best facilities, practice partners and coaching the wrestling community has to offer. Training alongside standouts such as Jordan Burroughs, Kyle Snyder, Yianni Diakomihalis, Tyler Graff and Tony Nelson as a member of the U.S. men’s freestyle team, Ashnault most recently locked up a spot in the 2020 Olympic Trials after he won gold at the Pan American Championships on March 9 in Ottawa, Canada.  He became the second Scarlet Knight to earn a spot at the upcoming trials, as Nick Suriano secured his place at the tournament with his fourth-place finish at Senior Nationals on Dec. 22, 2019 in Fort Worth, Texas. …. story at https://scarletknights.com/news/2020/3/31/wrestling-alumni-spotlight-ashnaults-olympic-goal-continues-despite-postponement.aspx?mc_cid=1f2298c90d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Virginia Tech’s Ty Walz’s Olympic dreams on hold
Walz was set to compete in the Olympic Trials
BLACKSBURG, Va. – Former Virginia Tech wrestler Ty Walz should be at Penn State on Friday at the Olympic Trials, wrestling for a spot on Team USA. Instead, he’s at his home in Blacksburg. “We were actually prepping to start cutting weight, getting in really, really good shape, zoning in on our focus and our training, and preparing for competition,” Walz said. Walz’s progress was at its peak as it came to a screeching halt just weeks away from his biggest stage to date. “Then they postponed trials, after that the Olympics obviously,” he said. “I felt like I was extremely prepared and 100% ready to start dialing in and getting ready to compete, so it was a little disheartening to see it was postponed.” …. story at https://www.wsls.com/sports/2020/04/03/virginia-techs-ty-walzs-olympic-dreams-on-hold/?mc_cid=1f1b7bdc6e&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Toby Erickson’s Olympic dreams on hold after trials postponed
By: Tom WyliePosted Apr 07, 2020 
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — East Helena’s Toby Erickson has always dreamed of competing in the Olympics. “This has been my dream since I was 5 years old,” he said. ”I’m 100 percent totally invested in this.” In December, Erickson finished third at the US Open wrestling tournament at 130 kilograms and qualified for the US Olympic Team Trials for the third time in his career in the Greco-Roman discipline. But his training is on hold while he waits in limbo for competition to resume following the postponement of the Trials and the Olympics due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Erickson was near the end of the eight-week training cycle and ready to compete. The Trials were originally set for April 4-5 at Penn State but were officially postponed on March 13. …. story at https://www.montanasports.com/more-sports/toby-ericksons-olympic-dreams-on-hold-after-trials-suspended?mc_cid=9b0303e966&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Columbia native Eierman awaiting chance at Iowa, Olympic trials
Next weekend was supposed to be Jaydin Eierman’s chance at qualifying for the 2020 Summer Olympics. The Columbia native and former Missouri wrestler was primed to take to the mats for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in University Park, Pennsylvania, home of Penn State University. Eierman was training every day since the middle of November for this opportunity in Iowa City, Iowa. But due to the coronavirus, Eierman’s possible place on the world stage will have to wait a year as the Tokyo Games have been postponed to 2021. Eierman, who took an Olympic redshirt this past year after three straight All-American seasons at Missouri, announced in November he would be transferring to Iowa for his final collegiate campaign. He sat out this past season to train for the Olympics and figures to be a key member of the Hawkeyes’ lineup next winter. Eierman’s plan — should no further wrestling be delayed due to the pandemic — is to wrestle at Iowa at either 141 or 149 pounds this coming season and help the Hawkeyes contend for a national team title. …. story at https://www.columbiatribune.com/sports/20200328/columbia-native-eierman-awaiting-chance-at-iowa-olympic-trials?mc_cid=1270ffe756&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Olympic postponement gives Durango wrestler Nick Tarpley time
Nick Tarpley could barely move his neck. The clock was ticking. He wasn’t going to be at his best. Then, the world changed in a matter of a month. The new coronavirus swept the planet as COVID-19 cases soared and brought the sports world to a standstill. The 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo were postponed. Suddenly, Tarpley was given time. …. story at https://durangoherald.com/articles/319568?mc_cid=b9ab82d4d9&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

April 13, 2020 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Cancellation News — 5th & Last group of stories

Past adversity helps Kent State’s Andrew McNally cope with NCAA cancellation
Former Lake state wrestling champion Andrew McNally saw his junior season at Kent State cut short when the NCAA Championships were canceled. His even-keeled ability to handle that news has come, in part, from past situations which he has gone through during his career.
