USA Wrestling has released the following information about the wildcard selection process for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team Trials in Iowa City, Iowa, April 21-22.

Wild-Card Selection 

There will be a maximum of 10 total athletes in Men’s Freestyle and 4 total athletes in Greco-Roman allowed into the 2012 Olympic Trials through the Wild-Card process. The  National Coach will take petitions for Wild-Cards up until four calendar days after the Final Olympic Trials Qualifier. The National Coach will recommend individuals based on competitive readiness for the 2012 Olympic Trials, injury or illness, and the ability to be competitive at the Olympic Games to a three person committee. The committee will then either approve or deny each Wild-Card petitioner individually. The committee will consist of an athlete representative and two members appointed by USA Wrestling.

Those individuals interested in petitioning into the Olympic Trials need to contact National Teams Director Mitch Hull or National Coach Steve Fraser for Greco-Roman or National Coach Zeke Jones for Freestyle. This can be done at any time but no later than April 4 for Freestyle and April 5 for Greco-Roman.

Athletes should also know the following

Athletes are requested in their petition to give their name, weight class, major accomplishments, wins against nationally ranked opponents, the reason why they should be considered and why they have not yet qualified.

"In my mind, we should really be narrowing down to those that we believe can make the Olympic Team and those that can win medals.  That’s it. I don’t see the Olympic Trials as a development tournament but more as a test of who is the best guy for the job in London," said National Freestyle Coach Zeke Jones.

Athletes in all three styles can still qualify for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials by competing in the Final U.S. Olympic Trials Qualifying Tournament in Cedar Falls, Iowa, March 31-April 1. The top two in each of the 18 Olympic weight classes will earn a spot in the field in Iowa City.

"I’ve told many of our young wrestlers that they shouldn’t rely on the wildcard process but ensure they qualify by going to the last qualifier in Iowa. That’s the best way to make sure you wrestle in Iowa City," said Jones.