USA Wrestling to conduct Women’s Wrestling Development Forum during Women’s FILA Cadet and FILA Juni

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Gary Abbott (USA Wrestling)
05/24/2001


USA Wrestling will conduct an open forum on the development of women's wrestling during the Women's FILA Cadet National Championships, as well as the Women's FILA Junior Nationals and World Team Trials, both which are held in Dayton, Ohio.    The forum is scheduled for Saturday, June 2 at 6:00 p.m. It will be held in a meeting room at Hara Arena, the site of the competition. This will be immediately after the weigh-ins for the FILA Junior Nationals, and before the evening session for the FILA Cadet Nationals.    The forum will be led by Gary Abbott, USA Wrestling's Director of Special Projects. Abbott has been assigned to work on the development of women's wrestling for USA Wrestling, and has been setting up opportunities for those interested to help form a national strategy.    Parents, athletes, coaches, fans and wrestling leaders are invited to give their input about the development of women's wrestling . Opinions about the best strategy to help fuel the growth of women's wrestling on all levels will be discussed.     USA Wrestling has already conducted open forums at three major events this spring. Four-time World Champion Tricia Saunders of the Sunkist Kids conducted a forum at the USGWA National High School Championships in Lake Orion, Mich., March 24. Mike Duroe, USA Wrestling's Head Women's Coach, conducted a forum at the University Nationals in Evanston, Ill., March 31. Abbott led the open forum that was held at the U.S. Nationals Championships in Las Vegas, Nev., April 13. All of the previous forums were well attended and productive.    This meeting will be a followup from the other three meetings, which provided opportunity for input on developing the sport on all levels.    "Our open forums have been very successful in providing an opportunity for those interested in women's wrestling to share ideas and opinions," said Abbott. "We are hoping that this meeting can help us to shape a short-term and long-term strategy for building women's wrestling. We are working to encourage more women to participate in wrestling, and provide better programs for those interested in the sport."    All interested in this issue are invited to attend these meetings if they can. Those who have opinions and input are also encouraged to visit TheMat.com, and post their thoughts on the Women's bulletin board.    The best young women freestyle wrestlers in the United States will travel to Dayton, Ohio to compete in these two major USA Wrestling national championship events. These tournaments are open, meaning there are no pre-qualification requirements. Athletes who wish to compete must meet age requirements.    The FILA Cadet age level includes athletes who are 15-17 years old. Top young high school and middle school wrestlers from across the nation will battle for coveted national championships and All-American honors.    The FILA Junior World age level includes athletes from 17-20 years old. FILA, the international federation, hosts a World Championships at this age group each year. The champions from this event will be eligible to represent the United States at the FILA Junior World Championships in Martigny, Switzerland, Aug. 16-19.     This competition will be held alongside the Central Kids/Cadet Regional Championships, featuring the top youth athletes from ages 9-16  from Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and West Virginia.