UNIONTOWN The news that ended Andrew McNally’s junior season wrestling at Kent State University didn’t come as a surprise. That didn’t mean he wasn’t disappointed, either. McNally had earned his second consecutive bid to the NCAA Wrestling Championships. It was the second consecutive year both he and his former Lake High School and Eastern Michigan University teammate Zac Carson, now at Ohio University, had qualified for the tournament. However, on March 12, the NCAA announced the tournament would be canceled due to concerns over the spread of coronavirus. Thus McNally, Carson and the other 328 wrestlers saw their season ended in an instant. “I mean, obviously it sucks,” McNally said this week. “It was not the news you want to get. I really saw it coming after they canceled the NBA stuff. Once I heard that, I was like, they’re definitely going to cancel our stuff. It’s just a matter of time.” McNally’s even-keeled approach to handling the news that his chance at earning All-American status had been taken from him may surprise some. Those people, however, may not be familiar with the various hurdles which have sprung up over the course of his wrestling career. Two in particular, McNally believes, have helped to provide perspective even in a situation such as a pandemic. In both cases, they brought the end to at least one chapter of his wrestling career. After winning a Division I state championship as a junior at Lake, McNally’s senior season was ended when he failed a pre-state tournament skin check in 2016. Then, after his redshirt freshman season at Eastern Michigan in 2018, the university announced it was folding the wrestling program, among others, due to budget issues. “I compared this to some other things that have happened in my career,” McNally said. “Like when I didn’t past skin checks at state and when the team got cut at Eastern. It’s not like it’s the worst thing that has happened to me, so far. So, I was able to handle it pretty well, I think.” McNally admits he’s lived his life, especially since the Eastern Michigan situation, to, in his own words, “expect the unexpected.” That’s even if the unexpected turns out to be a worldwide pandemic which had altered life not just for athletes, but virtually everyone in society. What has changed, though, is a certain perspective. Part of that is simply maturation that comes with growing up, but the other part comes through personal experience. “Compared to how I react now compared to then, when I was in high school and it happened, I was like, almost felt like it was the end of the world,” McNally said. “I took it really hard and was really sad about that for a while. But as I’ve gotten older and I realize that things just happen and, when we got cut at Eastern, I was pretty sad about it, but I picked myself up. This time, same thing. I was upset about it for a couple of days, but you just kind of accept it and realize there’s nothing you can do to prevent that.” The natural frustration for McNally comes from the fact he believed he was primed for a podium push when the tournament started March 19. After going 33-11 in his first season at Kent State last year, including a win during his NCAA Championships debut, he had come back this past season to find his groove heading into March. McNally posted a 31-7 record, while finishing second in the Mid-American Conference at 174 pounds. He was seeded 21st in the NCAA Championships, and was slated to open against Oklahoma State’s Joseph Smith. …. story at https://www.cantonrep.com/sports/20200327/past-adversity-helps-kent-statersquos-andrew-mcnally-cope-with-ncaa-cancellation?mc_cid=5dfdb1c828&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Leistikow: Tom Brands still seeking closure for an Iowa wrestling season cut short
Tom Brands, like most of us these days in our new isolated world, is trying to focus on the things he can control. Like housework. “I’ve mopped the floor three or four times at home,” the Iowa wrestling coach says. “I haven’t mopped the floor in 10 years.” Beyond spending more time with wife Jeni in their east-side Iowa City home, Brands has spent the past two weeks coping with and “moving forward” — his commonly used coaching mantra — from the NCAA’s cancellation of all winter and spring sports championships over the global COVID-19 pandemic. Perhaps no Division I program in any sport had as much stripped from its grasp than Iowa wrestling. When word of the cancellation hit, the top-ranked Hawkeyes were seven days away from starting what was expected to be a long-awaited title coronation. With three wrestlers seeded No. 1, two more in the top three and another four in the top eight, they were poised to unseat Penn State and win the storied program’s first NCAA wrestling title since 2010. …. story and video at https://www.hawkcentral.com/story/sports/college/columnists/chad-leistikow/2020/03/27/leistikow-tom-brands-still-seeks-closure-his-iowa-wrestlers-covid-19-cancellation/5082224002/?mc_cid=5dfdb1c828&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Replay the winter sports season? The NCAA is wrestling with that question and others
