Over 30 U.S. athletes are expected to enter and compete at the 2004 Veterans World Freestyle Wrestling Championships in Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic, Sept. 10-12. The competition will be held in the Sport Hall TJ Slavia. Veterans are athletes 35-years old and above. They participate in five Age Divisions: Division A (35-40 yrs.), Division B (41-45 yrs.), Division C (56-50 yrs.), Division D (51-55 yrs) and Division E (56 yrs and older). The U.S. delegation is led by USA Wrestling National Freestyle Developmental Coach Dave Bennett (Colorado Springs, Colo.), who will also help coach the athletes. Competition begins on Friday, September 10, with pool competition in all weight classes. On Saturday, September 11, the pool competition is completed, and semifinals will be held. On Sunday, September 12, all of the gold and bronze medal matches will be held. A number of 2004 U.S. Veterans Nationals champions will participate in the competition. Those who won Veterans Freestyle National titles in 2004 and will compete at the Veterans Worlds include: Div A 69 kg - Steve Horton (Belleville, Ill.) Div. B 63 kg - James Kasser (Lewis Center, Iowa) Div. B 69 kg - Ronald Hughes (Hollister, Calif) Div. B 76 kg - Brad Swartz (Auburn, Wash.) Div. D 58 kg - Ed Knecht (Peoria, Ariz.) Div. D 69 kg - Russ Cozart (Brandon, Fla.) Div. D 130 kg - Gerald Ponce (Antioch, Calif.) Div. E 63 kg - Jack Hornbuckle (Poteau, Okla.) Div. E 76 kg - James Butcher (Richmond, Va.) Competing in the U.S. Veterans Nationals was not required in order to participate at the Veterans Worlds, but most of those on the U.S. team did compete in the Veterans Nationals this year. In 2003, four U.S. wrestlers won Veterans World gold medals in freestyle: Dwain Burkholder of Colorado (58 kg Div. D), Joseph Podraza of New York (97 kg Div. D), Donald Apodaca of California (85 kg Div. D) and Bob Anderson of California (97 kg Div. E). Overall the U.S. won 11 medals at the 2003 Veterans World Freestyle Championships. There will also be a Veterans World Greco-Roman Championships in Seinajoki, Finland, Sept. 23-26. A delegation of U.S. wrestlers are also expected to attend that championships. U.S ENTRIES AT VETERANS WORLD FREESTYLE CHAMPIONSHIPS Division A 58 kg - Clint Brooks (Fulton, Mo.) 58 kg - Charles Brooks (Fulton, Mo.) 69 kg - Steve Horton (Belleville, Ill.) 85 kg - Jeffery Anderson (Elburn, Ill.) 85 kg - Todd Falk (San Diego, Calif.) 97 kg - Hassan Oushani (Los Angeles, Calif.) Division B 58 kg - George Dunn (Bellevue, Wash.) 63 kg - James Kasser (Lewis Center, Ohio) 69 kg - Ronald Hughes (Hollister, Calif) 76 kg - Brad Swartz (Auburn, Wash.) 85 kg - Harry Porcher (W. Palm Beach, Fla.) 97 kg - Dale Porcher (W. Palm Beach Fla.) 97 kg - Eric Harmon (Lakeside, Ariz.) 97 kg - Jeff Henry (Los Angeles, Calif.) Division C 58 kg - Steve Hart (Parker, Colo.) 69 kg - Kurt Beinlich (Hudson, Wis.) 69 kg - Craig Johnson (Broomfield, Colo.) 76 kg - Bernard Sines (Brookfield, Wis.) 97 kg - Craig Vejuoda (Tulare, Calif.) Division D 58 kg - Ed Knecht (Peoria, Ariz.) 58 kg - Gerald Silva (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) 63 kg - Peter Zurfleigh (Camp Hill, Pa.) 69 kg - Russ Cozart (Brandon, Fla.) 76 kg - Gary Price (Mifflintown, Pa.) 130 kg - Gerald Ponce (Antioch, Calif.) Division E 63 kg - Shirzad Ahmadi (Coventry, Conn.) 63 kg - Jack Hornbuckle (Poteau, Okla.) 69 kg - James Baron (Dallas, Texas) 76 kg - Charles Boyd (Roanoke, Va.) 76 kg - James Butcher (Richmond, Va.) 76 kg - Gordon Connell (Chattanooga, Tenn.)