2002 Armed Forces Wrestling Championship to be held in Quantico, Va., March 30-31
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Jaimie McNab (USA Wrestling)
03/11/2002
The 2002 Armed Forces Wrestling Championship will be held at Larson Gymnasium in Quantico, Va., Saturday, March 30 and Sunday, March 31. The best wrestlers from the four branches of the Armed Forces - the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Air Force and U.S. Marines - will battle for individual and team honors. The competition is free of charge for all spectators. The U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force teams are stationed in Colorado Springs, Colo., while the U.S. Navy team is stationed in Pensacola, Fla. and the U.S. Marine Corps team is stationed in Quantico, Va. The U.S. Marines won both the freesyle and the Greco-Roman compeition at the 2001 Armed Forces Wrestling Championship, which was held in Ft. Hood, Texas. Dual meets will be held, with each of the teams competing against the other three teams. Individual medals will be determined based upon the results at each weight class. This will be the first Armed Forces Championships that will feature the new international weight classes established by FILA. As of Jan. 1, 2002 the weight classes for all three styles of wrestling were changed to seven classes, these new weight divisions are as follows: Men's freestyle and Greco-Roman: 121 lbs., 132 lbs., 145.5 lbs., 163 lbs., 185 lbs., 211.5 lbs. and 264.5 lbs. Opening ceremonies will be held at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 30. The Greco-Roman competition will be held on Saturday, March 30, with session times of 10:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. The freestyle competition will be held on Sunday, March 31, with session times at 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Awards will be pesented mat side after every other weight class for both freestyle and Greco-Roman. There were five double champions at the 2001 tournament (both freestyle and Greco-Roman). The Marine Corps came away with two double champions in Duaine Martin (Quantico, Va.) at 127.75 pounds and James Shillow (Quantico, Va.) at 138.75 pounds. For the Air Force: Jeff Cervone (Colorado Springs, Colo.) at 119 pounds and Corey Farkas (Colorado Springs, Colo.) at 286 pounds were double titlists. The lone double champion for the Army was Dominic Black (Colorado Springs, Colo.) at 213.75 pounds. The U.S. Army claimed three other freestyle individual champions and one Greco-Roman titlest. The freestyle champions included: Oscar Wood at 152 pounds, Charles Daniels at 167.5 pounds and Markese Nelson at 187.25 pounds. Keith Sieracki won the Greco-Roman title at 167.5 pounds. The U.S. Air Force had one Greco-Roman individual champion in Aaron Sieracki at 187.25 pounds. The U.S. Marine Corps also had one individual champion in Greco-Roman: Marcel Cooper at 152 pounds.