By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND, Ohio – Should the NCAA allow seniors on basketball teams, wrestling teams and other winter sports to return next season for another year of eligibility? That’s one of the questions the NCAA will consider when it holds a vote on Monday. The NCAA also will consider extending an extra year of eligibility to those playing spring sports, since those were wiped out by the virus. Cleveland State athletic director Scott Garrett believes the measure to let seniors who planned to play spring sports this year return for another season “make sense” and is likely to pass. Not every player will want to return. Some elite baseball players were expecting to enter the Major League Baseball draft in June. That also assumes MLB has its draft on schedule. That probably will happen, but who knows in this climate of uncertainty. The other element is cost. Spring sports are much cheaper than Division I basketball. As Duquesne coach Keith Dambrot said, “We played 30 games, but we didn’t have our conference tournament. We didn’t finish our season, but we had a long season. It’s a hard one to figure out.” Dambrot said some teams such as his were preparing for their conference tournaments. Others had already secured an NCAA berth. Yet for others, the season was over. …. story at https://www.cleveland.com/sports/college/2020/03/replay-the-winter-sports-season-the-ncaa-is-wrestling-with-that-question-and-others.html?mc_cid=5dfdb1c828&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Jordan’s Kelvington battled his entire career
Augustana senior wrestler Ben Kelvington wanted to end his career at the Premier Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.  He was able to do that, just not in the way he dreamed of.  The NCAA Division II wrestling national championships were ready to start last week and Kelvington, who attends Augustana University, was set to compete for a national championship at 174 pounds. But the NCAA canceled all winter national championships due to concerns over the novel coronavirus. Kelvington’s wrestling career was over. “My reaction was pretty much disappointment and sadness,” he said. “Everyone in the arena seemed pretty stunned, and it was eerily quiet on the floor for a few minutes. Most people were in disbelief. I sat down and called first my girlfriend then my dad to let them know what had happened. Teammates, coaches, and administrators came up and gave me hugs.”
Kelvington, a Jordan High School graduate, got his wish to finish his career at the Premier Center because soon after they canceled the tournament, he was awarded the prestigious Elite 90 Award on the center’s floor.  …. story at https://www.swnewsmedia.com/jordan_independent/news/sports/jordan-s-kelvington-battled-his-entire-career/article_9efb8277-a702-5d93-a56b-db3c7cf230c7.html?mc_cid=5dfdb1c828&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Futile trip: Howard, UPJ teammates ‘shocked’ when Division II Championships canceled
Brendan Howard and his University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown teammates had completed two workouts and were ready to take the mat the next day at the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships when a startling development occurred. Mountain Cats head coach Pat Pecora had a meeting with his eight national qualifiers and informed them that the championships had been canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. “Obviously, it was a big shock,” Howard said. “I was about a pound-and-a-half off weight and we had two practices in at the facility. We were ready to go, but we had a meeting around 3. We kind of had a feeling of what was going to happen, but we hoped that they would let us compete, even if it was under certain restrictions.” Howard, who is a Jefferson-Morgan graduate, would have competed in his last collegiate wrestling matches in the national tournament, as he was the third seed at 125 pounds, but had to leave the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and fly back home as his career came to an unprecedented end. He finished his senior season at 27-2 and was eighth place in the national tournament last season. Howard transferred to Pitt-Johnstown from Clarion University during the second semester of his sophomore year. “We had gone through an entire season and worked to get to this level, and then, we can’t wrestle the last two days,” Howard said. “You are not able to get closure on your career as a wrestler. It is also tough for the underclassmen that were here because you never know what will happen down the road in their careers.” One of those underclassmen for UPJ was freshman and Hopewell graduate Jacob Ealy, who was the top seed at 141. …. story at https://observer-reporter.com/sports/futile-trip-howard-upj-teammates-shocked-when-division-ii-championships/article_a69e4166-8128-566f-bc95-e776b283c45d.html?mc_cid=1270ffe756&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Leistikow: NCAA needs to do right thing — vote ‘yes’ on eligibility after mass coronavirus cancellations
There’s a seismic vote planned for Monday that could change the near future of college sports. The NCAA’s Division I Council is set to determine whether athletes whose seasons were cut short from concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic should be granted an extra year of collegiate eligibility. The decision, especially for spring sports athletes whose seasons were just getting under way when the NCAA determined to cancel all winter and spring championships, would on the surface seem to be a no-brainer. And the 40 or so administrators who are convening Monday know that, too. But in this case, the right decision is going to be the most difficult decision. Voting yes to an extra year of eligibility would mean signing off on the possibility of millions of extra dollars in scholarship costs to universities already in more precarious cash-flow positions by the cancellation of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament … with the possibility of a washed-out or shortened football season further crippling budgets. …. story at https://amp.hawkcentral.com/amp/2938124001?__twitter_impression=true&mc_cid=1270ffe756&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Mark Johnson empathizes with NCAA athletes’ lost opportunities
Mark Johnson knows what it’s like to seemingly work your whole life for one opportunity — and for that opportunity to be ripped away for reasons outside of your control. Johnson, a two-time NCAA All-American wrestler at Michigan and two time Big Ten Coach of the Year during his long Illini coaching tenure (1992-2009), was a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Team — one that never competed due to the United States’ boycott of the games in the Soviet Union. So Johnson immediately empathized with the thousands of collegiate athletes who were robbed of competition earlier this month when the NCAA canceled the winter and spring sports seasons due to the spread of infectious disease COVID-19. “When you’re in the middle of it, it is devastating,” Johnson told Illini Inquirer. “You put everything into it. You’re a student-athlete. I was a good student, so I get that part of it. But when you’re an athlete, that part of kind of takes over during the season. You just feel bad for these guys.” Thousands of NCAA student-athletes were robbed of postseasons or the majority of their regular seasons due to the shutdown of college sports during this pandemic. Many likely missed out on their greatest opportunities for individual and team athletic success. Forty years ago, Johnson experienced the same thing. In total, 65 nations did not participate in the 1980 Summer Olympic Games in Moscow, many due to the protestation of the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The United States and President Jimmy Carter led the effort with about 97 percent of the U.S. Congress approving resolutions for the boycott — a measure with which the United States Olympic Committee complied. …. https://247sports.com/college/illinois/Article/Coronavirus-Illinois-wrestling-Mark-Johnson-1980-Olympic-boycott-145424033/?mc_cid=b9ab82d4d9&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Brands: Hawkeyes deserve more than an asterisk
Tom Brands knows the moment will never be the same, but the Iowa wrestling coach believes the 2019-20 season deserves to be more than an asterisk in a record book. Acknowledging the COVID-19 pandemic is “enemy No. 1” at the moment, Brands said Tuesday he believes the NCAA needs to take a closer look at eligibility relief for winter sports student-athletes who were not awarded an additional year of competition on Monday by the NCAA. Brands, who completes a quarantine today after coming into contact with someone who has been diagnosed with the coronavirus, said during a teleconference he believes there should be some sort of appeals process available for competitors who were dealing with extraneous circumstances. He pointed to Hodge Trophy winner Spencer Lee as an example. Unlike a number of his top-tier peers, Lee opted to compete at the college level this past season instead of using an Olympic redshirt year that would have been available to him to train as an Olympic hopeful without using a year of eligibility. Among the reasons Lee opted to do that was to give himself an opportunity to compete for a third consecutive NCAA championship at 125 pounds this year and position himself for the chance as a senior to become the sport’s fifth four-time champ. Brands realizes that any appeals process is something that will take place down the road, adding that experience has taught him to fight that fight at an appropriate time. Lee said on Monday he plans to compete for Iowa again next season, providing time for any sort of eligibility appeal to take place. “Four (championships) is very important to him,” Brands said. “But he has to win three before he can win four, so regardless of how he goes about moving forward to get an opportunity to win four, he’s first got to win three.” …. https://qctimes.com/sports/college/wrestling/brands-hawkeyes-deserve-more-than-an-asterisk/article_71270ca8-6d88-54a4-a238-730c327c946b.html?mc_cid=1f2298c90d&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Dunn’s quest for 2nd national title ended abruptly in South Dakota lobby
By Desmond Boyle | For lehighvalleylive.com
Collegiate wrestlers who reach the national tournament often do so, in part, because they have a level of toughness and emotional control that few others possess. When defending NCAA Division II heavyweight champion Andrew Dunn, a Bethlehem Catholic graduate, looked around a hotel lobby in South Dakota, less than 24 hours away from the national tournament, he saw a crack in his fellow wrestlers’ emotional steel. “It just seemed like things were moving quick and then I went to the lobby of my hotel. I just had to get out of my room when I started feeling worked up … I walked with this group of wrestlers to their coach and he basically confirmed that the tournament was called off,” Dunn said. “In that moment a lot of guys, a lot of other athletes competing that weekend in the lobby — big, strong, tough guys — (were) crying and just really upset. This is the weekend you work all year for, and it was just poor timing with the coronavirus.” Poor timing might be an understatement. The coronavirus outbreak forced the NCAA to cancel the Division I, II and III individual wrestling tournaments, after brackets were set and competitors were ready. Forced to cope with the reality that a year’s worth of work wouldn’t culminate in another national championship, Dunn, along his coaches and a few teammates from Kutztown University, decided they didn’t want to stay in Sioux Falls for a second longer after hearing the news. …. story at https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/highschoolsports/2020/04/for-wrestlers-like-andrew-dunn-the-cancelled-ncaa-tourney-leaves-a-cruel-what-if.html?mc_cid=3d6cefac15&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

Tom Ryan adamant about All-American wrestlers being recognized
Many winter sports ended abruptly due to COVID-19, and wrestling was left in a particularly odd place, having yet to announce All-Americans due to the NCAA Tournament getting shelved. Ohio State’s Tom Ryan is not ok with that, and it’s anything but an act of selfishness. He just wants his players recognized for their hard work. A top-five wrestling program in the nation, Ohio State, if Ryan’s concept would have been adopted, would have numerous All-Americans. “There’s a possibility that you simply do like college football did before there was a playoff: whatever you were ranked in the last ranking, that’s where you finish. If you were ranked 1, you finish the season No. 1; if you were ranked 2, you’re No. 2; if you were ranked 7, you’re No. 7,” he noted on The Eleven Dubcast, an Eleven Warriors podcast. For Ohio State, that’s like naming them the third-best team in football, although that really wouldn’t do much given the structure of their All-American selections. Ohio State wrestling coach Tom Ryan, currently on a teleconference with reporters, said he believes wrestlers should be awarded All-American honors based on what their seeds were in the NCAA Tournament since winter sports athletes were not granted any additional eligibility. — Dan Hope (@Dan_Hope) April 1, 2020
It would matter greatly for wrestling. If Ryan’s ways were adopted, the program would have three first-team nominations, Luke Pletcher, Kollin Morre and Sammy Sasso. They’d have a second-team and third-team All-American as well in Kaleb Romero and Ethan Smith respectively. “If you were ranked from No. 1 to No. 4, you’re considered first-team All-American,” Ryan continued. “If you’re ranked from No. 5 to No. 8, you’re second-team. And 9 to 12, you were third-team.” …. story at https://buckeyeswire.usatoday.com/2020/04/03/ohio-state-wrestling-tom-ryan-wants-all-americans-recognized/?mc_cid=1f1b7bdc6e&mc_eid=2ef7cbca4b

April 13, 2020 Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized | Leave a comment